Where Were You, the Day the World Changed?

I had sent 3 of my kids off to school and was putsing around the house with my preschooler in tow when my phone rang. . . it was my carpool buddy and she was asking me if I wanted her to pick up my kids from school.

I replied, “Why would I need you to get my children?”

She said, “Don’t you know? The United States is under attack! And our children are so close to the airport that I’m going to pick mine up and I’ll pick yours up if you want me too.”

My mind was reeling, “What’s happening?  This is America! Should I have my children come home?”

I opted to leave my children at school and rushed to turn on the television.

It was as if my mind could not take in what was happening. I stared in horror at the pictures of the towers burning and of people plummeting to their deaths. Then watched as the towers disintegrated, leaving a vast amount of rubble and people running for their lives. I wondered what it must have been like to be trapped in that burning building so far off the ground. What were loved ones thinking as they watched those towers fall?

The day was so surreal. I dragged myself away from the T.V. to take my youngest to preschool and then went grocery shopping (we needed food!). It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop – there were so few people in the store and the ones that were there were not talking, we were all in a state of shock. When I picked up my children later that day, they knew something bad had happened but they had no idea what it was. That evening I sat out in my front yard with a neighbor and we cried together. She was worried about a friend who worked in the World Trade Centers.

That night as I tucked my kids in bed, I couldn’t help but wonder, “What kind of world will my children be growing up in?” Everything was so tenuous; there was no way to predict the future, and no way to comprehend how it was going to impact all our lives.

Just months before our nation had been in upheaval about who would be our next president, there was talk of "hanging chads" and voter corruption. We had never had an election like this in the history of our country. The media was in a frenzy over the whole fiasco and “mud” was being flung everywhere. It was during that time of turmoil that God gave me a verse that quieted my soul and gave me peace.

Yours, LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,
for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. 1 Chronicles 29:11-12 (NLV)

There was no way to even imagine what was just around the corner for our nation.

That day on 9/11 God reminded me of this verse. When I reflected back on the time that God had given me that verse, I thought how insignificant my worries were then, compared to what we were  facing now and what this meant for all of us in the future. Would we go to war? Would my children eventually be called up to serve and defend their country? Would we lose friends and relatives? What would our country be like? Would we ever feel secure? Once again, God used this verse to remind me. . . He is in CONTROL.

When our country is in upheaval, as it was on the day of September 11, 2001 . . . God is in CONTROL. When we are faced with wars and rumors of wars . . . God is in CONTROL. When earthquakes and hurricanes devastate our land . . . God is in CONTROL. When stock markets crash and European markets fail . . . God is in CONTROL. When we lose our jobs, when loved ones become ill, when teenagers rebel, when our world is turned upside down, KNOW THIS . . . God is in CONTROL!

Yours, LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,
for everything in heaven and earth is yours . . .

Let us never forget the sorrow we all shared on that day, 10 years ago. And may we remember and honor all those who have fought and given their lives for our freedom and liberty.

We will NEVER forget . . .