REFLECTING ON 9/11

REFLECTING ON 9/11

By Susie Hale

Precious Jewels Ministries

It has been 15 years since the terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001. Many of us remember exactly where we were and what we were doing that day. I remember sitting at my desk at Don Davis Auto Group as employees began to arrive telling me what they had heard on the radio. As they ran upstairs to turn on the TV, I began to pray for the people killed and injured. My sister called, and cried out that one of the towers had just disintegrated as she wept. A flood of emotions swept over me, but I remained at my desk working because after a few moments for silent prayer, my boss reminded us that if businesses shut down, the terrorists would win. When I got home that evening, I finally had time to process all the feelings of the day and wrote the poem you see here.

       Now it is 15 years later. We have Homeland Security, increased TSA, color coded alerts. How do we as Christians respond? I believe the Psalm we have studied this weekend gives us some help. We do not need to live in fear. We can lay our heads down and rest peacefully as King David did. We can trust in our Heavenly Father. We do not live in a state of denial because we can see what goes on in the world. However, our security is not found in this world. Our home is held secure for us in Heaven.

       What should we do? We need to pray for our city, state, national, and world leaders. We need to pray for the safety of those who defend us. We need to pray for all first responders. We also need to encourage all of these people and let them know they are prayed for.  

       We need to live boldly, confidently among unbelievers bearing witness to our trust in Jesus Christ. We need to live upright, godly lives that will draw others to faith in Him.

       Our challenge is the same as the one the believers Peter addressed in his first letter. We are to serve Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit as long as He leaves us on this earth as His ambassadors. 

THE LORD, MY SHIELD

The Lord, My Shield

By Susie Hale, Precious Jewels Ministries

Lord, by Your mighty strength I am shielded

Once my life to Christ has been yielded.

In You, I am garrisoned about.

I need not fear, and I need not doubt.

You took my head once bowed in shame

And lifted it by the power of Your name.

Now in Your hand I am safe and secure,

And though I die, I will endure.

No foe can take my life from me,

For in death, I will be set free

To live in the place You have prepared

With no more worries, fears, or cares.

IMPERISHABLE

“Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth

so that you have sincere love for your brothers, 

love one another deeply, from the heart.

For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, 

but of imperishable,

through the living and enduring word of God. 

For, ‘All men are like grass,

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field:

The grass withers and the flowers fall,

But the word of the Lord stands forever.’

And this is the word that was preached to you.”

1 Peter 1:22-25

hagnizō⁴⁸ – to make clean, i.e. (fig.) sanctify (cer. or mor.): - purify (self).

aphthartŏs⁸⁶² – undecaying (in essence or continuance): -  not (in-, un-) corruptible, immortal.

            How can we be pure? By obeying the truth which is found in God’s word (Psalm 119:9). Christ sanctifies us as we continue to follow him in obedience. And the life he gives us is undecaying, incorruptible, immortal. He also gives us the ability to love our brothers and sisters in Christ deeply, from the heart, as we share in this eternal life. Our earthly bodies will fade and fall; but our life with Jesus, based on the truth of his word, will last forever.

            Lord, thank you for eternal life. Thank you for empowering me to live victoriously even while in this mortal body. Thank you for giving me the strength to obey you. Thank you for the gift of your word. Thank you for the Holy Spirit within me to guide me.

BELIEVING GOD

“He was chosen before the creation of the world,

but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 

Through him you believe in God,

who raised him from the dead and glorified him, 

and so your faith and hope are in God”

1 Peter 1:20-21

prŏginōskō⁴²⁶⁷ – to know beforehand, i.e. foresee: - foreknow (ordain), know (before).

pistĕnō⁴¹⁰⁰ – to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), i.e. credit; by impl. to entrust (espec. one’s spiritual well-being to Christ): - believe (-r), commit (to trust), put in trust with.

            I have entrusted my life to Christ. I believe that he was born of a virgin through the miraculous intervention of the Spirit of God. I believe he chose to die for sinners, substituting his life for mine on the cross. I believe God raised him from the dead on the third day, and he is now at the right hand of God interceding for me (Hebrews 7:25). I believe that trust in Christ is the only way to have a relationship with God and to dwell with him forever. There is nothing I could do to save myself or merit God’s love. (Ephesians 2:8-9). He chose to give it freely to me, and all I had to do was accept his gracious gift and give him myself in return, to mold me and conform me to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29).

