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Where Was God On September 11th? The recent terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City have undoubtedly touched all of us in some way. I have been wondering how to address what happened, or if I should even address it at all. Commentators the world over, both religious and secular, have been working the issue over pretty thoroughly, with everything from proclamations of God's divine judgment to calls for nuclear retaliation, and everything in between. However, with everything I have seen and heard, the one thing that really stands out to me is the almost overwhelming spiritual response to the attack. Churches, cathedrals and synagogues all over this nation were packed to overflowing the Sunday after the attack. I must admit to being burdened with a strong sense of cynicism about the general state of American christianity these days, and so I was pleasantly surprised to see how many people -- from across every cultural and economic demographic -- turned their faces toward God in supplication, looking for answers, for comfort, and for hope. It was refreshing and heartening to see that so many would turn to the correct source for comfort in their time of trial. I guess part of my disillusionment stems from more than a few conversations with naysayers, agnostics, and fervent atheists who use every natural disaster, drive-by shooting, or bloody civil war as an excuse to throw out that timeworn favorite criticism of religious faith, spoken as though it were an indisputable indictment of all who hold any religious convictions, "How could a kind and loving God allow such things to happen? WHERE WAS GOD ON SEPTEMBER 11TH?!" The answer is simply this: right where He always was. This is the answer that so many millions suddenly remembered right after the attack. I have been filled with a cautious hope as I have watched venue after venue "dare" to speak openly of God, and to implore us as a nation and citizenry to pray for our country. Sportscasters, news anchors, athletes and politicians have all suddenly been willing to speak boldly of their faith in Jesus Christ, and in their hope for the power of God to bring both healing and justice to our land. I have realized that we have allowed the forces of the "politically correct" to muzzle us. The shrill cries of the militant liberal minority have been successful in silencing what is quite obviously the majority view. As the last few weeks have shown, there is still a heart for God in this country, though it is sometimes buried too deeply to be seen at first glance. We have let ourselves be cowed into buying into the mantras of "diversity" which are really a thin disguise for squelching unpopular opinions, ideas, or beliefs. The fact remains that God, YAHWEH, Jehovah, the Alpha and Omega, the I Am of the Bible is still very much alive in the hearts of people today. God has not gone anywhere -- it is we who have moved away from Him. And yet, in our times of darkest trouble, in our most dire hour, we suddenly remember from whom we really draw our strength: God, in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ. As I watch the news, or read the articles, or hear the commentators on the radio, I am struck that these exhortations to pray and seek God's face are not framed in some politically-correct, watered-down version that references some vague, faceless and nameless "higher power"; these people are boldly talking about God. THE God. Though it may be hard to see at times, and though it may not be as true as it once was, there still lies beneath the surface the roots of a Christian nation. So, in the face of the shrill, atheistic minority who seem so ready to ask, "Where was God when tragedy struck," I have a question of my own: "Where were YOU when tragedy struck? Where will YOU be when suddenly calamity strikes? And afterwards?" When I think of the thousands who lost their lives in a few moments of sudden destruction, I don't ask where God was; I wonder about where He wasn't. He wasn't in the heart of the man at the controls of the airliner, who instead of paradise with Allah as he undoubtedly believed, will receive only eternity in darkness. I wonder about all the lives on those planes and in those towers, people both young and old, rich and poor, married and single, mothers, fathers, teenagers. I wonder: did THEY know God? Tragedy strikes every day, in a million different ways -- it is the nature of this fallen world -- and so much of it is the result of the darkness of the human heart, not the negligence of a god who doesn't care. In the face of this most recent tragedy we must ask, as so many others have obviously begun to ask: "Where was God when tragedy struck? Was He in their hearts and their lives? Is He in mine? What if I had been on that plane, or in that tower? What will happen to ME if I die?" For far too many, the answer isn't a good one. For far too many, the opportunities to give their heart and life to God came and went one too many times, and now it is simply and tragically too late. The real tragedy is not that 6,000 died, though it breaks our hearts to even think about it; the far greater tragedy is how many of those 6,000 faced their death without Christ in their heart, and so instead of a few moments of terror, or a few seconds of pain, followed by unspeakable joy in the presence of God, they face an eternity of separation from God in unending sorrow and suffering. That awareness should eclipse all our other concerns, that sorrow drowning out all others. So the next time we feel like asking, "Where was God?" we need to remember that God hasn't moved. He is eternal, and unchangeable, and incontrovertibly in control. The question needs to be, "Where am I?" And from there, "If I am here, how do I get to where God is?" God is never far away. As a matter of fact, He can be found after just a short trip to your knees. He is there, waiting for you to ask Him into your heart, and your life. Don't wait too long. <>< =========================================== ><> "The Cords of death
encompassed me, "I sought the Lord,
and He answered me, "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.' Psalm 14:1 (NASB) <>< ========================================== ><> Copyright © 1999, 2000 by Divinspiration® |
