Remembering…

I was parking my car across from my school and I was listening to Moody Morning Show as usual. But I just  sat there, not moving, stunned. Before I picked up my bags to walk in I heard words that created an enormous empty space in my heart. Mark Elfstrand was doing his best to give a worthy report of the tragic day that we are honoring and remembering 10 years later.The magnitude of the horror was known throughout that week, and other attacks were no longer feared. Still my heart and mind ached for the families. I thought about them often. I thought about those that died that day and I wondered how many knew God or had time to talk to Him before the end. Christ was there ready to reveal Himself to them. I hope they listened.

(a quote from the last woman rescued from the tower told about her pleas to God) “When the building collapsed, I was totally prepared to die. During those 27 hours beneath the rubble I was praying so hard. Not at the beginning, because I didn’t know what to say. I was a little religious because of my Mom, but not totally, so I just started to talk to God. Like, I know I’m going to die, I want to change if you just save me. I’ll be a better person, please just get me out of here. I was just begging for God to show me a sign. Just hear me—just give me a second chance.” Interview with Genelle Guzman-McMillan

New footage from private citizen videos is revealing so much more of the pain, the fear, the panic, the chaos. It’s hard to watch, yet it helps us connect with those who were there. The remembering brings back the magnitude of the loss. It was hell on earth for so many. “I walked around traumatized for over a year. It will never leave me.” (quote from a citizen photographer from Manhattan)

There still are no words to grasp the whole of it all. There probably never will be. My heart still aches, the sorrow remains.

God was sought after with confused spirits. Everyday my prayer journal pleaded for people to be found alive. The search and clean-up seemed to last forever, and the healing began.  Beautiful, thoughtful memorials and ceremonies are taking place today in our country and across the world. Weeks, months, and years have passed. For most of us, we probably don’t remember that day except on its anniversary. Those dear people who lost a mom, a father, brother, or sister; a friend, a co-worker, or neighbor will remember in a way that the rest of us cannot begin to comprehend. The survivors, the eye-witnesses, and the first responders have memories that still need the heart of God to comfort them.

But time does heal and our lives have gone back to our overactive, time-crowded world. On September 11, 2001 we stopped being busy. 10 years later busy-ness has crept back into our lives with a vengeance.  Even our kids are becoming just like us.

882 boys and girls, 9-13 were recently polled about being busy.

Almost all of them (90%) said they felt stressed because they were too busy. About half said they felt this way once in a while or some of the time. But 17% said they felt this way most of the time and 24% said they felt like this all the time! Oh dear, that’s no fun. Only 4% of kids said they wanted less free time and 18% said they already had just the right amount. But, no big surprise, 61% of kids wish they had a lot more free time. If they had more time, most would spend it hanging out or playing with friends.

What is it that we need to remember?

Life is unpredictable and fragile. There are no guarantees.

When I get busy I tend to let the world suck me in to get things done, to have them checked off my list. I’m trying very hard to include relationships on my list these days. “Send Rene a card” “Call Mike to thank him.” Maybe someday I won’t need a checklist to remind myself to think about others!!!

I hope that remembering the heartbreak of 9/11 can be a kick in the booty which prompts us to stop or slow down the busy-ness and seek time with others. Our most important relationship is so often crowded out of our day. Our dearest Friend is usually an after-thought.

Hopefully remembering our fragile lives can remind us of how much we miss Him.

Psalm 39:4-7 “Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered—how fleeting my life is. You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand. My entire lifetime is just a moment to you; at best, each of us is but a breath.  We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth, not knowing who will spend it. And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.”

I hope that the reminders and memorials from 9-11 will lead us back to the One who longs to give us hope and blessings.  Is the Bible Important to You?,  shares the heart of our God who longs for us to spend time with Him.

Jeremiah 2:32 “But my people forget me. Day after day after day they never give me a thought.”

“Jeremiah did not write these words to the unbeliever but to those of us who call ourselves “disciples” of Jesus Christ. I can hear the sorrow in His words, can’t you? They vividly portray the broken heart of a Father whose children have ignored Him and abandoned His words. I know what it does to me as a parent when my children do not listen to me or when they choose a path that is in direct opposition to one I would have chosen for them.  I can only imagine what it does to His heart when we go for days and even weeks or months without even picking up the Bible.“

He’s our Abba, our Father, and He wants us to talk with Him,

to spend time with Him,

to listen to Him.

Remember.