Charlie Kirk

Charles James Kirk was only thirty-one years old, but he was a giant of a man. He was born on October 14, 1993, in Arlington Heights, Illinois. At the age of eighteen, he had a vision that would set him on a course that led him to this point. He had no wealth or organization at first, but he wanted to be a voice for conservatism. He wrote to Breitbart in 2012 as a high school student, and they proudly published his first foray into political commentary.

His vision was to create Turning Point USA, targeting young adults at universities around the country. Everyone he met realized he was not only very smart, but his energy and motivation were something extraordinary. The impact of his movement over the past 13 years has been truly remarkable since its inception.  The TPUSA website lists its mission statement as: “The organization’s mission is to identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of fiscal responsibility, free markets, and limited government.”

Charlie lists his priorities as: 1) God, 2) Family, and 3) Country. That is how he lived his life, and he loved all three. I have watched hundreds of hours of videos of him speaking over the past several years, and he still amazes me with not only his knowledge and references that he brings to the conversations, but also his ability to keep his comments respectful, regardless of what personal attacks are thrown his way. There have been times when I get an image in my head of how Jesus responded to attacks, trying to force an answer they could use against him. No, I do not believe Charlie is the second coming or equivalent to Jesus, but he truly was one of a kind.

Charlie reached children in their early teens, high schoolers, college age, and on up to those of us in our declining years. He showed us how to be courageous and defend the principles upon which this country was founded, while remaining respectful in our conversations.  He showed us how to explain and defend our faith in Jesus, even when in hostile settings. At the beginning of his movement, the crowds at the universities were mostly hostile to his ideas, but he never gave up. Over the years, his faith in Jesus became a much bigger part of the discussions, and they always ensured that those wanting to ask questions could ask about any subject. Charlie always reminded the crowd to be respectful and give each person a chance to have their say.

I do not know what was in the mind of the shooter, but the motive was to kill more than Charlie; it was to kill his movement and to warn anyone that they can be stopped. Satan has control over many people in this country and around the world today. I believe Charlie would say and did say, Be brave and do not back down.

Matthew 28:19-20 New King James Version
¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.