A Word From the Pastor
Rev. L. David Mortenson, Senior Pastor
Here we are. School has started. The closing holiday of the summer is here. But there is also a day in September that is, for me, a time to remember. September 11, 2001. A day that I will never forget.
I was a patrol officer for the Raytown Police Department. I was leaving the station after an arrest. It was 7:50 in the morning and as I pulled out of the station, the news broke in on
the radio station I was listening to and reported on a plane striking the north tower of the World Trade Center. I drove to our maintenance garage to watch what unfolded. I was
watching as the second plane struck the south tower. As things unfolded, realization struck that this was an attack on the country.
My day got very hectic after that. We ceased all non-emergency calls. We were positioned around the city watching traffic on the ground and in the sky. I contemplated returning to
the military. Seeing the Pentagon in flames, I must admit, I was enraged.
What unfolded over the next few days, weeks and months was a spiritual awakening of sorts. During the cleanup, a cross was erected on the site of the destruction. The country came
together and prayed for all who were killed in a senseless attack. Churches were full again. A study that was done found that there was a higher level of "theological virtues—an index of
faith, hope, gratitude, kindness, love, leadership, and teamwork—for at least ten months after the attacks.
"What is sad is that it took an event like that to bring those "theological virtues" out. What is sadder, is that in the 23 years since, those "theological virtues" have waned. We come together in times of trouble and move toward our strength, which is God. But as time goes on and things settle down, we seem to forget where our strength comes from.
Each year, those who identify as Christian seem to shrink. The biggest sector is in the younger generations. Those who do not remember much about the attacks. The US has gone from 90 percent who identify as Christian in the 1990's to roughly 65 percent today. About one in six teenage children of Christian mothers do not share the faith.
We need to be in the community, sharing the faith with all that we encounter. Because each year fewer people believe, which means fewer people will know the glory of eternal life in
paradise. And maybe, just maybe, there will be less division among Americans.
God bless all, especially those who are in the service sector.
Pastor David