A Voice Still Heard
This article first appeared in Issue 107 of Calvary Chapel Magazine, Spring 2026.
Photos courtesy of Calvary South OC, CA & other sources
As 100 million watched his memorial, it was Charlie Kirk’s life and death that ignited a renewed hunger for Christ, reflected in soaring Bible sales.
At Charlie Kirk’s memorial service in September 2025, his wife, Erika, stunned the world by forgiving his killer. “He wanted to save young men just like the one who took his life. That young man. … On the cross, our Savior said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’ I forgive him because it was what Christ did and is what Charlie would do.”
Before he was killed at the Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University, Charlie enjoyed giving away free hats to the large, eager crowd.
“What are we going to do?” Ken Graves’ daughter, Jessica, asked her father the day after Charlie Kirk was assassinated on September 10. Ken, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Bangor, ME, had grieved with his congregation the night before over the news that the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) had been murdered as he spoke to an outdoor crowd at Utah Valley University that afternoon.
“What do you mean, what are we going to do?” he responded, still numb after the devastating loss. “I was saying in my own heart, I’m doing what I believe I’m called to do, making disciples, training men and sending them out to plant churches, and preaching to pastors. What more?” Ken was stung by the confrontation.
Charlie shares the Gospel just before the assassin’s bullet took his life in the open air.
“It’s easy to preach boldly like I do to a friendly crowd—in here we control the environment,” he reflected. For years, Charlie had steadfastly dialogued with often hostile crowds of young adults on college campuses with truth and grace about political and social issues. Even while facing danger he kept his focus on the Gospel. That danger came to fruition through an assassin’s bullet, leaving behind his widow, Erika, and two small children.
“I am convicted,” Ken confessed emotionally to his church the following Sunday. “I count Charlie Kirk to be the bravest heart with the sharpest mind that we’ve probably ever seen in our lifetime. He’s gone. It was too easy for everyone, including us pastors, to let Charlie do the talking and take the heat for us. It’s been a little bit too safe. I’ve got to do something. I’ve got to change.” Taking the baton from Charlie, he then publicly committed himself and his church to pursue a greater presence in the world of social and mass media, making future plans to expand the church facility a lower priority.
Charlie’s untimely martyrdom has sparked a spiritual and cultural awakening across the U.S. and even around the world as teenagers and young adults were moved and changed by Charlie’s fearless and bold witness for freedom, righteousness, and personal responsibility. And they are leading their parents and others in the older generation—including many in the orbit of Calvary Chapels—into the awakening. Several CC pastors and their wives humorously admitted that they didn’t know much about Charlie until their children “introduced” them.
An Unexpected Ripple
An estimated 275,000 people physically attended or were outside Charlie’s memorial service; potentially 100 million worldwide watched it online. A literal “who’s who” of well-known Christian and government leaders—including the U.S. president, vice president, and Cabinet members, many of them sharing the Gospel—joined with everyday Americans to honor Charlie’s life and legacy. Erika stunned the world when she publicly forgave Charlie’s killer, leading many others, by example, to do the same. She admonished the killer that day that he had no idea of the fallout coming from her husband’s death.
Erika Kirk (left) and Michelle Randall (right) take questions at a women’s conference at Calvary Chapel South OC in San Clemente, CA, long before Charlie’s death.
“In fact, it became more about Jesus and less about politics the closer he got to his death.”
Local vigils, large and small, broke out throughout the U.S. and other countries, attracting record turnouts. Social media interactions sharing testimonies of Charlie’s impact have combusted, especially among the young now continuing his mission. Posts described people choosing against abortion, buying a Bible for the first time, going back to church or even going for the first time, registering to vote, and setting aside their fear of defending their conservative or Christian beliefs.
“Most assuredly, I [Jesus] say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” John 12:24
Erika Kirk
The work of TPUSA continues strong—chapter requests have multiplied up to 70-fold since September 10, and a record number of churches have joined TPUSA Faith. Erika has succeeded her husband as CEO.
