While focusing on the month of September for my column, I was struck by the powerful images of the deadly attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four American passenger planes, turning them into lethal bombs, as they targeted key sites in our country.

I was on a plane to New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary when the tragedy struck. After landing in New Orleans, all flights were canceled. In fact, the handful of trustees who had flown in for a committee meeting could not get a bus, train, plane, or rental car out of the city. Fortunately, by Friday of that week, we were able to secure a rental car through the efforts of president Chuck Kelley.