Dear Saints,

In light of Jason Cherry’s recent blog entitled “How to Pray For Your Enemies,” I (Pastor Brian) wanted to share some thoughts about my own prayer in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s murder.

First, in God’s providence, my psalter reading for Friday morning, the day after Charlie’s murder, happened to be Psalm 94. I have included it here at the end of this letter, as it is laid out in Luther’s Readings of the Psalms.

I share this because the layout is designed for singing. The psalms, of course, are designed to be sung. We emphasize singing the psalms in TRC’s worship, not to mention at parish gatherings and Beer & Hymn events, but this is also something you can do at home with your own families or even in your personal devotional times.

I recently shared at the Young Adult Bible Study my own personal habit of singing psalms to start my day, and I typically use Luther’s Psalter to do this. This allows me to sing the whole psalm as it is translated in Scripture, which is an excellent tool for memorization. Of course, there is no “one right way” to read the psalms. What is important is that we make a habit of reading them in our homes.

Additionally, I wanted to point out a truth that stuck out to me as I sang this particular psalm. Verses 6-9 say:

They kill the widow and the sojourner, and murder the fatherless;

And they say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob does not perceive.”

Understand, O dullest of the people! Fools, when will you be wise?

He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see?

I recently gave a communion meditation in which I recited George Herbert’s poem, “Love (III),” in which he makes a similar point about the eye and God’s sovereignty:

Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back,
Guilty of dust and sin.
But quick-eyed Love, observing me grow slack
From my first entrance in,
Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning
If I lacked anything.

"A guest," I answered, "worthy to be here":
Love said, "You shall be he."
"I, the unkind, ungrateful? Ah, my dear,
I cannot look on thee."
Love took my hand, and smiling did reply,
"Who made the eyes but I?"

"Truth, Lord; but I have marred them; let my shame
Go where it doth deserve."
"And know you not," says Love, "who bore the blame?"
"My dear, then I will serve."
"You must sit down," says Love, "and taste my meat."
So I did sit and eat.

In Herbert’s poem, we are reminded of God’s faithfulness with regard to His grace and mercy; In Psalm 94, we are reminded of God’s faithfulness with regard to His vengeance and justice. These things are related: God is in control and He cares for us… this is true for us as individuals, when we struggle with sin and shame, AND it is true for us as his bride when we are persecuted and killed. In both circumstances, we are called to trust in the God of our salvation and lean not on our own understanding.

As we navigate how to respond as Christians to evil, two exhortations come to mind, as a result of things I have seen on social media. One is about the way some (including, unfortunately, pastors) incite their followers toward hatred by posting horrible quotes from our enemies. But I will remind you that we are called to pray for our enemies. Brothers and sisters, when you see these posts on the internet, are you moved to pray for your enemy (using our recent emails as a template)? Or are you moved toward vengeance and further doom scrolling? I invite you to revisit an exhortation from last year: https://youtu.be/jQMX79F_YPs?si=yqSY442umQyWjdFv

Additionally, I saw a number of folks lament that Charlie Kirk’s assassin was not immediately killed (even if it meant a form of vigilante justice). Typically, in these awful situations, the shooter is killed - either by the hands of law enforcement or by their own hands. But in God’s providence, the young man who murdered Charlie Kirk is still alive. This has prompted me to pray for his soul. I am pleased that he has been brought to justice, and I believe that righteous judgment requires the death penalty. So I pray for this. But I also pray for true repentance before it happens.

Pray for him. Pray that justice would be swift, and in the process, that he would come to know Jesus… that his heart would be broken to his evil so that his eyes might look upon the One who “bore the blame” so that he might “sit and eat.” Pray for his family, who did the difficult but right thing and turned their son in to the authorities. Pray that they would know the love of Christ and would be comforted by His church during this awful time. Pray for Charlie’s wife and children, that they would be comforted by the Holy Spirit as they mourn the loss of their husband and father. Pray this psalm. Read it. Sing it. Believe it.

Psalm 94 (Hymn 173 in the Cantus & Sing Your Part app). An example of how I sang it is attached.

O LORD, God of / vengeance. *

O God of vengeance, / shine forth!

Rise up, O judge / of the earth *

Repay to the proud what / they deserve!

O LORD, how long shall the / wicked *

How long shall the wick- / ed exult?

They pour out their ar- / rogant words *

All the evil- / doers boast.

They crush your people, / O LORD, *

And afflict your / heritage.

They kill the widow and the / sojourner, *

And murder the / fatherless;

And they say, “The LORD / does not see; *

The God of Jacob does / not perceive.”

Understand, O dullest of the / people! *

Fools, when will / you be wise?

He who planted the ear, does / he not hear? *

He who formed the eye, does / he not see?

He who disciplines the nations, does he / not rebuke? *

He who teaches man / knowledge—

The LORD—knows the / thoughts of man, *

That they are / but a breath.

Blessèd is the man whom you discipline, / O LORD *

And whom you teach out / of your law,

To give him rest from days of / trouble, *

Until a pit is dug for the / wicked.

For the LORD will not forsake his / people, *

He will not abandon his / heritage;

For justice will return to the / righteous, *

And all the upright in heart will / follow it.

Who rises up for me against the / wicked? *

Who stands up for me against evil- / doers?

If the LORD had not / been my help, *

My soul would soon have lived in the land of / silence.

When I thought, “My / foot slips,” *

Your steadfast love, O LORD, / held me up.

When the cares of my heart are / many, *

Your consolations / cheer my soul.

Can wicked rulers be allied / with you, *

Those who frame injustice by / statute?

They band together against the life of the / righteous *

And condemn the inno- / cent to death.

But the LORD has become my / stronghold, *

And my God the rock of my / refuge.

He will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their / wickedness; *

The LORD our God will / wipe them out.

Brian McLain and his lovely wife Denise were born and raised in Florida. They have been blessed with six beautiful daughters who fill their home with boundless joy and entertainment. Brian has degrees in Theology and Electrical Engineering and spent 20 years in the Power Industry. The McLains love to sing, dance, read, cook and play games, and they cherish the opportunities they get to serve and host others in their home.