Tomorrow is 9/11/11. Ten years after the terrorist attacks on America.
What will tomorrow bring?
It’s tempting to dwell on the emotions, loss and grief associated with our remembrance of 9/11/01. It’s also tempting to get caught up in the fear of ‘credible threats’ that our security forces have said warrant our extra vigilance.
In the big picture, September 11 is just another day in our lives. In the microcosm of our lives, it is a day we will never forget, and shouldn’t forget. Our lives were forever changed on that day.
Jesus has some significant words for us on the subject of worrying…Matthew 6:25-34
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
As I write this there is a chipmunk sitting outside my window on my picnic table bench, munching on a nut. He knows nothing about what tomorrow means to Americans. He only knows that this is the season of harvest… yippee, the acorns are beginning to fall! God provides for His creation.
Some things will forever remind us of the events of 9/11/01. For me, every time I see a sunny, bright blue sky (Crayola Sky Blue) with large white clouds and feel the cool September air against my skin, I am reminded of that day, forever seared into my memory with the scars of smoke plumes drifting across that same blue sky, and with the loss and grief of so many people.
We are changed forever, but yet we are still the same children of God. It is because God never stops loving His children, we can go forward into each new day without worry and fear. We are called to live with hope and love.
I think it is an interesting thing to note that the 10th anniversary of this date falls on a Sunday. The Church (large C) is calling for us to think on this day as an opportunity to work toward forgiveness and peace. Imagine the world-wide possibilities if everyone attended worship tomorrow morning and heard the calling for forgiveness and peace, instead of worrying about the things that cause us fear.
Those people whom we loved and lost on 9/11/01 would certainly want us to remember and honor them, but they also would not want us to live in worry and fear. We can honor them best by living lives free of fear.
Jesus gives us the antidote for the affliction of worry…
Trust in God.
I hope to see you in church tomorrow. St. Andrew worships at 8:30 and 10:45 am. We are located at 335 Reynolds Ave. in Parsippany, NJ 07054. (973) 887-6713.
Come and see our community tribute tower display and help us share the news that we are ALL children of God.
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