Watch soon for pictures from the weekend—the one in Houston. Guess what? Renee and I are up to 33 blazing days of glory now. Amen!

So as the Lord has graced me, I returned safely from Houston just in the nick of time. Like everyone else in America, I am upset at the tragedy that has befallen our nation. But there are mixed feelings rumbling around in this soul of mine.

• Can we assume that America deserved it? This question doesn’t make sense unless you look at it in a very deep sense: that sin warrants consequences. When, in the land of opportunity, we are busy boozin’ it up, committing endless acts of adultery, practicing unlawful … ermmm… practices all the time—do we really think that we can get away freely? Just as Newton said, “For every action, there is an equal an opposite reaction.” Sure, God has forgiven us for our sins. We have been saved from the very pit of hell itself. But that doesn’t mean that the nature of sin—and its consequences—go away. It is a horror that this should be what it takes to wake America up. It is a horror that so many died without knowing first about God’s redemptive love. But we also know that Satan is alive and well and wanting to do everything he can to demolish God’s plans. As the writer of Proverbs has said, “Pride comes before a fall.”
• Revenge? Those consumed with vengeance are no better than those who instigated the attack in the first place. This is the very worst of human nature—the desire to kill and to avenge—when that right is not our’s in the first place. It belongs to the Lord. Rest assured, the terrorists will receive their just rewards. Only, it’s not us who decides those rewards.
• “Everything is going to be different now.” Agreed; things are certainly not going to be the same. I don’t necessarily run circles around my house at the exciting news that I’ll probably have to go through many more security precautions in airports. But you know what? I’m not going to complain. It’s not a right that I can fly; it’s a privilege. It’s time that I recognize that this country is all about privilege, not rights. What I am going to do is everything I can, with God’s grace, to show the love of Christ to a hurting and lost world. That’s how I want to change.

Classes were cancelled yesterday, all were in session today. It’s a pretty eerie feeling to be walking across campus and know that everyone is talking about the exact same thing. I pray that God would unite our hearts right now as we continue to pray for the lost and for the families of the victims, as well as for President Bush. He needs it right now as an entire nation—300 million people—turns to him for understanding, for guidance, and for wisdom.