Tag: Assassination

In Memoriam 2025

2025 has been a roller coaster.  As Bob Dylan would say, the times they are a-changin’.  Many great things have happened.  After four years of weakness, America is strong again.  The bad guys fear us.  We are no longer allowing Iran to develop nuclear weapons.  We once again support our greatest ally, Israel.  Inflation is down.  Gas prices are down.  Illegal border crossings are not only down, but are basically non-existent.  Crime is down and our streets are safer.  In general, things seem to be heading in the right direction.

Unfortunately, 2025 has been a year in which we lost some very great men.  These were some of the most influential people in my life.  Their loss will be felt widely, and there is a void in moral thinking that will be nearly impossible to fill.

Hulk Hogan (July 24) – The Hulkster deserves an honorable mention on this list because his influence on us was mostly through entertainment and his wrestling career.  While you may not think of Hulk Hogan as a leader in Christian thought or a great moral teacher, he did, in fact, turn his life back to Jesus in his final years.  He made this list because he articulated one of the most important and simplest messages that all of us should understand. 

On August 23, 2023, Hogan went on The Joe Rogan Experience and said that he attended and was baptized at Indian Rocks Baptist Church in Florida.  When Joe Rogan warned him against naming his church because swarms of people might show up to “go to church with the Hulkster,” Hogan said, “No.  I want more people there.”

He recognized his true purpose for being on this earth.  It happens to be the same purpose that all of us have.  As the Apostle Paul told the Ephesians in Acts 20:24, “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”  Ultimately, the only meaning for our lives is to spread the good news of Jesus.

Dr. James Dobson (August 21) – Dr. Dobson helped my parents raise me.  His best-selling 1970 book Dare to Disciplinewas a must-read for Christian parents in the 1970s and ‘80s.  I vividly remember watching videos of Dr. Dobson lectures on parenting and childhood in church as a kid.  What he said made sense, and he earned my respect even then. 

My dad would often tell me that “Dr. Dobson says this” when teaching me lessons about growing up.  On the advice of Dr. Dobson, he even took me on a “Preparing for Adolescence Weekend,” where we got to go stay in a hotel and do fun father-son activities while he also taught me from Dr. Dobson’s book, Preparing for Adolescence, about what to expect in those formative years of my life.  I still have the copy of the book that he gave me that weekend.

Dr. Dobson formed the juggernaut Christian organization Focus on the Family in 1977.  It became a massive multimedia empire that helped bring family values to the forefront again.  As Focus on the Family grew, it gained influence in American politics and social issues.  Now, if you search the internet for Dr. Dobson, you will find many attacks on him by people who reject the Bible.  This shows how effective he was at spreading solid, biblical values to families across our country.  He will be missed, but if more families rediscover his wisdom, our nation will be better off. 

Pastor John MacArthur (July 14) – He was the greatest biblical scholar of my lifetime, with a body of work that includes nearly 400 books.  The MacArthur Study Bible is one of the most well-regarded study Bibles around and has commentary on the entire Old and New Testaments.  It is also the Bible that I personally use and recommend.

I became familiar with John MacArthur because of a girl.  I really liked her, and she was a Christian, but she started getting into charismatic Christianity, which concerned me.  I wanted to learn more about it, so I found the book, Charismatic Chaos, by Pastor MacArthur.  I eventually lost touch with the girl, but never with John MacArthur. 

When the government tried to illegally and immorally shut down churches in 2020, he instead obeyed the Bible’s instruction from Hebrews 10:25 to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some,” and reopened the doors of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California for services.  I had the pleasure of hearing Pastor MacArthur preach in person.

John MacArthur was also the President of The Master’s University and the founder of The Master’s Seminary, so many other pastors and missionaries learned the Bible under his leadership and tutelage.  While his loss will leave gaps that his insights and knowledge might have bridged, much of his wisdom is fortunately still available through his writing and through his media ministry, Grace to You.  There you can find all of his sermon recordings dating back to February 9, 1969.

Charlie Kirk (September 10) – Charlie was the most effective Christian evangelist in the last decade, and he was not even a pastor.  He broke onto the scene as a political commentator and strategist at only 18 years old, when he started Turning Point USA in 2012.  He was brilliant.  He was ambitious.  When I first heard about him, he was an up-and-comer in the conservative movement.  Then, in 2020, while attending Calvary Chapel Chino Hills against tyrannical government orders, Charlie came as a guest to speak with Pastor Jack Hibbs.  I was instantly impressed.  He was not only knowledgeable about politics and our culture, but he knew God’s word.  He looked at politics the same way I do.  He realized that political wins are important, but that they would be futile and short-lived if they were not built on a strong understanding and belief in God. 

Charlie was not just a thought leader.  He was not a modern general who plans the battle and sends out orders.  He was like an old general who rode his horse to the front lines and led the charge.  Through a successful podcast and radio show he shared his message.  Through Turning Point Action, he built a massive political organization that mobilized and won elections for candidates who love freedom. 

