09/11/2026
Twenty-five years ago today, our nation watched a morning of unimaginable tragedy unfold.
We remember the nearly 3,000 lives lost on September 11, 2001. We remember families whose lives changed in an instant. We remember first responders who ran toward danger when everyone else was trying to escape.
So much changed that day. Families changed. Lives changed. The way we saw the world changed. Even the New York City skyline changed. But something else changed, too.
In the days that followed, we looked at one another differently. Neighbors checked on neighbors. Strangers helped strangers. Churches filled with people praying together. Political differences didn't disappear, but for a while they didn't seem nearly as important. What mattered was taking care of each other. We remembered that we needed one another.
Twenty-five years later, perhaps we need to remember that part of September 11, too.
Today, we remember those who were lost and those who still carry the wounds of that day. But may we also remember the way we reached for one another in the days that followed—and ask God to help us find that kind of compassion, grace, and care for our neighbors again, without needing another tragedy to bring us together.
