"My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word."

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For the past 14 years, September 11th has been a day of rejoicing in our family. A time to celebrate the birth of the youngest Porter - our son, Matthew.

Yesterday was no exception. But as our day in Sydney came to an end, events on the other side of the world were about to make that date go down in history as one of the most infamous and tragic of all time.

We didn't realize what had happened until eight hours after the terrorists unleashed their attacks on New York and Washington. The first I became aware of it was when Kylie stepped out of her morning shower and said, "Mom, turn on the TV. Something terrible has happened."

She'd been listening to news reports on the bathroom radio and stood moments later at my side as we watched CNN. The sheer horror and magnitude of this act of terrorism was overwhelming and we were frozen together in shock as the story unfolded.

It was then that the tears began to flow and as I write this eight hours later, they still rush all too quickly to the surface.

The unthinkable had happened and the world reeled.

Could there be any greater evidence that as Christians we're living in the "now" and the "not yet"? We've been saved and set free from the curse of sin and death through Jesus Christ. That's the "now". But we also are living at a time where the prince of this world, Satan, has a lot of freedom. The Kingdom of God is coming, but it's yet to be fully established and reigning in majesty and glory over this earth. That's the "not yet".

Because of this time between times, we see evil and delusion running rampant. We see it all around the world in many different nations, but nothing brings it home more powerfully than to see it happen in what would be considered the heart of the most powerful nation of the world.

In the light of this overwhelming tragedy, every plan that I'd made for the day suddenly became unimportant. The article I was going to write was no longer appropriate and I felt that there were absolutely no words that would be of any use to anyone in this time of pain and sorrow. In fact, I wondered if words would ever be any use ever again.

Caught between the televised reports and a dispirited attempt to tackle the most routine household chores, I found myself almost constantly praying through my tears. That was when I heard a gentle whisper, "Tell them that sorrow may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning."

Suddenly I knew that words do matter very much and there are no words more powerful at a time such as this, than those found in the Bible. God's Word to us.

We may not be living in the time when all things are fulfilled, but we are living in the acceptable year of the LORD's favor and we are living in the day of salvation. As Isaiah prophesied and Christ later announced:

The call is out to those of us who have made Christ our Lord and Savior. Now is the time for action. In our grief we can't retreat. Instead we have to rise up and pray like we have never prayed before.

* We need to pray for President Bush and his leaders to have Godly wisdom and insight into their decision making in the days ahead.

* We need to pray for the leaders of all the allied nations to be united in support and to also be directed by the hand of God.

* We need to pray for those who have lost loved ones that they may be comforted.

* We need to pray that this tragedy will be a wake up call to the nations to turn back to the One true God.

* And we need to pray God's will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

Israel has declared a day of mourning and although this may not be officially decreed in other nations, there's no question that the world is grieving with our friends in the United States. As Christian brothers and sisters, let's unite together in faith knowing that although this time of sorrow is for a season, joy will come in the morning with the Son.

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