Unless the

Lord builds the house,

They labor

in vain who build it;

Unless the

Lord guards the city,

The watchman

keeps awake in vain.

Psalms 127:1

On the heaps

of destroyed buildings and the carnage of human life, a spiritual renewal

breathed new life across the great land of America. People, who never

went to church, decided it was time to seek out a spiritual dimension

to handle the grief, insecurity, and madness of 9/11.

We saw our

politically correct lawmakers bowed in humble supplication. Christian

workers, who had tried for years to get a permit to conduct prayer meetings

on the streets of New York City, now were encouraged to come to the streets

and minister even in the name of Jesus, the resurrected one.

The National

Cathedral in Washington, D.C. brought together political friends and foes

to be comforted by mutual prayer, singing, and preaching. It was a grand

sight. American became spiritual more than after Pearl Harbor, more than

during the Cuban Missile Crisis, more than Dessert Storm.

Our comfortable

security provided by the great Atlantic and Pacific Oceans had been invaded

as never before by an enemy with no country and no seat at the United

Nations. In the opinion of Islamic terrorists, America the great whore

and infidel had finally got a taste of the hatred harbored by many people

around the world. They promise and eagerly seek even more acts of hatred

toward us. Difficult as it may seem, regardless of America's attempt to

feed the third world, we are a hated nation by many peoples.

The President

wants a cabinet department of Homeland Security. Help, it may. But, there

is no real security for any people except in the name of the Lord God,

the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Jesus Christ. The Word of God advised

any nation that unless the Lord guards America, Homeland Security is in

vain.

No amount of

troops, security devices, and airport checks can keep us safe from tens

of thousands of people who will give their lives to kill a few of our

citizens. Our elected and appointed officials say the same.

Yet, it took

only a few months for Americans to return to their old pattern of spiritual

indifference. The revival some hoped for out of 9/11 evaporated as the

hot air of business as usual returned to Capitol Hill. The divergent groups

who rallied around the President and Old Glory have returned to the their

corners. National polls revealed what most pastors already knew: the surge

in church attendance after 9/11 had returned to it previous levels, perhaps

a little less.

I heard a secular

commentator recently say that the February 1993 attack on the World Trade

Center, in which six people were killed and more than a thousand were

injured, should have been the "wakeup" call for America. It

wasn't.

I remember

that many said that the 1999 Columbine killings, in which 11 students

and one teacher were gunned down in cold blood, should be a "wakeup"

call for America. It wasn't.

When will we

wake up? "Unless the Lord keeps the city, the watchman stays awake

in vain." Now, not later, should Americans open their hearts and

minds to a revival of unheard proportions. Now, not later, we in the Fayette

community should lock arms and say, "Now and not later." We

will not wait for one more "wakeup call" before we humble ourselves

before our God, our only true security. May America seek God!

The Rev.

Dr. John Hatcher is pastor of

River's Edge Community Church

1091 South Jeff Davis Drive

Fayetteville, Georgia 30215

770-719-0303

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