“Charlie, we remember! And your courageous faith in the truth of God’s Word is a testimony to us all!”

So many were impacted by him, and O, how we miss his voice of reason and his ability to bring adversaries together with the aim of creating unity. But what I miss most is his infectious faith. He wanted to be remembered by it, and he is.

A year ago today I was spending a birthday week up north with my mom, and with good friends. Thankful to have just finished a career and looking forward to what the Lord had next, it was fun, relaxing, celebratory, and freewheeling until suddenly, on the streets of downtown Prescott, my phone began blowing up. Calls, texts and notifications came pouring in, one from a person whose daughter was at the event in Utah. “Charlie’s been shot…pray for him!”

Of course, that’s what I did immediately. But honestly, it took me only a matter of seconds to find a video already going viral, and when I saw it, I knew America had just lost an icon. My prayers shifted to “Dear God, please help the millions of people seeking answers to find them in You!”

I’m not big on icons. They are a dime a dozen. But something made Charlie Kirk different. I didn’t always agree with him (though most of the time I did), but he was a believer in Jesus Christ who was not afraid or ashamed to proclaim the truth to the young (and not-so-young!) people who looked up to him. Some say he had charisma. I say he had the Spirit of the Living God. He wasn’t a perfect man (no one is), but he was a man after God’s own heart, and it showed in how he lived his life.

So yes, we not only remember Charlie Kirk today, but we give thanks to God for granting us layers upon layers of his wisdom, truth telling, and service, packed into 31 short years of earthly life.

I definitely agreed with Charlie about one thing: God’s eternal promises to Israel. I heard him defend his position many times, and though I longed for him to nip like a sheepdog at the heels of wayward young people quickly straying from Biblical support of Israel, I can’t say he was not outspoken about his stance during Q&A sessions! He was tenacious when confronted by hotshots believing they could trip him up on the Israel question! They never did!

Here is one of his tamer responses, and a great reminder of God’s unrelenting faithfulness to His promises. Be sure to hear Charlie’s closing comments about blessings, too! It puts it all in perspective!

God demonstrated His faithfulness to Israel, and Charlie knew that faithfulness was his to enjoy as well! In our earthly perspective, Charlie was taken far too soon. Yet, from before the foundations of the world, God faithfully and masterfully ordained Charlie’s days…and ours! (Psalm 139:15-16) Charlie’s day was up. He was a man after God’s own heart, and he chased it all the way home!

May we do likewise!