Grieving Charlie Kirk: How to cling to God in the face of evil



“Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble” (Job 14:1).

Why we should read this reminder: God is sovereign over suffering and, in His time, repurposes unspeakable evil for redemptive good. The question of evil appears to be eternal, but evil did, in fact, have a beginning. And just as evil had a beginning, it will have an ending. Evil is not eternal.

Evil may wound, but it cannot win. Pain may overwhelm, but it cannot overcome the resurrection hope we have in Jesus.

On Wednesday, my heart was shattered. Charlie Kirk and I had been texting late Sunday night, finalizing details for his surprise appearance at our Prestonwood Biblical Worldview Conference. Just hours later, our brother and friend was ushered immediately into the presence of Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:8). His life was cut short in an act of unspeakable evil. He was brutally murdered and assassinated.

When we are struck by evil atrocity, our hearts cry out: Why, Lord? We feel the weight of grief pressing down, and worry and fear become destabilizing forces. But in these moments, we need a deeper anchor for our souls.

George Müller, the great 19th-century prayer warrior, once said: “My faith is the same faith which is found in every believer. It has been increased little by little for the last 26 years. Many times, when I would have gone insane from worry, I was at peace because my soul believed the truth of God’s promises.”

Müller’s words remind us of a vital truth: Peace is not found in explanations but in God’s promises.

Worry, even fear, is destabilizing so many of us right now. We need a steady anchor for our souls to stabilize our emotions and help us put one foot in front of the other today.

Oh, how we all need the reminder that our God weeps with us today. Through His Son — and now through His Spirit — God has entered our world of suffering. In the midst of heartbreak and loss, He offers His presence, His peace, His hope, His joy, and the promise of eternal life, even when life makes no sense.

Evil does not make sense, so there is no spiritual value in trying to understand or make evil make sense. Evil is a disruption in all the good God has created for us.

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Rebecca Noble/Getty Images

We also do not have the right words. That's OK. Scripture reminds us, “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words" (Romans 8:26).

In light of this, I want to share four biblical anchors that can steady our souls as we grieve Charlie’s loss and face the problem of pain and evil.

1. God allows and is in control of all my challenges

When Joseph was falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife and cast into prison, he suffered unjustly for 13 long years (Genesis 39). Was he in God’s will? Yes. Was God still sovereign? Absolutely.

Only years later, standing before his brothers who had betrayed him, Joseph declared, “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20). What was meant to destroy Joseph, God used to save a nation and preserve the line of promise that would lead to the Messiah.

The same God is at work in our pain today. That situation in your life that feels unbearable, even senseless — He is still in control. He is not absent. He is bringing good out of evil in ways we cannot yet see.

Please join me in praying for Charlie’s precious wife, children, and family. We cling to the promise that “the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Romans 8:26). And we take comfort in the truth that “precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Psalm 116:15).

2. When evil strikes, we live on promises — not explanations

Ultimately, there is little spiritual value or peace from explanations. Explanations rarely heal a broken heart. In fact, answers alone fall flat in the face of evil. But the promises of God never fail. As seekers of truth, we will find the assailants and pray they are brought to justice, but as a pastor, I know more peace will still be needed when “those questions” are answered.

To experience peace, we must learn to live by faith in the promises and character of God. No one lives by having faith in explanations. All of the faith heroes of the scriptures (many who greatly suffered) lived by faith in the promises of God. Faith is taking God at his word, not asking him for an explanation. That doesn’t mean we cannot ask God, “Why?” But in my experience, God wants us to trust him in the moment, rather than ask for an explanation.

When we suffer, we realize how insignificant our lives are apart from living them in the will of God.

Here’s the key when evil strikes: Living by faith means obeying God’s word in spite of feelings, circumstances, or consequences. It means holding on to God’s truth no matter how heavy the burden or how dark the day, knowing that He is working out His perfect plan.

It means living by promises and not by explanations.

We may never know why Charlie’s life was taken so horrifically. Evil does not make sense, nor should we expect it to. Our hope is not in explanations but in the unchanging goodness of God.

3. Suffering can confirm my faith

Suffering strips away our illusions of self-sufficiency and reminds us that apart from God, our lives are fragile and fleeting.

