“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me.'” — Isaiah 6:8

That verse has been my favorite for as long as I can remember. On most days, it’s a quiet call to service. On 9/11, it became the cry of a nation. Firefighters ran toward buildings everyone else was running from. Passengers on a doomed flight looked at each other and said, in their own way, send me. Strangers left their homes and drove across the country just to help dig through rubble. In the worst hour America has faced in my lifetime, an entire generation answered that call without being asked twice.

Like so many people across the globe, I can remember very clearly where I was and what I was doing on the morning of 9/11/2001. I had just moved back to NC from UT and started a new job on 9/10/2001. It was my second day of training and we were really just getting started for the day when news came across of the first plane crash into the World Trade Center. We were all drawn to the conference room where we were watching a tragedy unfold in a very familiar city over 500 miles away. Then, before our eyes, we watched the second plane come in and hit the South tower. In that moment, this was no longer a tragic accident happening hundreds of miles away. This was someone breaking into our home and attacking our American family. In that moment, America wasn’t just an enormous collection of random strangers living out their lives in relative anonymity. Instead, we were all connected. We were all being attacked and we were all mourning the loss of our brothers and sisters across the Eastern seaboard.

Quite obviously, the biggest hit was to New York City and the World Trade Center. But we also know that the Pentagon was hit, as we saw video of a plane flying straight through the outer three rings. Another strike. But not at our everyday citizens. This time the strike was against our defenders and protectors.

The last strike was the one I believe counted more than anyone really gives enough consideration. The strike that never hit its mark. The passengers and crew of United 93, in my opinion, really struck the first blow back toward the terrorists attacking our homeland. As soon as those passengers gained an understanding of what was happening and the scope of the situation, they did what most Americans would choose to do with the same knowledge, and that was to do everything in their power to say NO! You will NOT use us and this plane to attack one more target in our country. I believe they came very close to regaining control of that plane. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they moved with courage in the face of great fear and grave danger, using the knowledge they gained from their loved ones to act in both self-defense and in defense of our nation.

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” — Isaiah 41:10

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” — John 15:13

In the years since that day, thousands more have been impacted by health issues, mental health issues, and in many cases, death from diseases caused by the smoke and debris from that day. I personally have taken care of patients with lung issues they acquired from their presence in NYC on that day.

Every year we pay tribute to those brave and courageous souls who showed courage and selflessness beyond anything witnessed up to that point in time. First responders, former first responders, civilians — anyone who felt that nudge from God to get up and help, got up and went to help. People drove and flew in from all over the country to help clean up debris and search for the missing. The day is one that is very meaningful to me, as it was the beginning of my desire to serve in the military. Hurricane Katrina sealed that deal for me, and in the fall of 2005, I went into basic training.

The fact that I couldn’t be there to help in any of the places reeling from the attacks was difficult for me to bear. When Katrina came along and that level of need arose again, I decided enough was enough, and I wanted to put myself in a position to be of service when that kind of need arose again.

The impact of 9/11 is one that we all feel pretty deeply. By 9/12, I think many of us probably feel a bit emotionally hung over from the energy it still takes to endure the vivid memories of that day.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9

Whether the bombs of the enemy land further from home or in your own living room, the path forward remains the same. The best way through is straight through the middle. In 2024, our home was struck hard with many health crises. I was diagnosed with cancer in the early part of the year, my husband with an aortic dissection, and one of our kids was dealing with challenges of their own. But still, we carried on, and with the help of many friends and family members, we are stronger today for those experiences. That doesn’t mean we don’t have lingering challenges and scars from those days of hardship, but we try to face those with the same faith and patience as the day they first struck.

Terrorists came to strike a hole in the heart of America and western civilization, but instead they struck a match that lit a bonfire of love and strength and community all over the world. Even now, other countries mourn with us over our losses on that fateful day.

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” — Romans 12:21

As we have seen with all tragedies that strike at humanity (the Black Plague, the Crusades, the Spanish flu, Covid, Pearl Harbor, July 7th in London, March 11th in Madrid, and November 13th in Paris, just to name a few), we tend to see more of the parts of humanity influenced most by God. It is unfortunate that we don’t see these parts on a more regular basis, but they are there every day. We can see them in a grocery store where a stranger sees another struggling to reach what they need on an upper shelf and simply helps them get it down. We can see them when strangers hold doors for one another or show up with a casserole when there has been a loss in the family. We see them in a new basket of mums presented to a new member of the neighborhood.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” — 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

God is everywhere, all the time. We just need to choose to see His handiwork and not focus on the handiwork of the adversary. Both will always be there, but we get to choose which one we give our energy to each day.

No matter what happens to us on 9/11, what matters most is what we do with 9/12. How are we going to carry the scars of the day before as we continue to move through life? Are we going to let them define us and cause us shame simply for their existence? Or are we going to incorporate them into who we are becoming, seeing them for the character they bring to our humanity?