After the Attacks
History has repeatedly shown us that when America turns to God, our healing is often faster and more powerful.
After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush called for a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance on September 14. He spoke that day at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC, drawing strength for the nation from the words of the apostle Paul in the Bible:
“We are here in the middle hour of our grief. So many have suffered so great a loss, and today we express our nation’s sorrow. We come before God to pray for the missing and the dead, and for those who love them.…
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God’s signs are not always the ones we look for. We learn in tragedy that his purposes are not always our own. Yet the prayers of private suffering, whether in our homes or in this great cathedral, are known and heard, and understood....
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This world he created is of moral design. Grief and tragedy and hatred are only for a time. Goodness, remembrance, and love have no end. And the Lord of life holds all who die, and all who mourn.…​
On this national day of prayer and remembrance, we ask Almighty God to watch over our nation, and grant us patience and resolve in all that is to come. We pray that he will comfort and console those who now walk in sorrow. We thank him for each life we now must mourn, and the promise of a life to come.
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As we have been assured, neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, can separate us from God’s love. May he bless the souls of the departed. May he comfort our own. And may he always guide our country.”
Is there someone in your life today that you think could benefit from this Bible passage? If so, will you share it?