Book tracker Circan BookScan reported that September showed a 36% increase in Bible copy sales in comparison to September 2024. Some 2.4 million Bibles were sold in September 2025, up from 1.5 million in August.
John Randall, senior pastor of Calvary South OC in San Clemente, CA, marveled, “Since Charlie’s martyrdom, there has been an awakening in the generation he worked so hard to reach. Charlie’s message of truth has multiplied. Thousands are flooding the churches, reading the Bible, and coming to Christ. Young men and women are rising up, unashamed to stand for truth, to live for Christ, and to carry the torch that Charlie once held high. Though his life was cut short, his impact continues to spread like ripples on a quiet lake, reaching farther than he ever imagined. His legacy endures.”
Calling a Generation to Courage
Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12
Some Calvary pastors have compared Charlie to Stephen, the first Christian martyr, and as a Moses setting an example for many “Joshua’s”. Saved in the 5th grade, he was just 18 years old when he quit college to audaciously start a conservative youth movement that would grow beyond expectations. Students flocked to his popular “Prove Me Wrong” tent events on college campuses, where he debated respectfully but firmly with those who disagreed with him.
Erika Kirk recently proclaimed to a college audience, “He wanted to challenge you to think, … that whatever your convictions were, you actually understood why you had them other than them being talking points because your professor … or your friend told you so.” She called the audience at the TPUSA event “the courageous generation.” Erika added, “Charlie’s murder may seem like we’re in a shadow, as if death [had] the victory …. But you are proof that this light of truth burns so brightly. The Lord is calling you to rise courageously. … It will encourage someone else to do the same.”
Mike McClure, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel San Jose, CA, noted that Charlie would tell young people, “Get off the couch. Give your heart to God. Do something great. Earn it, work. Get married. Have more kids than you can afford. Do something great for God.”
Charlie recruited many young adults to serve in responsible TPUSA roles, including 18-year-old Mikey McCoy, ultimately as his chief of staff. Mikey, the son of Rob McCoy, founder of Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Newbury Park, CA, referred to 1 Corinthians 11:1: Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ. “That’s what Charlie did. We look to Charlie because he followed Christ as well. Let’s keep this legacy going.”
After meeting Charlie in 2020, Pastor John Randall was deeply impressed “by this young man, who was so committed and driven to awaken a generation to the truth. His passion was contagious. He carried a rare boldness that wasn’t born of pride but of conviction rooted in Scripture.”
In November 2023, at Calvary Chapel Reno-Sparks, NV, Charlie prophetically relayed his final words for youth. He counseled, “You have a great country, and it’s collapsing, and it’s going to be up to you to save it. But you must follow God’s command and law. You must put God first. And if you don’t, none of it will matter.”
A Friend to Pastors
Charlie was often invited to take the pulpit or offer Q&A sessions at CC fellowships, as he proved himself to be a friend and encourager to many of those pastors. He considered Rob McCoy to be “his pastor”. Some were included in Charlie’s group texts, especially during the pandemic and churches’ battles to keep their doors open—including John Randall, Rob McCoy, Ken Graves, and Mike McClure. Mike remembered, “Charlie would call, text, and encourage me. He did that to everybody and always returned my texts.”
Pastors John Randall (right) of CC South OC, and Greg Denham of Rise Church pray for Charlie during one of his visits to the church. Charlie and Erika shared a warm friendship with the Randall family.
Two months after his friend’s death, Mike announced at the Calvary Chapel Association International Conference that Charlie had planned to speak in his place that day. “I’d asked him to come and share because I [knew] the things that God had been doing through his ministry. I’m … thinking, What would he say to you all today—how he respected the role of a pastor, the pulpit, the Church, and the calling of God on your life? He had such humble respect for all of that. I thought he would be so encouraging to you.”
