Remembering
Yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of the destruction of the Twin Towers in New York City, the attack on the Pentagon in Washington, and the heroic downing of United Airlines Flight 93. I remember getting dressed to go to work that Tuesday morning when the newscast came on the television showing the first tower had been struck by an airliner. While watching the newscast, I saw another airliner crash into the second tower. In shock, I continued getting ready for work as I watched the news coverage. Numbly, I drove to work. When I arrived, I found the two ladies who worked for me at their desks and unaware of the events that had transpired that morning. One of them asked me if I was okay. I could not formulate a response because of the lump in my throat. I simply indicated that they needed turn on the television.
I’m sure everyone who was old enough to comprehend the events of 9-11 remembers where they were and what they were doing when the towers collapsed. It is an interesting aspect of the human condition as to how a tragic event will make such an imprint on one’s memory. Like a brand on the hide of livestock, it leaves a permanent mark seared upon one’s mind.
As the news unfolded later that morning of the attack on the Pentagon and crash of Flight 93, I remember a question arising in my mind. How could such a degree of hatred exist in a person or persons to inflict such a calamity on others? (In retrospect, the same question might be posed regarding many historical acts of terror and warfare by peoples and nations upon their enemies.) How can such hatred that motivates people to enact terror, mayhem, destruction, and death be thwarted? Political actions, foreign policies, military campaigns, and social reforms have not abolished such hatred and evil in the world.
Today, as I see images replayed on television of the tragedy of 9-11, I once again consider the evil, the hatred, the malice possessed by those who instigated the attacks and by those who supported their cause. As I reflect on that, I am deeply convinced that such evil can be abolished only by making the borders of God’s kingdom greater and greater. As I make that statement, I convict myself in that I need to be busier doing what I can to further the spread of the gospel. Evil and hatred in the hearts of men and women can be overcome by faith in Christ; it is the only enduring answer!
Twenty years has lapsed since the tragedy of 9-11. What if, over the next 20 years, I were to teach and convert just 1 person to Christ each year? That would result in 20 new citizens in God’s kingdom; 20 new Christians who would know the love of God and would love their fellow man. What if over the next 20 years, each person I taught each year in turn would teach another person the word of God every year, and each successive new Christian were to teach and convert another individual to Christ each year? The math is staggering! Twenty years from now, there would be over 260,000 converts to Christ! What if 200 Christians were to commit to teaching and converting 1 person to Christ each year over the next 20 years? I encourage all of us to have the same conviction as the apostle Paul — “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes….” (Rom 1:16).
I remember another day that is forever etched upon my mind. It, however, is a day not imprinted due to tragedy, but a day remembered due to joy — the day I became a Christian. You and I can make it possible for others to experience such a day by teaching others the gospel of Christ. For each man and woman who turns to Christ, it will be a day of great joy and blessing— a day truly to be remembered! You and I can be, and ought to be, instrumental in bringing that joy to others. Let’s not diminish the potential of God’s word upon the hearts of men and women. It has the power to save souls. It has the power to heal nations. It has the power to overcome hatred and evil.