As we all know, he also got down into the trenches of the most godless, morally bankrupt, dangerous places in our country:  college campuses.  He stood up to the intellectual brainwashing of our youth by openly speaking about both political issues and the Bible.  He was articulate.  He was courageous.  Most importantly, he was effective.  Unfortunately, this moral clarity and effectiveness led many to hate him.  As Jesus says in John 15:18, “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.”  On September 10th, a young man, fueled by the vitriol of the left, gunned down Charlie while Charlie was speaking at one of those college events.

This will be the toughest hole to fill because he was in the prime of his life and had lots more to accomplish.  His death also left a power struggle in the conservative movement that is very dangerous.  Some bad actors are trying to push us away from biblical values and into anti-Israel positions.  Charlie would be appalled.  We need to honor him by filling that void with voices who follow the values he preached.  We also need to keep the revival going that began with his martyrdom.  Churches are seeing a swell in attendance.  This is directly related to Charlie. 

Fortunately, all of us are able to revisit Charlie’s college debate videos online.  Even I have been surprised at how many of those videos were about Jesus.  We all need to keep that in mind as we try to continue what Charlie Kirk started.

This has been a rough year for some of my most trusted voices.  These losses are on top of missing the wisdom of the great Dennis Prager, who is no longer on the radio after his spinal injury at the end of last year.  Hopefully, he will regain enough strength to share that wisdom widely again. 

We have reason for optimism about 2026 and beyond, but I wanted to acknowledge some of the great men that we lost this year and pray for people to rise up in their places.  Happy New Year!

Charlie Kirk and Our Turning Point

Charlie Kirk was a great man.  I had the pleasure of seeing him speak with Pastor Jack Hibbs at church back in 2020.  I also worked for Turning Point Action during the 2024 election.  He loved our country, he loved Jesus, and he loved his wife and two young children. 

Today, he was taken by an act of pure evil.  The organization that Charlie Kirk started was called Turning Point USA, and today needs to be a turning point for our country.  My first reaction when I heard that he had died was anger.  I was angry at Democrats for the murder of a brilliant young husband and father.  How could they want this?  What kind of terrible people could do this? 

Then I took a breath and prayed.  I am still angry, but I realized that my anger needs to be logical and focused.  Not all Democrats wanted this.  In fact, I am sure that many Democrats are disgusted by Charlie Kirk’s murder.  My anger should not be towards them.  Our turning point actually needs to start with them.  If you are shocked and disgusted by this evil act, you still have hope.

My anger is not towards most average Democrats.  My anger is towards the leftist ideology and worldview.  My anger is towards secularism.  My anger is towards the media who pushed this secular-leftist worldview.  The only way we can turn this country around is to turn to Jesus. 

If you are one of those who held those views but are outraged and appalled at this murder, we need you.  We need to end secular leftist ideology.  We need to bring back sanity.  That requires Jesus.  Charlie Kirk would be the first to agree with that sentiment.  Jesus is the only one who can fix this.  We are at this point because our nation has gotten further from God.  We need a religious revival. 

If you are a Democrat, and this terrible evil has woken you up to the damage that turning from God has done, I am pleading with you to give Jesus a chance.  Go to church and talk to a pastor about Jesus.  You still have hope.  You can even send me a message if you have questions.  If you are genuine, I will respond.

Charlie Kirk has spoken openly about how Jesus saved his life.  I know with certainly that I will see Charlie Kirk again in Heaven. Until then, thank you Charlie.

But, the Lies!

When President Trump was shot in Pennsylvania, the person next to me had a shocking reaction.  She said, “Good.”  When pushed about why she gave that disgusting response, she said, “You can’t change my mind.  I will never support that man.  Everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie.  I can’t stand liars.” 

The irony is, I think that reason is a lie.  If lying disqualified a candidate, there is zero chance that she could vote for Kamala Harris.  I just spent most of October in a swing state, Arizona, where I saw ads on television and billboards, and heard radio advertisements for both candidates.  I can confirm that Kamala Harris is running the most dishonest major presidential campaign of our lifetimes.  It is inconsistent and hypocritical to claim that you support Kamala Harris because President Trump has told lies.

Honesty should matter in a political candidate.  Ideally, a candidate would say what policies they support and follow through once elected.  In that respect, President Trump has actually been the most honest politician in recent memory.  He either followed through, or attempted to and was blocked, on everything from tax cuts and lowering the regulatory burden, to Supreme Court appointments, to moving the United States Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, to working to secure our border.  Sure, he has lied about some silly things, like crowd sizes.  He exaggerates often, but when it comes to substantive policy, he is more open and honest than most politicians.

