Famous Navy SEAL sniper, Chris Kyle, who wrote the book, “American Sniper,” which later became a huge blockbuster film, was shot to death by a fellow veteran he was attempting to help deal with post-traumatic stress, a disorder he himself dealt with. Kyle was also a strong believer in Jesus Christ. His faith was critically important to him, so much so that he made sure to impart that part of his life to his children before his untimely death.
And it’s a good thing he did, as his kids are now saying it’s that faith that has helped them to process and overcome their father’s tragic murder.
According to the Christian Tribune, Kyle’s two kids, Colton and McKenna, spoke with PEOPLE for an interview, revealing the faith passed down from their father has grown even stronger over the course of the eleven years since their father’s death, nothing that through all of the sadness, the struggle, and all of the hard things that have come their way, they have become better people.
Colton, speaking to people, compared his refinement as a man to how gold is heated and refined to become what it is, saying, “Through adversity, through fire, gold is refined.” He continued, “I am a better man today than I would have been if I had not lost my father, especially at the time that I did. I have grown so much spiritually and emotionally.”
McKenna, similarly, said that she struggled mightily in the wake of her father’s death, focusing heavily on the negative in the world, but that she has gradually moved past that and can see the good again. She said that while the darkness initially overtook her, “But I’m doing well now. I’m learning to see the good in the world again.”
Then, speaking about her faith and how her view of it changed after her father’s sad death, she said, “I had an idea in my head that God’s love was performance-based.” She continued, “That if I wasn’t perfect, he would love me less. But I don’t feel that way anymore.” She went on to add that her Christian faith “is definitely helping” her, and that it has “been a bigger help than everything I’ve tried in the past.”
Colton went on to add that with his mom’s permission to keep the “American Sniper” brand alive and well, he’s trying to help spread his father’s values far and wide. At a time when we as a nation seem to have completely lost any real sense of what it means to be masculine and be a man of faith, what Colton wants to is critically important. The young man then described what his father’s values were, saying, “His values and what American Sniper stands for are duty, sacrifice, patriotism, being God-fearing, freedom, family and excellence.”
In his wildly popular book, “American Sniper,” Chris Kyle said of his faith, “I am a strong Christian. Not a perfect one—not close. But I strongly believe in God, Jesus, and the Bible. When I die, God is going to hold me accountable for everything I’ve done on earth. He may hold me back until last and run everybody else through the line, because it will take so long to go over all my sins. “Mr. Kyle, let’s go into the backroom. . . .” Honestly, I don’t know what will really happen on Judgment Day. But what I lean toward is that you know all of your sins, and God knows them all, and shame comes over you at the reality that He knows. I believe the fact that I’ve accepted Jesus as my savior will be my salvation. But in that backroom or whatever it is when God confronts me with my sins, I do not believe any of the kills I had during the war will be among them. Everyone I shot was evil. I had good cause on every shot. They all deserved to die.”
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And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how a man’s man talks. That’s what he believes. A lot of Christians are under the impression that killing is always wrong, misquoting the Sixth Commandment, which says “You shall not murder.” Murder is different from killing. In Kyle’s case, he was the hand of God doling out judgment on a people who were evil, vile, seeking the destruction of the innocent. He was part of a military force, which God instituted through the federal government for this very purpose, to be a terror to evildoers, which is an exact phrase from Scripture, found in Romans 13:-7 and Proverbs 21:5.
We need more men like Chris Kyle. Not just in our military or local law enforcement departments, but in our culture. Let’s hope and pray God raises them up soon.