Mike then exhorted the pastors to “get into the fight, step up their games, and take more land: God, what do You want me to do today? What’s Your plan? Charlie … said, ‘I’m willing to lay down my life for the Lord.’ And the Lord accepted that offer. I think he’s like John the Baptist, preparing the world. People don’t have to go to the Judean wilderness; [instead], they’re going to their phones, scrolling. And they’re getting the Gospel, over and over again.”
He also reminded the conferencegoers that Charlie died doing what God wanted. “He went out with [the word] Freedom on his shirt, declaring the Good News of the Gospel. Don’t you want to go out that way?”
Faith & Politics
It’s estimated that over 15,000 people gathered for the prayer vigil for Charlie at the Outlets at San Clemente. Pastor John Randall responded, “It was incredible, and I will never forget sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with that crowd.”
A young woman worships God with a large crowd during one of many worldwide vigils spawned after Charlie’s death.
TPUSA expanded, opening wide doors. Charlie began to have a big, sometimes controversial, footprint in the political world, with influential ties to conservative leaders.
Rob McCoy, the first pastor to invite him to speak at a church, explained, “Charlie saw politics as an on-ramp to Christianity. He wanted people rowing in the streams of liberty so that they could come to [its] source. Now they’re coming to church, and they want to understand all of these political principles to love their neighbor, to give them a future and a hope, and to worship the Lord.”
John Randall recalled, “When Charlie married Erika, there was a noticeable change that deepened his walk with the Lord. The man who had once faced his struggles alone now had a partner who shared his courage and faith. … His understanding of the Word of God also began to grow. The crowds on college campuses increased, and he boldly shared the Gospel.”
John’s wife, Michelle Randall, noted Charlie’s intentionality and unwavering love for Jesus. “In fact, it became more about Jesus and less about politics the closer he got to his death. I’m grateful for the way his life and words continually pointed people back to Jesus. He said many times that Jesus is the only answer.” His example has challenged Michelle to be more purposeful with her time, words, and influence. “At the end of the day, we all have 24 hours to make a difference for the Kingdom of God.”
From Why? to Wow
A young man honors the legacy of Charlie Kirk, who influenced a generation with his courage and boldness.
In October, Michelle Randall was the guest speaker at a women’s conference at Calvary Chapel Mountain View Church in American Fork, UT—just eight miles from Utah Valley University, the site of the murder. She got the opportunity to comfort a hurting church during the event, planned months before Charlie’s death. Many of the young adults from the fellowship attended the fateful TPUSA gathering, with one young woman directly witnessing the assassination. Initially sitting just three rows from the stage, she and her friends moved to a higher spot just before the shooting.
“They are hurting. It’s real,” Michelle stated. During the conference, she and her church’s biblical counselor, Sandi Stauffer, spent hours ministering to and praying with the girls experiencing the trauma.
Young adult leader Brandi Johnson described the interactions. “They had a lot of Why’s. Why did God have me there? Why did I have to see this? Sandy was able to turn their perspective from Why? to Wow, I got to be there and see Charlie Kirk enter the Kingdom of God, the moment he got to see our Savior’s face! It really changed these girls, helped them to see that God has a purpose, even [when] it’s hard. Now a lot of them are emboldened in their faith and closer to the Lord because He is their Rescuer.”
A Great Effective Door
Pastor Rob was one of the first speakers at the memorial service, presenting a stirring and heartfelt Gospel invitation. Thousands responded. He later acknowledged, “One of the reasons Charlie had such courage was this: What were they going to threaten him with? Heaven? Had God come to Charlie and [said], I’m going to take you home, and from your death 100 people are going to come to Christ, Charlie would say, ‘OK!’” Who would have thought this many? This is unbelievable.”
Mikey McCoy revealed that every morning, Charlie would share a Bible verse on his way to work. “The last one he sent was 1 Corinthians 16:8a-10: But I will tarry …. For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. And if Timothy comes, see that he may be with you without fear; for he does the work of the Lord, as I also do.
Watch the video, captured at Calvary Chapel Reno-Sparks two years before his death:
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