            Thank you, Father, for making a plan even before Adam and Eve chose to disobey you. Thank you for saving me. Help me to live a life of gratitude and service to you.

BOUGHT WITH HIS BLOOD

Bought with His Blood

By Susie Hale, Precious Jewels Ministries

Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb

was also God, the great I AM.

He chose to die upon the cross

to redeem the hopelessly lost.

My life was useless, full of sin,

no hope of being cleansed within;

but Jesus paid the purchase price…

He shed His blood to buy my life.

God gave His perfect, spotless Son

to redeem this sad unrighteous one.

Now clothed in Jesus’ righteousness,

the Father sees His pricelessness.

All my guilt is cleansed, removed,

And by His death, I am approved.

BE HOLY

Be Holy

By Susie Hale,

Precious Jewels Ministries

Dare to be different,

Holy…set apart.

When people see your life,

let them see Christ in your heart.

Bring glory to God

through every word and deed

so the world will see

that Christ is who they need.

Don’t be afraid to be different,

for that’s what you should be.

You are no longer of this world

since Christ has set you free.

LOVING FROM THE HEART

When we confess our sins to the Lord,

He forgives us and purifies our hearts.

When we are in right standing with Him,

His love through us He imparts.

He enables us to cherish our family,

Our brothers and sisters in Christ.

In Him, we develop that sincere love,

loving to the point of sacrifice.

Jesus gives us the power to empathize,

To feel the pain and emotion of others.

He strengthens us to fervently love

All of our sisters and brothers,

Not just the ones who are like us,

Not only the loveable, beautiful ones.

Jesus enables us to share His love

With all who trust in God’s Son.

AWE-INSPIRED TREMBLING

Awe-Inspired Trembling

By Susie Hale and Susan Slade

Precious Jewels Ministries

Rejoicing yet trembling before You, my Lord,

I worship You; Your majesty’s adored.

If it were not for Your grace, I would cower

before You, for You have unlimited power.

But in wonder and awe I gaze at the cross

and stand amazed at the tremendous cost

the Son of God paid to redeem His bride

which qualifies me in His love to abide.

In reverent fear before Jesus I kneel,

and no words can express the joy I feel.

WILDFLOWERS WITHER

Wildflowers Wither, but the Word of God Stands

By Susie Hale, August 11, 2007

Wildflowers wither, but the word of God stands.

History unfolds according to His plans.

Earthly glory is like flowers that bloom then fade away.

Our time here is momentary, to the Father but a day.

In our temporary existence, only Jesus never fails.

In comparison to His word, all other literature pales.

For God’s word is eternal and has spoken through the ages.

All the wisdom that we need for life is found within its pages.

Men’s philosophies come and go, they fluctuate on a whim.

But God’s word remains the same and always points to Him.

Studying God’s word should be priority for man,

For wildflowers wither, but the word of God stands.

REJOICING IN TRIALS

“In this you greatly rejoice, 

though now for a little while 

you may have had to suffer grief

 in all kinds of trials. 

These have come so that your faith – 

of greater worth than gold,

which perishes even though refined by fire – 

may be proved genuine

and may result in praise, glory and honor 

when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

I Peter 1:6-7

lupĕō³⁰⁷⁶ – to distress; reflex. or pass. to be sad: - cause grief, grieve, be in heaviness, (be) sorrow (-ful), be (make) sorry.

pĕirasmŏs³⁹⁸⁶ – a putting to proof (by experiment [of good], experience [of evil], solicitation, discipline or provocation); by impl. adversity: - temptation, X try.

            A sunflower stands out in a field, a big, bold blossom atop an ugly, prickly plant. A Christian who rejoices amid tribulation, stands out in the crowd. He may be a martyr bearing witness of his faith in Christ to his executioner. Or she may simply be a worker who does a difficult job with a good attitude amid grumbling coworkers. A rejoicing Christian remembers that this life is temporary and “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18b).

            Father, help me to brighten my environment, standing out like a sunflower, by radiating your love and rejoicing in you even when the going gets tough. When trials come, remind me that you are refining my faith and proving it genuine. May all praise, glory, and honor be yours.