Where were you when the world stopped turning?

As the 10-year Anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center approached this week, it dawned on me - 10 YEARS ALREADY? Like most Americans, I can remember exactly what I was doing that day like it was yesterday. My goodness, I did not even have children at that time. My business was flourishing, our economy was flourishing. Me and a collegue of mine was in my home office working diligently on a very difficult deposition. A friend of mine called and said, "You have to turn on the TV, a plane just crashed into the World Trade Center in NYC." I remember her words verbatim.

We turned on the TV to the shocking news. It was true. We were stunned. And it sort of did seem like the world stopped turning. I remember an eerie silence in my office for the next few weeks. The phone didn't ring. I suppose, like me, everyone was glued to the TV set. It was sad to see all of those people with posters and pictures trying to seek out their loved ones. Were they alive? Some didn't even know their family members were in the WTC that day. NY is a huge place, and I can't imagine trying to find anybody in all that rubble.

But God is good, and many people have come to know the Lord in the aftermath of this tragedy. Many churches were open and many people who never went or even cared a second thought about God came to feel his presence during this time. I've been to NY several times and have never witnessed the awesome twin towers in all their glory, only the aftermath. Even several years out, flowers and pictures could still be found on this site. I visited St. Peter's Cathedral, which was right next to the WTC. Amazingly, it was one of the few buildings untouched by all of the nearby destruction. It's the church that George Washington attended while in NY, and the bench he sat on still sits in the church. Many of the fireman, policeman, and victims families came there to pray and take part in communion. St. Peter's, along with a lot of other churches, were the hands and feet of Jesus. It's a solemn, eerie feeling to stand on those grounds, even 10 years later. People approach it with respectful silence.

One of the contributors of a daily devotional that I've been reading is from a lady whose husband died in the WTC. The following is her testimony:

On September 11, 2001, every aspect of my life changed forever. My husband was killed in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center - he was working on the 103rd floor of Tower One. In one single moment, I went from being a devoted, young wife and pharmacist to a devastated and angry widow. Back then, no one could have convinced me that I would ever recover from losing the love of my life. No one could have convinced me that I would ever be functional again, or that I'd even smile again. Before 9/11, I was not a believer in Christ, my knowledge of God was very limited, and I had never owned or read a Bible. So if anyone told me back then that I would one day have a Christian writing and speaking ministry, I would've suggested that they get a CAT scan.

But in the first year of 9/11, God brought many different people into my life to help draw me close to Him. They held me up, calmed me down, and turned my anger and bitterness into peace and trust. Some of them came into my life for a fleeting moment, then they were gone and I never saw them again. Some came into my life and have since become very dear friends. It happened just as the Bible says: Some people planted the seeds of faith, others watered them, but God was causing the growth (Cor. 3:6) About a year after 9/11, I made the decision to trust Jesus with my life and my future ... it was the greatest life decision I have ever made.
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For some, a sense of peace has come, for others maybe not so much so.

I'm writing this not because you nesessarily care about what I was doing that day, but more so for my little feeble mind that will one day forget, and for the memory of my children. Laci watched some of the footage on TV with us and we explained it all to her. And she had the same comment she always does about sin: It's all Adam and Eve's fault! If they hadn't sinned, there would be no sin in the world today.

Do you ever think about how the world would be if that were the case? She makes me think!
God Bless America!

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I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell
you the difference in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith, hope and love are some good things He gave us
And the greatest is love ... Alan Jackson