How Charlie Kirk learned to turn off the phone — and why the Sabbath shaped his life and posthumous book
Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was exhausted and in physical pain when Pastor David Engelhardt persuaded him to pause his work week for one day and honor the Sabbath...
By Fox News · Fox News
Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was exhausted and in physical pain when Pastor David Engelhardt persuaded him to pause his work week for one day and honor the Sabbath by turning off his phone and disconnecting from politics. Years later, Kirk authored a book championing how honoring the Sabbath transformed his life and opened doors to build better foundations for his relationships — whether it be with his wife, Erika, and their children, family and friends, and his relationship with God . "He would turn his phone off so he wouldn't be distracted by his work. … He would spend his time with his wife and kids and they would rest, and they would go on walks and …spend some time in scripture. He practiced it from Friday to Saturday. That's what worked best for his schedule," Englhardt, a TPUSA board member who has been a friend and pastor to the Kirks stretching back years, told Fox News Digital. Engelhardt, who is the pastor of Kings' Church in New York City, spoke to Fox News Digital following the release of Kirk's best-selling posthumous book, "Stop, in the Name of God: Why Honoring the Sabbath Will Transform Your Life," which celebrates that honoring the Sabbath is the answer to an exhausted, anxious, always-online America. TURNING POINT USA HOLDS AMERICAFEST CONFERENCE FOLLOWING CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION Engelhardt met Charlie Kirk through Erika Kirk when she lived in New York City, the pastor explained. He took Fox Digital through a conversation he shared with Charlie Kirk in 2021, when Englhardt took notice that the TPUSA chief was physically and mentally drained and on a trajectory to burnout. "He was physically in pain," Engelhard told Fox News Digital. "He was having back issues, and knee issues and the burden of the organization was really heavy on his shoulders. And I said, 'Charlie, I don't think you can continue to do this unless you take the Sabbath. Unless you take this biblical command.'" The TPUSA chief initially resisted shutting off for one d…