Today is September 11, 2025. It will be, perhaps, one of the most memorable days in your young lives. Seeing as most of you are either in your 30s or younger and have really never experienced a tragic situation such as yesterday’s killing of Charlie Kirk, it will most likely be emblazoned in your minds for life. It is, without a doubt, one of the most horrific and unfortunate, events that you will ever live through. I pray to God that is the case.
Twenty-four years ago today, I was 39 years old. That morning, I was on an early flight from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia. By the time I got off the plane, rented a car, and was almost to my first sales call of the day at Stokes Vacuum, I stopped at a McDonalds very close to Stokes and learned of the tragic events of 9/11 as everyone in the restaurant was watching the TV in disbelief. It is a memory that literally causes water to well up in my eyes even now, 24 years later, as I write this letter to you. The visceral response has not abated over the last 24 years. A mix of anger and sadness (mostly anger) still stir in my stomach when I think about it. I could easily weep about it, but I’m a man … so I try (unsuccessfully) not to cry.
Charlie Kirk’s murder, I sense, will be the same seminal event in your young lives. It is a tragic and devastating day.
As Christians, we don’t let emotions or emotionalism rule our lives. But, let’s remember that Jesus wept. And we, being lovers of Him and followers of Him, can certainly weep in this situation. We can also be angry, confused, and even deeply despairing about our world. We do not, however, dwell in our emotions, we do not sin in our anger, and we don’t remain in a state of confusion, or despair forever. Christ has given us hope and we will return to hope. But first we grieve.
I know that each of you has a kind and Christlike heart. I know that you have been praying for Mr. Kirk’s family and friends … as we ought to do and as we, thanks to the grace of God, desire to do. I also suspect that tears have been shed on their behalf and will continue to be shed. This is a testament to the grace of God working in you.
I also know that your Christ-filled hearts are not without hope. Mr. Kirk, because of his faith in the perfectness of Christ, is today with Him. His presence with Christ has nothing to do with how good a man he was — it is solely dependent on what he believed about Jesus (Romans 4:5, But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness). Fortunately, Mr. Kirk is in a better place. And for that, we are thankful.
As we process this tragedy, let’s continue to pray for the Kirk family, for each other, and for those who do not currently share our Faith in Christ — specifically that this event might make us love Christ all the more and make us closer to Him and compel others to trust in His perfectness and love for them.
With much love (and tears),
Doug
