Dear
Lord,
We're still hoping we'll wake up. We're still hoping we'll
open a sleepy eye and think, What a horrible dream.
But
we won't, will we, Father? What we saw was not a dream. Planes
did gouge towers. Flames did consume our fortress. People did
perish. It was no dream and, dear Father, we are sad.
There is a ballet dancer who will no longer dance and a doctor
who will no longer heal. A church has lost her priest, a
classroom is minus a teacher. Cora ran a food pantry. Paige
was a counselor and Dana, dearest Father, Dana was only three
years old. (Who held her in those final moments?)
We are sad, Father. For as the innocent are buried, our
innocence is buried as well. We thought we were safe. Perhaps
we should have known better. But we didn't.
And so we come to you. We don't ask you for help; we beg you
for it. We don't request it; we implore it. We know what you
can do. We've read the accounts. We've pondered the stories
and now we plead, Do it again, Lord. Do it again.
Remember Joseph? You rescued him from the pit. You can do the
same for us. Do it again, Lord.
Remember the Hebrews in Egypt? You protected their children
from the angel of death. We have children, too, Lord. Do it
again.
And Sarah? Remember her prayers? You heard them. Joshua?
Remember his fears? You inspired him. The women at the tomb?
You resurrected their hope. The doubts of Thomas? You took
them away. Do it again, Lord. Do it again.
You changed Daniel from a captive into a king's counselor. You
took Peter the fisherman and made him Peter an apostle.
Because of you, David went from leading sheep to leading
armies. Do it again, Lord, for we need counselors today, Lord.
We need apostles. We need leaders. Do it again, dear Lord.
Most of all, do again what you did at Calvary. What we saw
here on that Tuesday, you saw there on that Friday. Innocence
slaughtered. Goodness murdered. Mothers weeping. Evil dancing.
Just as the ash fell on our children, the darkness fell on
your Son. Just as our towers were shattered, the very Tower of
Eternity was pierced.
And by dusk, heaven's sweetest song was silent, buried behind
a rock.