A Pastoral Letter from Ray Hughes
Church Family,
The continued violent events in our country—and many of the mean-spirited responses—have left us grieving, angry, tired, and frustrated. Most of all, our nation feels fractured and divided. But I plead with you, as brothers and sisters in Christ, not to fall prey to the trap of the enemy.
The events we have witnessed are utterly evil, even demonic. Charlie Kirk, a political activist, was assassinated in what was one of the most public and grotesque acts of violence in our recent history. Just a few months ago, Congresswoman Melissa Hortman and her husband were murdered in their home. Charlie was an unapologetic Christian evangelist. Melissa taught Sunday school at her church. Two politically motivated killings of Christians, on opposite sides of the political aisle. And then the killing of a young Ukrainian refugee, Iryna Zarutska. These are not just headlines—they are lives stolen by evil. Their deaths remind us that darkness is real. Violence and hatred are not the way of Jesus, and they must be condemned.
I don’t often make public statements about cultural or political events. That is intentional. When I do, I do not want to respond in a reactionary or impulsive way, but rather prayerfully and thoughtfully. Over the past week, I have prayed, read, listened and reflected on what many people are saying. I’ve also sat with pastor friends of mine who are all struggling with the same questions: how do we lead people to Jesus in times like these? I don’t always have the words. But in everything I do, I long to be prayerful and to keep the focus on Christ.
I have also listened to many of you. Some have expressed thankfulness for the way we chose to name the hurt but focus on the healing of Christ in worship last Sunday. Others have voiced frustration, wishing we had said more. Still others have shared confusion about how to respond. And all of this is happening while so many in our church family are quietly wrestling with their own struggles—challenges in their homes, with their kids, job loss, marital strife, a cancer diagnosis, and more. I carry all of that with me as I write to you, and it deepens my conviction that we must keep pointing one another back to Jesus.
What breaks my heart further is seeing some online voices saying, “If your pastor doesn’t respond this way or that way, you should leave your church.” That is not the Body of Christ. That is what evil does—it sows mistrust, pushes us away from God, and drives us apart.
Over the past two weeks we’ve preached on unity in diversity and on biblical boldness. So, as your pastor, I am asking three things of us right now:
To be people of prayer, because that is where Jesus began, and it is where our strength is found (John 1:5).
To put people before politics, because Jesus bound together disciples who were deeply divided but united in Him (John 13:35).
To be peacemakers, because Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:9).
This is also what true biblical boldness looks like. Boldness is not outrage, bluster, or hard lines that divide us further. Boldness is love that endures, grace that speaks truth, and courage that resists fear and hate. Prior to last week’s events, I was honestly not very familiar with Charlie Kirk. I am more familiar with him now and whether you agree with his politics or not I believe that he would want the focus to remain on Christ, calling us to live with a boldness rooted in Him.
I recognize some of you may have wished I would say more, or that we would have mentioned Charlie by name last Sunday. We chose to name the grief and chaos in this world—grief that is real, chaos that is dark and vile—but even more, to lift up the name of the one Charlie and Melissa called Savior and Lord. The One who faced the full weight of hate and violence, even to the point of death, and yet overcame it through His resurrection. We chose to pray for peace, for love, and for kindness to prevail. We prayed for boldness to be His witnesses, even in our suffering. Because we are followers of Christ and His mission to help people know, follow and share Jesus is the focus that unites us.
These are the words I believe the Spirit has given me for this moment. My prayer is that we would receive them not as a reaction to the noise of the world, but as a call to live rooted in Christ—together, in love, with boldness that looks like Him.
With you in Christ,
Ray