Chris Kyle, the famous Navy SEAL sniper who wrote “American Sniper” after serving numerous tours of duty in Iraq during the Global War on Terror, was shot to death by a veteran he was trying to help overcome wartime trauma. He was also a strong Christian, a faith he was able to impart to his children before his death, something that then helped them make it past his horribly sad murder.
Such is what his two kids, Colton and McKenna, told PEOPLE in a recent interview, saying that their faith has grown stronger in the eleven years since their father’s murder, saying that through the sadness and struggle they became better, particularly in terms of their faith.
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 added that, in keeping the “American Sniper” brand alive with the permission of his mother, he’s attempting to further his father’s values. Describing those values of Kyle, Colton explained, “His values and what American Sniper stands for are duty, sacrifice, patriotism, being God-fearing, freedom, family and excellence.”
Chris Kyle, famously describing his faith in “American Sniper,” said, “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.”
Featured image credit: By Cpl. Damien Gutierrez – http://www.marines.mil/Photos.aspx?igphoto=250878, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37977063