Let's Share! -- Application

With the ninth anniversary of 9/11 tomorrow, many people have been remembering and talking about the day that changed America, wondering how we swore to never forget and how we had, etc.

9/11 was an awful day, one of the worst in the history of the U.S. Some people still struggle with how God could allow something like that to happen.

I do not want to downplay what happened on that horrible day. And I do think that we should never forget. But what about the good things that come out of such an event? What about the sense of community, of togetherness that was present for several months, even years, after that?

People are right when they say that was the day that changed America.

I know it changed me.

Yes, I can say that it reminded me of the preciousness of life, to live each day as if there was no tomorrow.

But how else?

At the time, I was in a bad place in my life. I was doing things I'm not proud of today--I wasn't proud of it back then either. I had fallen away from the path God had laid before me. I was lost.

I wish I could say that after 9/11, I did an about-face and got my life in order, but the sad truth is that I didn't. I did acknowledge that day that I needed to make some changes. I needed to find my place in God's plan once more.

Pride and humiliation kept me from taking any steps forward. With all the stories that surfaced over the next several months, I started taking baby steps. Baby steps to changing my life.

It was another couple of years later, when my husband was shipped off on his first deployment (because of the ensuing war after 9/11), that I stepped back into a church. I renewed my relationship with God, and found comfort, love, and support with many new friends.

9/11 brought me back to God. It took some time, but I know that's when it all started.

What about you? How did 9/11 change you?