On the way to Johnstown, Pa we saw a sign that said Flight 93 Memorial. We discussed it would be cool to bring the youth there. About half way through the week Ceasar (one of the project leaders) sent and email to Michael and I (the other project leaders) and asked us to pray about brining the kids to the memorial. He ended his email/prayer with getting confirmation from the others. The very next day Eric, youth pastor, approached Ceasar and asked if it would be ok to bring the kids to Flight 93. Talk about confirmation. Both of them were restless the night before about whether to bring them or not. The decision was made to bring the to the memorial Thursday. Before we headed out some of the leaders shared experiences from that gruesome day and spoke of the heroism of those 40 passengers who willingly gave their lives for this country.
The look of sadness and heartbreak was on the faces of the youth as they began to read the events that took place on September 11, 2001. Flight 93 was the 4th plane that went down that day, and it started with those infamous words spoken by Todd Beamer, “Let’s roll!” Those 40 passengers joined together and took a stand for the freedoms of this country. Tears began to stream down their faces and they embraced one another with hugs. As we headed down to the Wall of Names there were places where family members had left belongings. Among the items left was a wedding ring, several house keys, pictures, flags, and other meaningful memorabilia. I continued to watch the kids as they walked the wall. One of the names was a lady and next to her name it also said “unborn child”, that was the moment girls began sobbing and saying it wasn’t fair. Another one of the boys, Josh, had taken off his hat and was staring at a name. I later asked him and he said it was a family friend. Some of the kids broke off and prayed for the families of those who gave their lives. The way home was completely silent in the car, and for middle schoolers that almost never happens. It was an incredible, moving moment to be a part of.
Later that evening Eric asked some of the youth what they though about being there. One of the boys mentioned the room where the question was asked, “What does ‘land of the free’ mean to you?” He said one of the papers said, “Freedom isn’t free” he said it really got him thinking that it costs lives to live the way we do. Others mentioned the unborn baby and how there is a husband who lost his wife and didn’t have a chance to be a father. Others noticed from the pictures of the passengers that they were just your average, everyday people they weren’t huge military men. They realized that America belongs to them and as Christians we have a duty to this country God has blessed abundantly.
We have a choice and the freedoms to stand up for our country. We have a choice to keep God in our schools and in our government. We aren’t alone, we have an army of christian who want the same thing and we have the greatest One on our side, Jesus himself! As Christians it’s out duty to say, “let’s roll” and fight for what is ours and bring this nation back to the Lord.