Think of Abraham, who was asked to sacrifice Isaac — the very son of promise (Genesis 22). That moment of unimaginable testing revealed the depth of his trust in God. And in the right time, God provided a ram.

In the same way, when trials overwhelm us, we are given the opportunity to see God as our true provider. Suffering, as painful as it is, refines our faith, anchors our hope, and draws us closer to the Lord who holds our days.

When we suffer, we realize how insignificant our lives are apart from living them in the will of God.

When we walk through suffering, we are reminded how small and fragile our lives are apart from the will of God. Trials strip away illusions and reveal that the true value of life is not found in the temporary, but in what is eternal.

4. Someday everything will become clear, and God’s ultimate purpose will be accomplished

Biblical heroes like Abraham, Joseph, and Job did not understand their trials while they were in the midst of them. Clarity only came later, when they could look back and see the hand of God at work in the crisis.

Even our Lord Jesus entered the depths of sorrow.

On the night before His crucifixion, He confessed to His disciples, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death" (Matthew 26:38). In agony He prayed, “Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me” (Matthew 26:39). Only hours later, He would endure such profound abandonment that He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

In our darkest moments, we discover this unshakable truth: Jesus understands, Jesus remains, and Jesus redeems.

This week, with the heartbreaking news of Charlie’s murder, we feel that same weight of sorrow and confusion. Like the great saints of old, we don’t yet have clarity on why such atrocities happen. But we cling to the same promises they did.

The writer of Hebrews reminds us: "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet he did not sin" (Hebrews 4:15).

And we hold fast to God’s unchanging word: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

Charlie loved Jesus and was unashamed of the gospel. Today, we grieve his loss, but not as those without hope. Because of the resurrection of Jesus, we know this is not the end. The God who provided for Abraham, who redeemed Joseph’s suffering, who restored Job, and who raised Jesus from the grave will one day wipe away every tear.

Until that day, we trust His heart, we rest in His presence, and we lean on His promises.

And God promises us still: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

In our darkest moments, we discover this unshakable truth: Jesus understands, Jesus remains, and Jesus redeems.

A final word

In this season of heartbreak, let us cling to Christ, our unshakable anchor. Evil may wound, but it cannot win. Pain may overwhelm, but it cannot overcome the resurrection hope we have in Jesus.

Until that day when faith becomes sight, we will trust His heart, rest in His presence, and hold tightly to His promises.

Charlie Kirk Wasn’t Just Assassinated, He Was Martyred

Charlie Kirk wasn't ultimately killed for his second-order political beliefs but for his first-order belief in Jesus, out of which his other beliefs flowed.

Trump to combat anti-Christian bias, bolster prayer in public schools



President Donald Trump announced the latest steps his administration is taking to protect the right to pray in schools across the nation.

Trump pointed out the tremendous, and often underreported, anti-Christian bias that has become commonplace in American schools during a speech Monday at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. In order to protect millions of Christians across the country, Trump announced that his Department of Education will soon issue a new guidance to protect prayer in public schools.

'I know what you went through.'

"For most of our country's history, the Bible was found in every classroom in the nation," Trump said. "Yet in many schools today, students are instead indoctrinated with anti-religious propaganda, and some are even punished for their religious beliefs."

"It's ridiculous," Trump added.

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President Trump: "I'm pleased to announce this morning that the Department of Education will soon issue new guidance protecting the Right to prayer in our Public Schools. TOTAL protection." pic.twitter.com/dkyGeZHXqL
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) September 8, 2025

Trump went on to tell the story of Hannah Allen, a student at Honey Grove Middle School in Texas who tried to gather a group of friends to pray for an injured classmate in 2018. The school's principal reportedly told Allen not pray publicly but to instead pray behind a curtain, in an empty gym, or outside where she is out of view.

Due to pressure from religious liberty groups, the Honey Grove Texas Independent School District eventually reversed its decision and allowed students like Allen to pray in public.

"I know what you went through," Trump said. "I know what you went through."

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Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images

"To support students like Hannah, I'm pleased to announce this morning that the Department of Education will soon issue new guidance protecting the right to prayer in our public schools," Trump added.

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Is the rapture actually coming soon? What you need to know



Doomsday date-setting is nothing new. People throughout the ages have perpetually speculated about when they believe the end times will come to fruition.