Likewise, his commercials and other advertisements playing in Arizona did not lie about his opponent, Kamala Harris’s policy positions.  He doesn’t need to!  Her positions are so crazy and radical that the truth is the best weapon to use against her.  He ran ads of her saying that she wants to ban fracking.  There were ads with her saying that she wants taxpayers to pay for prison inmates to get transgender treatments and that she supports men playing in women’s sports.  One ad highlights the massive increase in illegal border crossings under Harris’s watch.  Another ad showed her saying that she cannot think of anything she would do differently than Joe Biden.  Her own record is enough ammunition to beat her without needing to make stuff up.

Then, there are the Harris ads.  She cannot run ads touting her record, because it is embarrassing.  She cannot honestly attack President Trump’s record in office, because it was mostly successful.  Her only chance is to lie, and her handlers realize it. 

The laundry list of lies was very long.  There were lies about her record and her agenda that were not in the ads.  This includes claiming that the border is secure, when her current administration gave us the biggest influx of illegal border crossings ever.  It includes taking both sides on multiple issues like support for the Green New Deal, cutting police funding, eliminating private health insurance, and mandating electric vehicles whether people can afford it or not.  There was also the lie to the American people that Joe Biden was competent and fit for office, when everyone could see clearly that he was not.

Then, there were the attack ads about President Trump.  There was a big billboard that I passed multiple times near Phoenix that claimed President Trump plans to cut social security.  I was fortunate to be able to attend a Trump rally in Tempe, and I heard with my own ears his actual plan.  He plans to eliminate taxes on social security income.  That sounds far from a cut to me. 

There was also a commercial that claimed President Trump wants to pass a national abortion ban.  Unfortunately, that is an outright lie.  President Trump has said consistently that he does not support a federal ban and is happy with abortion policy being decided on a state-by-state basis.  Another ad lied that President Trump is proposing a four thousand dollar a year sales tax on families.  He is not.  Harris also had an ad running with a whole bunch of lies about President Trump’s agenda.  It claimed that President Trump wants to monitor women’s pregnancies and that he wants to defund K-12 schools.  These lies fall under the umbrella of a greater lie that Harris has been pushing throughout the campaign.  You have probably heard her talk about President Trump’s “Project 2025 agenda.”  She knows that Project 2025 is not connected to President Trump at all, but she does not care what is true.  His actual plan is called “Agenda 47,” and can be seen on his campaign website.

These are just the newer untruths.  She still mentions the Charlottesville lie, which has been debunked many times, even by left-wing sources. 

One of my favorite whoppers is not even about President Trump, but about American businesses.  She says that the inflation caused by her current administration’s policies was actually caused by “price-gouging.”  The businesses that she claims are price-gouging are making razor thin profit margins.  Restaurants are especially hurt by the inflationary policies of the left and the over regulation by the government.  They cannot survive without raising their prices to cover the increased cost of doing business.  Her saying that these businesses are price-gouging is slanderous.

We could keep going for pages, but by now you should get the picture.  Kamala Harris is far more dishonest than President Trump.  If you claim that you are not voting for President Trump because he is a liar, then you should write somebody in.  Kamala Harris is not an option for anybody who cares about truth.

Five Quick Thoughts About the Assassination Attempt on President Trump

  1. When I first heard that President Trump had been shot, a person I know reacted by saying, “Good.” I would like to say that this surprises me, but unfortunately, the left has spent such so much time vilifying the man, it was half expected. Democrats and the media have spent the last 8 years comparing him to Hitler, baselessly calling him a dictator. By the way, a dictator is somebody who has absolute power and exercises control over the lives of his people. This is a ridiculous claim to make about a President who had deregulation and lessening the government interference in our lives as a cornerstone of his 4 years in office.
  2. Another person told me that they were surprised it wasn’t a Trump supporter who made an attempt to kill President Biden, because Trump supporters are “a little wacko.” While I am sure that out of the many Trump supporters there are plenty of bad apples, most of his fans that I have met are very kind and loving people. The scary thing about this comment was that it came from a conservative. Unfortunately, this person is older, and still watches the mainstream media and late night talk shows. President Trump, and his supporters, are painted as wackos by the network news and the late night talk shows. You cannot trust the sources that informed the public 50 years ago. Those sources can only be seen as opposition research. Also, if you have any negative thoughts about Trump supporters, I encourage you to go to a Trump rally and talk to the people there. They are the people who you would hope to live next door to.
  3. The failures of the secret service need to be investigated. How was somebody able to get on a rooftop so close to the stage? How was he allowed to get off a shot after spectators pointed him out?
  4. Things like this are likely to happen when one side of our political spectrum is actively protesting and ridiculing the Ten Commandments. Our country needs to turn back to God. There is no other way to turn the tide.
  5. President Trump is a real man. This is a guy who got shot, stood up with blood on his face, and raised his fist in defiance telling Americans to “fight!” Who would be a better guy to face down our enemies abroad than him?