Our God Reigns

In watching Super Bowl XLII, I couldn’t help but think about the different reactions by the “winners” and “losers” to the most watched game in history. While there were 148.3 million people that watched the game with strong feelings and reactions to the underdog, the undefeated, the little brother, the Home team, and the break from Political polls analysis. The victorious New York Giants made me think about 9/11.

Somehow my thoughts moved from the fanfare of confetti cannons to the devastation of tumbling towers. That sky was eclipsed and the air cluttered under totally different circumstances. It was another chapter in the book of New Yorkers and indeed the human condition’s victory over emanate defeat. The strong feelings of Patriots, Giants and teams across the globe united a country and world with a common pain.

A few months after the attacks on the World trade center I found myself leading a group of nearly fifty youth and adults to the “Ground Zero” site. As we approached the blocks that surrounded the buildings I was astounded by the amount of dust and debris still flying in the air. Rounding the corner of an adjacent skyscraper my heart sunk at the sight of buildings draped in black fabrics. It was truly as if we were walking through the visitation of a large funeral. I found myself engulfed by the deafening silence of respect and mourning.

For what seemed like eternity we walked around the perimeter of the excavation site. I hadn’t worked up the audacity to look through one of the gaps in the fence toward the actual plots where towers fell, worlds collapsed and families were altered forever. Finally, with the courage of a child taking his first leap into the swimming pool I turned my head to peak into what seemed like absolute despair.

Instead, the first thing my eyes latched onto was the cornerstone beams of a large building. The horizontal beams actually broke off on either side of their vertical counter part to form a cross. For the first time on the trip I took a deep breath and with tears streaming down my cheeks remembered that God still reigns and Jesus is very much present.

Ironically, this and so many powerful revelations in my life came through one of the deepest hurts in our nation’s history. Why is it we often have to walk through the dark to appreciate the light? Paul says, “I have learned the secret to be content in all circumstances” (Phil 4:12). Perhaps this is the secret…to know that we who are in God win because He reigns!

Rev. Vaughn Stafford
Minister over Contemporary Worship