Since Jesus’ death and resurrection, his promise that he will one day return has left believers waiting in anxious anticipation. Along the way, the concept of the "rapture" became a key piece in this complex, prophetic puzzle. It’s a topic I detailed in my book “The Armageddon Code.”

End-times divide

Merriam-Webster defines the rapture as the “final assumption of Christians into heaven during the end time according to Christian theology.” And while this definition is fine in a general sense, rapture theology has splintered into many forms and fashions.

We certainly see many signs today that point to important reverberations as chaos swirls around the globe.

The concept centers on various biblical teachings, though 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 is a central text. “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”

Among Christians, there are a slew of beliefs about when — or even if — the rapture will unfold. Those who believe in a pre-tribulation rapture say Christians will be taken up to heaven by Jesus and protected before a seven-year tribulation period on Earth.

Others take a mid-tribulation stance, believing Christians will be brought up to glory halfway through the seven-year tribulation period. Then there’s the post-tribulation view, which sees the rapture and second coming of Jesus as one event.

There are some other perspectives as well, but the point is: The church is divided over the timing and even the existence of the rapture.

September 23, 2025?

Like many other theological constructs, it has become a lightning rod for debate. Yet there’s one area where there should be absolutely no controversy, debate — or even discussion: Date-setting.

Sadly, over the past two millennia, many people have attempted to set specific predictions about when they believe Jesus will rapture the church.

The latest madness centers on September 23, a date circulating on social media as the time when Christ will purportedly come back to take Christians to heaven.

“Rumors have recently gone viral online that the rapture will take place on September 23,” Charisma explains. “Videos across TikTok and YouTube claim dreams, visions, and even mathematical formulas confirm the return of Christ during this year’s Feast of Trumpets. Some are so convinced that they are selling possessions and preparing for that day as the final moment.”

While it’s hard to tell how widespread these proclamations have become, it’s simply another day, another rapture conspiracy theory.

No dates allowed

But there’s a major biblical problem with date-setting when it comes to the end times: We’re never told in scripture to do it.

Both Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32 proclaim that no one knows when the end will unfold. The former reads, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

In the preceding verses, Jesus does offer powerful words after his disciples asked for the “sign of [Christ’s] coming and of the end of the age.” He encourages followers not to be deceived by fake messiahs and tells them there will be “wars and rumors of wars” and even famines and earthquakes all over the globe.

Jesus explains that these events will be the “birth pains,” and persecution will follow. He also notes that the gospel will be preached around the world before the end comes. There is, of course, debate about how to place these events in the context of future events, as some believe Christ’s warnings in these scriptures pertain — at least in part — to Rome’s destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in A.D. 70; some see his words as being both immediate and long-ranging prophecies.

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Regardless, Jesus makes it clear that we won’t know when the end of days will arrive. This elusive nature would, thus, apply to both a rapture event and Jesus’ second coming. In fact, Christ goes on to say that the conditions surrounding his return will be as in the days of Noah.

People around Noah were living their lives without a care until the flood shockingly took them away. He said his own re-emergence will follow a similar pattern.

“Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left,” Jesus proclaims in Matthew 24:40, with verse 41 continuing: “Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.”

Now, he does add the following in verse 42: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.” So there’s certainly a call to be alert, but never to date-set.

Faith, not forecasts

We certainly see many signs today that point to important reverberations as chaos swirls around the globe — much of it focused on Israel and the Middle East. People are lovers of themselves, and morality is fleeting.

But to claim the rapture is happening on a specific date like Sept. 23 isn’t only biblically incorrect and spiritually illiterate; it’s also dangerous.

Over a decade ago, other viral claims surrounded a man named Harold Camping.

Camping purportedly unsuccessfully predicted the rapture numerous times, with people who believed his proclamations reportedly giving up their money and possessions in anticipation; one man spent his entire life savings.

It was a tragic dynamic that would have been avoidable if people simply stuck to the biblical text.

Ultimately, if we’re concerned that the rapture or second coming (or both simultaneously, depending on your theological proclivities) is upon us, our best action is to reach the lost around us with God’s eternal truth.

Rather than waste time date-setting, we should be spreading the gospel to a watching world, because that’s a calling the Bible actually gives us.

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