It’s hard to believe it’s been 23 years since that day this country stopped and gazed upward and on our television sets watching thousands die from multiple attacks on our country.
I had just moved to Iowa with my fiancé in June with the hope of starting a new life together in a much more peaceful environment than New Jersey and living in my best friend’s basement. I was still in the process of finding work, when I got a call from his sister that woke me up that morning. She had said a plane had hit the Twin Towers and that I should turn on the television. Upon hanging up I laid my head on my pillow, and with one eye open thought to myself, Manhattan is a no-fly-zone. Something is terribly wrong. It wasn’t until I turned on the television that I knew this wasn’t a small plane, but a commercial airliner full of average people like me. The hole was just too big.
It wasn’t until 17 minutes later we all realized we were under attack using planes as guided missles to destroy not only icons of American freedom, but as many people as possible. We all watched in horror as the second plane roared full speed into the South Tower, aiming right for it without hesitation or any sign of swerving. I felt sick to my stomach as I just witnessed hundreds of people die in a moment. Those who remember that day and gaze into the skies don’t look at jet airliners in the same way anymore; but as a constant reminder, for me anyway, of how close we are every day to another terrorist attack, and how precious life is.
They didn’t see it coming
I would imagine that those eating breakfast, hailing Taxi’s and going to work in the towers or flying in planes didn’t think that their lives would end that day. Nor do I imagine those traveling for work, visit family, or vacation didn’t think their trip would start or end in such a tragic way. I imagine those working in the World Trade Center and Pentagon that Tuesday were hoping to survive the work week instead of clinging to an open window praying to survive something they never asked for.
As I watched from several states away as the towers fell, I was reminded how quickly our lives could end, even at 28 years old. Those clinging to a window looking back at everything they worked for, missed their kid’s ballgames and dance recitals for, chose not to visit family for, and even skipping church to work weekends burn up in flames while looking down at the jump to come; so high up that it doesn’t look real, but more like a painting as if gazing into the Grand Canyon. I guarantee the last thing on their minds was not: if I could have just one more day of work….
Life is precious, but eternal life…
Something happened to me that day. Even though I did not know Jesus at the time, I realized that there was more to life than a job. It may be the means to an end of somekind, but not the end itself. I wanted a life without regrets. I wanted to not only make a difference, but a lasting difference. But all I saw at the time was futile. Think about it, everything you own will one day either belong to someone else or tossed in the garbage. Everything. Those cherished photographs of you and your family will one day be tossed out and forgotten after being stored in the attic where no one ever goes. The house you live in and worked so hard to keep up and maintain will one day be filled with people you don’t know and making changes you never wanted for your home. Family heirlooms, your dad’s watch and your mother’s necklace will one day break, tarnish, or be found in a pawn shop never to be seen again. Jesus reminds us of these things in the sermon on the mount:
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:19-21 NKJV)
Those things which are eternal will last. What are those things? Our souls. What we learn in this life and take in the next. Our love for others.
Those who unfortunately died that day whether in the planes, at their work, or on the streets understand now all too well what the following verses Jesus spoke to the mass crowd before Him.
Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. “And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ “So, he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ‘ “But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21 NKJV)
What about us?
We all know that we have the potential to never make it to tomorrow, but we never think it will happen today, until it does. Ask yourself, “What am I doing today that will last not only past the end of my life, but throughout eternity into the next?” Are you rich towards God? What does that mean anyway?
Pastor David Guzik points out out a few things about what this may mean. “The man’s problem was not in that he had treasure on earth; but that he was not rich towards God. We may become rich towards God by sacrificial giving to those in need (Luke 12:33, 18:22; 1 Timothy 6:17-19). Also, by trusting in Jesus for every necessary thing (Revelation 3:17-18). Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare. We can’t obscure the fact that earthly riches often keep us from going after heavenly riches as we should. John Wesley taught and lived wisely regarding riches. He said that you should earn as much as you can, save as much as you can, and give as much as you can. He himself lived on £28 British pounds a year and gave the rest away, even when his salary went from £30 to £60 to £90 to £120 over his lifetime.” (Guzik)
Being rich towards God is having an inheritance in the kingdom of God. Those who’s affections are all wrapped up in this present fleeting world will find out quickly that there are none left for God. Albert Barnes states in his commentary on the subject: “If our affections are not fixed on our riches, we shall leave them without regret. If our treasures are laid up in heaven, death will be but going home, and happy will that moment be when we are called to our rest.” (Barnes, 82)
Let us all have a light touch on the things of this earth, and a firm hold on heaven and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Barnes, Albert. Barnes Notes. The Gospels. Edited by Robert Frew. Baker Books, 2005
Guzik, David. “Study Guide for Luke 12.” Blue Letter Bible. 6/2022. Web. 16 Sep, 2024. https://www.blueletterbible.org/comm/guzik_david/study-guide/luke/luke-12.cfm.
Pens & Wrenches 
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