The murder of Charlie Kirk yesterday, recent senseless shootings, the remembrance of the 9/11 attack today, all have me echoing Andrew Peterson’s beautiful song, “Is He Worthy?”:
Do you feel the world is broken?
We do.
Do you feel the shadows deepen?
We do.
But do you know that all the dark won’tStop the light from getting through?
We do.
Do you wish that you could see it all made new?
We do.
Last night, I was pondering how to pray about yesterday’s shooting. We pray for justice for the murderer, comfort and grace for the family, for God to turn hearts to Himself through this. But I wanted to pray, “Please make this stop.”
A phrase from a verse about evil men getting worse kept coming to mind, so I looked it up. It’s from 2 Timothy 3:12-13: “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”
Earlier in the chapter, Paul writes this:
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. (2 Timothy 3:1-7).
That sounds like our day, doesn’t it? And the Bible says it’s only going to get worse until Jesus returns.
So what did God inspire Paul to write to Timothy in light of the increasing evil in the world?
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:14-17).
Keep on reading, studying, living out Scripture. The written Word is light (Psalm 119:105) that teaches us of the living Word, Jesus, the light of the world (John 8:12). Evil doesn’t obscure that light; it proves it and points to the need for it. Evil shouldn’t shake our faith in God’s truth, but should make us cling to it and share it even more.
Someday Jesus will return and set all things right, make the crooked things straight. Until then, we join with the psalmist in saying, “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope” (Psalm 130:5).
(Note: This post is not an endorsement of everything Kirk has ever said: I don’t know all he said. I only recently learned who who he was. But I know he was a professing Christian who tried to stand up for truth the best he knew how and should not have been murdered because of a difference in politics. The main point of this post is to point us to God’s light in an increasingly dark world.)
(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)
Stray Thoughts 
The tragedies recently have touched the hearts and souls of many. I’ve noticed that since yesterday’s killing of Charlie Kirk, there have been many people speaking out about their faith and love for God. What the devil meant for bad, God is using for good. God’s message is being shared every moment.
Amen. We talked about that before Bible study last night–the fact that people will be hearing what he believed and where his hope was through all this. The light shines in darkness. But my heart aches for his loved ones and my anger towards the evil one who inspires murder (John 8:44) is increased.
I woke up still feeling shaken by yesterday’s events. I think the hardest thing to take is that evil, in the form of those not trusting in God, seems so brazen and confident. Yet I guess that shouldn’t seem so surprising? I have been praying that God could work even in this horrible situation. And yes, I can see that it may embolden other young people to speak more openly about Jesus, or even to come to him in the first place. Thanks for acknowledging all this in your post!
A beautiful reminder of what awaits us, that this world is not all there is. We need this encouragement every morning we wake up. Thank you.
Thank you for posting this. You said it better than I could. Thank you for the reminder of truth
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Oh, Barbara, what a beautifully written, heartfelt post. I wasn’t familiar with who Charlie Kirk was either, but I am saddened that this happened to him and his family who are left behind. Thank you for all of the encouragement that you’ve left here in words as we as Christians struggle at times to understand why things like this happen. I’m also saddened that persecution has reached this far in America. May we see the furtherance of the Gospel as a result of this man who stood for Christ.
And I also greatly appreciate your mention (and YouTube link) of Is He Worthy? That song is one of my all-time favorites because it causes me to reflect on the holiness of God and all that He’s done.
May the Lord bless you for sharing your thoughts with us.
Barbara, This is so helpful and excellent writing. You are so wise regarding Scripture knowledge. I feel like since we are the same age, I should be able to handle scripture as well as you, but alas! Maybe sometime you can share your Bible study regimen sometime!
Thank you for your kindness. If I was as adept with Scripture as I should be, I wouldn’t have had to look up a verse I could only remember a few words of. 🙂
The church I attended in my teen years strongly emphasized reading the whole Bible through in a year. I did that for some years, but always felt I couldn’t stop and ponder because I had to complete my “assignment” for the day. I still read the Bible through, but at my own pace.
Yes, I read one or two chapters a day at the most. I can’t keep up with a 4 chapters a day routine without it turning into something I just want to check off my list.
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Grief mingled with confusion. Good word today, and I love that song.
Thank you for this thoughtful post, Barbara. I’m reading through Psalm 119 right now, and its focus on the Word goes right along with your emphasis on scripture. What a comfort to remember that one day, all will be made new.
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So beautifully spoken Barbara. Like you I had recently learned who Charlie Kirk was too. I don’t know everything he said either. But I know he spoke up for truth and Jesus. May we continue to do so too. We may never know who our words touch, and that’s okay, because God does
Thanks so much for sharing with Sweet Tea & Friends this month dear friend.