by Katie Simmons, Radford [nlcf], written on the occasion of 911

How many stretches of barren, dusty land
Do we encounter in a lifetime?
Land that is dispersed
Across our vast memories

But then, in an instant, that land is
Shaken, stirred, rattled, rolled

And banished

To the deepest crevice of our minds
Because of its shortcomings compared
To the new and thought provoked scale
By which we have reevaluated our lives.

In times like these,
We turn back to Him who exemplifies
Love and understanding
In their truest essence

In times like these,
We search for meaning and value

In times like these,
The very nature of the insuppressible human spirit
Becomes evident

And in times like these,
We gain our greatest glory.

To all [nlcf]:

We all know the great tragedy that has entered into our lives over the last few days. As the pastors/staff of [nlcf] we want you to know that we are here for you and your friends, regardless of whether they are part of [nlcf] or not. At times like these, often the words we need are not words that come from men and women, but words that come from God alone. If we can help to be a conveyer of these words, please let us know.

We are also very proud of how all of you have carried yourselves and one another over the last several days. Word has reached us from a variety of sources that your demonstration of faith and love at this time gives hope to many, and demonstrates the basis for your hope in a way that words cannot convey. Many others are attempting to convey our hope in Christ with words, but we know that in times like this, words are only heard when accompanied by the lives of those in whom those words are embedded.

At a time like this, it is absolutely critical that we demonstrate God’s love and concern for everyone impacted by the events of this week. We see you doing this already, yet let us feel empowered all the more to offer ourselves, and our community, as a place for all who are hurting. We will be signing a collective [nlcf] card to President Steger at our services this Sunday as well as the Public Relations staff of VT. We are also delivering care packages to students on campus and hope to do so for the Blacksburg and VT police.

We wanted to let you know how we plan to carry out the rest of the semester in light of all that has taken place. This week (4/22) Sunday gatherings will be at 11.00 am 7.07 pm only. There will be no 9.30 downtown congregation service this week as they have expressed a strong desire to be with the campus congregation at this time. This week we will take time to center on God’s heart in the midst of this crisis. We will also have a time of question and answer as well as times of reflection and prayer.

Homegroups are meeting this week and will continue to meet the rest of the semester. We all know that these are the places where we are intended to bring our hurts and pains. Many of you are doing this already and we desire to keep these open and available to our fellow students that are in need of them.

We will have staff available in key locations throughout next week, mainly in Deets Place and in the food court at Squires. If you need to find someone to talk with please go there or you can also email [email protected] and someone will be in touch with you shortly.

Phillip Yancey, well-known author of the books Disappointment with God, Where is God When It Hurts, and many others has tentatively agreed to speak at our services next week. Please stay tuned for details.

As for the continuation of our already scheduled activities, stay attentive to nlcf.net for details. Some, such as baptisms for this Sunday, are canceled, but may be rescheduled. Others, such as the LC Banquet, Seniors Dinner, the Esperanza 5k, and LT meetings will go on as scheduled.

We love you all and are here to stand and walk with you through this time.

On behalf of all of us,

Chris