President Bush is giving a series of speeches about the war on terror. He is bringing people up to date on America’s efforts since the 9-11 attacks. He is helping everyone remember to be strong and not to forget about that day. Pray for the President as he keeps explaining these things in his speeches. Photo courtesy of the White House.

1. On Monday, September 11, we’ll mark the fifth anniversary of the 9-11 tragedy. So it’s a really great time to pray for the President as he visits all three sites that were impacted by the attacks: Shanksville, PA, New York City, NY and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. Pray for his safety and for his presence and words to be a comfort to those with whom he speaks. Pray also for all those who are still sad about the events of that day, whether they lost a loved one, were injured in the attacks or have other concerns. Pray that their hurts will be fully healed by God’s loving touch, and that He will strengthen each and every one. And pray for anyone in our country who still feels a little bit afraid (which is pretty normal!), that they will have God’s peace and courage.
2. Give thanks for the fact that America has remained safe since the 9-11 terror attacks. Tell God how much you love Him and thank Him for His protection over our country. Ask Him to continue to keep America safe. Pray for our military, intelligence and Homeland Security staff who have worked to make this possible.

President Bush gets his daily security briefing, even when he is on vacation. In this photo you can see Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley as they tell President Bush about security concerns for the day—August 5, 2006. The photo was taken at President and Mrs. Bush’s Crawford, TX ranch. Pray for the President and his security team. Photo courtesy of the White House.

3. Every work day, President Bush does one thing before he does anything else. Do you know what it is? It’s called a security briefing. The main leaders involved in keeping our country secure come in to his office and they tell him about any threats to our country’s safety. They tell him about anything that’s going on that could bring harm to our citizens, whether it’s a terror threat or a big storm or volcano. The President takes these briefings very seriously. So it is important to pray for him and the members of his team as they share and respond to this information. Pray for God’s presence, guidance and wisdom for President Bush, National Security Advisor Hadley, Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff, Secretary of State Rice and everyone responsible to gather and tell this important information. And keep on asking God to keep our whole country safe, especially as we get ready to observe the fifth anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks.
4. Pray for our country and the leaders who serve us as we mark this anniversary. It’s really important that our leaders have God’s wisdom as they keep working to keep us safe. God will give His wisdom to our leaders! Our prayers working with their willingness will really help them know what to do in every difficult or challenging situation.
5. It’s really important to keep on praying for our troops, every week and every day! In Iraq, our military are still helping out a lot as Iraqi security forces get stronger. So we can pray for those serving in Iraq, as they sacrifice for us, safeguarding our freedom. Ask God to protect and encourage them and that He will be especially close to every member of our military reminding them how much He loves them. We can also pray for the Iraqi forces to get stronger and stronger so they can take over complete responsibility for their own country very soon.

Director of FEMA-- R. David Paulison

Photo courtesy of FEMA.

R. David Paulison was designated by President George W. Bush to serve as Acting Under Secretary of Emergency Preparedness and Response and Acting Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency on September 12, 2005. He was confirmed by the Senate on May 26, 2006.

Mr. Paulison has been a firefighter for most of his life—over 30 years—so he has lots of experience with emergencies! Before joining FEMA, Mr. Paulison was chief of the Miami-Dade (FL) Fire Rescue Department. He began his career as a rescue firefighter and rose through the ranks of rescue lieutenant commander, district chief of operations, division chief, assistant chief and then deputy director for administration before becoming the Miami-Dade Fire Chief. He is a certified paramedic and, as fire chief, oversaw the Miami-Dade Urban Search and Rescue Task Force.

Mr. Paulison brings emergency management experience includes Hurricane Andrew and the crash of ValuJet Flight 592. He is also past president of the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

A native of Miami, FL Mr. Paulison earned a bachelor of arts from Florida Atlantic University and completed the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard University.

Director of Homeland Security—Michael Chertoff

Photo courtesy of the Department of Homeland Security.

As Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff is responsible for many key areas of security in our country, including our response in times of disaster and crisis. With his team, he also works to protect America by reducing our vulnerability to future attack, weapons of mass destruction and cyber terrorism. He must also coordinate everything he and his team do with efforts of all the other agencies and departments concerned with America’s security, from local police to all the other federal agencies like FEMA. That is a big job!

