Eight years after the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, we still pause to remember. Where were you when you heard the news? On that bright Tuesday morning at World Vision’s headquarters near Seattle, we immediately gathered to pray. Shocked and grieving, our staff cried out to God.

It has become trite to say that 9/11 changed the world—but without a doubt, it did. It became definitive proof that what happens thousands of miles away is often painfully relevant to our lives here. It’s not just our foreign friends who have moved closer—our enemies have as well.

Today, the world’s problems can still seem overwhelming. It’s so much easier to retreat and turn away, staying safe in our church pews. But as Christians, do we really have the option of leaving the world’s suffering out of sight, out of mind? Should we only pay attention when the trials and tragedies happen on our doorstep, as they did on 9/11?

As Christians, we seek answers in Scripture. I Peter 3:10-11 quotes Psalm 34: “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it.”

“Seek peace and pursue it.” That’s not a passive suggestion. What does it mean to you and me—ordinary churchgoers, not world leaders—to pursue peace?

The majority of us struggle to understand this post-9/11 world, let alone do something about it. But surely there is something each of us can do to pursue peace. For one of World Vision’s former board members, Leighton Ford, it meant making a modest, yet significant, investment. Soon after 9/11, he suggested to his then 12-year-old grandson, Benji, that they sponsor a child together. He explained his motivation by saying: “We wouldn’t change the world, but maybe we could change one life.”

Indeed. As you reflect on and remember 9/11, I encourage you to respond as well. Pray for the “one life” you might have the power to change. Pray that peace may prevail on earth. Pray that we all will open our hearts and minds to “be the change we want to see in the world.”