Remembering September 11th, 2001. Thoughts on that day. Lessons learned. What’s happening now?

September 11, 2013 By in Epicenter

Sept11UPDATED: (Washington, D.C.) — Where were you on that fateful Tuesday morning? What lessons have we learned? What’s happening now?

A few thoughts:

* To misunderstand the existence and nature of evil is to be risk being blindsided by it.

* We were blindsided by the evil of Adolf Hitler in the 1930s and 1940s. We were blindsided by the evil of Imperial Japan on December 7th, 1941. We were blindsided by the evil of Saddam Hussein when he invaded Kuwait in 1990. We were blindsided by the evil of Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda on September 11th, 2001. Will we be so foolish as to be blindsided again?

* On September 11th, 2001, I was home in our the townhouse near Dulles Airport where we lived at that time. I didn’t have radio on. I didn’t have TV on. Instead, I was finishing the next to last chapters of my first novel, The Last Jihad, which begins with Radical Islamic terrorists flying a jet plane on a suicide mission into an American city. My wife, Lynn,had just dropped off one of our sons at pre-school and had heard on the radio about the attacks. She burst into the house and said, “You will not believe what’s happening right now.” We turned on TV and began watching the coverage and were horrified by what was unfolding. And it turns out that at that moment, Flight 77 — which had just taken off from Dulles — was being hijacked, turned around, flown over our house, and into the Pentagon. It was eerie and surreal. We spent the day gathered with friends, praying for our country and wondering what would happen next.

* How is your spiritual life today? Did 9/11 change you, did it draw you closer to Christ? Are you — and your family — spiritually better off than you were 12 years ago?

* On this day last year, terrorists attacked the American consulate in Benghazi.

* Today, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad turns 48. He was born on September 11th, 1965. Please pray that Christ would open the eyes of this man and save him and his family. After all, Jesus commanded us to love our enemies.

* Last night, President Obama addressed the nation on the Syrian crisis.  Here is the full text of his remarks. Many commentators found his remarks — and his entire approach towards Syria — confusing, muddled and vacillating, myself included. Noted former AP chief political writer Ron Fournier: “The good news is we’re not at war. The bad news is … almost everything else about President Obama’s handling of Syria – the fumbling and flip-flopping and marble-mouthing – undercut his credibility, and possibly with it his ability to lead the nation and world.”

* Bible prophecy warns us about some specific disasters that are coming to certain cities and certain countries in the last days of history — will we be so foolish as to ignore such advance warnings?

* I’m flying today — heading to speaking engagements out West. I will not live in fear, but rather trust the Lord my Shepherd. (Psalm 23)

* Throughout the day, I will be Tweeting other thoughts, reflections and observations.

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