Michael Chertoff is a great person to lead our country’s Department of Homeland Security! He has been an investigator for much of his professional life, having worked as a U.S. Appeals Court Judge and as a U.S. Attorney for New Jersey. He has also served in the Department of Justice, and in the days following the September 11 attacks, he investigated all the details about the attacks to learn who planned and carried them out. He did a great job with the investigation, and was the one who linked them to al-Qaeda.

Homeland Security oversees the Coast Guard, the Inspector General, FEMA, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration, the Transportation Security Administration and the Secret Service.

Michael Chertoff is married to Meryl, and together they have two children.

God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear, even if earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.
—Psalm 46:1-2

Answer me when I call, O God who declares me innocent. Take away my distress. Have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
—Psalm 4:1

On Monday, September 11, 2006 the nation will stop and remember the sad things that happened five years ago. If you are old enough, you may remember, but if you are younger, you only know about it from what you’ve heard and been taught. Many people were killed and our country and our world were changed forever.

September 11, 2001 was a very bad day for America, but as always happens, many good things have come from the 9-11 tragedy. People began to pay more attention to God, and many people learned how important prayer is in helping our leaders and in bringing America’s needs before God. Did you know that The Presidential Prayer Team was begun right after the terror attacks? And about a year later, The Presidential Prayer Team for Kids was begun as a way to help kids pray for the country too.

These two prayer efforts are some of the best things that have come from the sad 9-11 tragedy. On that day, five years ago, I was at work. We pulled the TV’s in where we could monitor what was happening, and we watched in horror as the events unfolded. I called family members who are frequent travelers to be sure they were safe. I watched as the President responded to the developments throughout the day. And, I admit, I went a bit numb, as the reality of the day sunk in.

As I watched, I saw Americans turn to prayer in a way I’d never seen in my lifetime. I saw people return to church after a long time away. I saw America changing, right before my eyes. And, as a “Baby Boomer” I’m a part of a generation that’s seen a lot of change! As the idea for a team to support the President and other leaders in prayer developed, I saw how valuable it could be. I watched as PPT was launched and I began writing the prayer updates. The response was amazing! On some days, thousands joined. Other days, tens of thousands joined the team and promised to pray. And we saw God graciously answer those prayers over and over again.

I never thought I’d be giving years of my professional life to helping America—including American kids—to pray! I never dreamed that I would change so very much—from being a person who paid a casual interest in the news and world events to one who immerses herself in the news every day, in order to know how we can pray. God has taught me so much about prayer, and how important it is to bring every concern, large and small to Him. And He’s shown me how many awesome and incredible kids there are in our country who love to pray.

And I never thought I’d get a chance to hear from so many fantastic praying kids! So now, five years later, we’ve had over 200 editions of PPT for Kids. And I’ve been changed. How about you?

We’d love to hear from you, or your mom or dad about how 9-11 has changed you. Or maybe what you’ve learned about prayer through participating in PPT for Kids. Drop us a line at meagan@presidentialprayerteam.org.
--Meagan G., Editor, PPT and PPT for Kids

Our world changed forever on September 11, 2001. What do you remember about that sad day? What do you know about that sad day? Do you know all the good the God has brought from that tragedy?

It’s hard to believe that five years have passed since the terrible attacks on New York City, the Pentagon and flight 93 over Pennsylvania! You might even be young enough that you don’t remember the actual day, but you know about it from your mom and dad and others who have told you about it.

Both kids and adults felt a lot of difficult feelings on that day. Here are some of the things people might have felt. You may even feel these emotions as you remember now. What did you feel?

• Fear--Could this happen again?
• Anger--Why did these people attack our country?
• Confusion--What really happened?
• Sadness--For the many people who did not survive.
• Worry--Are we safe?
• Wondering--How will our country go on after this?

Whatever feelings you experience when you think about September 11, you have a lot in common with other kids. And we want to remind you that as a kid who prays, you can place your faith and trust in God, knowing that His love and care are always there for you. He helped our country after the attacks and He will keep on doing that!

This is not the first time that our country has had to deal with fear and worry. In this week’s Update, we want to tell you about some great leaders who took America through very hard times that were similar, in some ways, to the days following September 11. By telling you about these leaders and having you look at their encouraging words, we want to give you resources that will help you to be hopeful in light of the sadness over September 11. Americans have been terrifically hopeful people, and we have stood in the face of difficulty since the very beginning of our nation.