I was on my mission in Venezuela on September 11, 2001. I remember walking down the street in Ojeda with my companion Elder James Ward. We were headed to lunch at a member's home when a crazy guy yelled at us from the second-floor of a half-finished home, "Hey gringos! They're crashing planes into your towers!" We thought he was just drunk and went on walking. After lunch, we stopped by another member's house. She was watching the breaking news coverage on "CNN en Espanol" and we realized that this was really happening. We watched for several minutes -- I believe I saw the second tower come down, but I don't recall for sure -- and continued with our day.
During the next few days, the incident gave us an excuse to walk up to any house -- "Hey, what's going on with the World Trade Center?" People in Venezuela were very sympathetic to us as Americans, saying, "We're sorry for what happened to you."
During that time, I learned of the power of a scripture in John 7:27 -- "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you:
not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be
troubled, neither let it be afraid." I shared that scripture several times over the next few days, telling people that even though there's terror in the world, we can find peace through Jesus Christ.
Curtis Gibby
http://www.curtisgibby.com