Faith over Fear Friday

September 11^th, 2001. A beautiful sunny day; people got up and went to work as if nothing was going to ruin their day. Little day they know, they would have a front row seat to history.  Their lives changed in an instant. Nothing would be the same. Those people had to decide in an instant- to choose faith over fear; do they put faith in that they will survive or will they let fear consume them. It was literally a choice between life and death.In those moments what did they think?  Did they pray?

In the book The Red Bandanna ,Tom Rindali wrote the following and I thought it perfectly said it

   "They came to the towers that morning with their birthmarks and degrees, allegiances and scars, student loans and night cravings. They came with their loves cherished and lost, fights joined and surrendered, bills paid and put off. They came from different paths, took different chances, practiced different faiths, savored different meals. They came with deals made, lines drawn, ventures failed, disciplines mastered, addictions enabled, orders given, cheers shouted, ideas grasped, fears hidden, reports filed, hours wasted, hearts thrilled, children birthed, time served, hopes lost. Breaths taken. Breaths held."

That day, everyone became honorary New Yorkers and the human spirit shined brightly that day. Race, religion, political affiliation, gender all melted away and we became humans again doing what has been ingrained in ourselves from birth- we helped each other. Whether it was giving a hug to someone who was mourning, we donated blood, we volunteered, we all had the core value of goodness come out in those following days.

Faith over fear isn’t about not seeing how we are scared. It is using our fear to accomplish things with faith.  I cannot imagine the dialogue these people were having with themselves. Everyone did the best they could and did what was best for them and their lives.

The Red Bandanna told a story about a man, Welles Crowther who's signature item was a red bandanna and when the planes hit the Twin Towers, he jumped into action. Welles Crowther did exactly what he loved to do- he was a leader and always wanted to be a firefighter. He was just applying to FDNY when September 11^th happened. He jumped into action without thinking and his signature- his red bandanna- because a link for the people he helped and survived to find each other and more importantly, it gave his parents confirmation that he died doing what he always wanted to do- help people. Watch the story here.

This year, the 19^th anniversary of September 11^th, I ask you to pray. Pray for your loved ones, pray for your friends, co-workers, the country, the world. Pray that we are restored and we act like we did on September 12^th- full of hope and prayers and good thoughts.

Every year, I think about where I was when this all happened. Big moments in history, you remember exactly what you were doing and where you were- I was 13 and in my middle school science class. I was so upset when we saw the second plane hit the North Tower. My classmates didn’t understand why I was visibly upset and I didn’t know exactly why either. Something bad happened but I didn’t realize until I got home that my dad wasn’t home. He was a fire captain at the time in a North Jersey City. He left earlier in the day to do exactly what he was trained to do- help people.  His shift started at midnight on September 12^th- not even  24 hours after the attacks happened.  We prayed harder than we ever did that night, hoping that he was okay. 

I pray each year for all the lives lost and for the families that lost someone they loved. I think about the acts of heroics that we don’t know about and for all the people who lived because some saved them.

Join me in prayer today…

Dear Lord, as we remember the events that happened in 2001 and the lives taht were lost, we pray for comfort for all who are hurting and in need. We honor the heros who live among us and all who gave their lives to help us. May our world once again find the sense of caring, compassion and love for one another that defined us and united us after the events of the that terrible day. May people fid you to be their source of hope, peace, comfort and  strength. We ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen. 

 

Where were you when the world stopped?

[[When a man becomes a firefighter his greatest act of bravery has been accomplished. What he does after that is all in the line of work. They were not thinking of getting killed when they went where death lurked. They went there to put out a fire and got killed.  -Chief Edward F. Croker]]

-gabrielle

PS. Linking up with Andrea and Erika today!

PPS. Did you miss this weeks posts- August Reads and Thoughts on Quarantine and COVID-19.