Between the 90,000 who filled State Farm Stadium in Arizona and the tens of thousands who packed into an overflow venue, just under 300,000 people attended the memorial service for assassinated political activist and Christian Charlie Kirk. While not every speaker sounded spiritual notes, most of those who took the stage pointed to Charlie’s strong faith in Christ and urged others to consider the Christian gospel. Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered perhaps the most impassioned evangelistic presentation ever delivered by a public official of his stature.

The mixing of politics and religion has characteristically made some nervous. Progressives, of course, labeled the event an example of “white Christian nationalism.” This is not dissimilar from the reaction George Bush got when he declared Jesus Christ to be his favorite philosopher or when Mike Johnson (R-La.) connected his unlikely ascent to the speaker’s office to God’s providence. What’s more, left-wing academics, media outlets, and some Christian leaders continually warn that conservative Christian engagement in the public square is the sign of something dark and ominous. This has discouraged many believers from getting involved.

But I believe Charlie’s life and the powerful movement that has arisen since his death show us how vital it is for Christians to stay engaged in the political process, because it’s good for the nation. Our Founders understood the importance of a vibrant Christianity to the health of the Republic. Consider the words of our first president, George Washington: “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and morality are indispensable supports.” If Christians abandon the public square, what will fill it will not be an improvement.

The involvement of believers in politics also matters for the conservative movement itself. Conservative New York Times columnist Ross Douthat famously said, “If you dislike the religious right, wait till you meet the post-religious right.” Politics makes many Christians understandably uncomfortable, because it involves coalitions and alliances with various groups around shared ideals. Often we must find common political cause with those with whom we disagree strongly in other areas. And yet we must ask ourselves again, if we abandon the arena, who will influence the debates?

Conservatism needs the thick influence of Christians in order to endure long term. Dr. Albert Mohler has rightly said that there are only two conservative options: Christian or Nietzschean. “You are either constrained by a theistic vision or it’s nothing more than power.” In other words, just as the nation cannot afford to lose its Judeo-Christian roots, neither can conservatism, for at the heart of the desire to preserve what is good is a transcendent understanding of what good actually is.

This doesn’t mean we can only work with believers in our political coalitions. Even those who aren’t devout can access God’s truth woven into creation and written on human hearts and partner with us in fighting for important issues. These tensions are not new, of course. Conservative Christians have always had to fight for their place and influence on the Right, whether it’s over and against country club Republicans, tech bros, or the unchurched working-class cohort newly engaged in the last decade.

But it does underscore the necessity of faithful, patriotic believers to resist the scorn of the Left and endure the discomfort and messiness of politics. If we don’t, other ideologies will fill the void on the Right, will rise in influence, and will not too quickly abandon important issues such as the sanctity of human life and marriage.

What’s more, religion, particularly a churchgoing Christianity, helps rightly order our politics in that it tames our passions and channels our political energy into building what is good. Christianity also gives us a healthy realism, moving us away from despair or utopia.

What’s more, as Charlie Kirk demonstrated, our engagement on gender, sexuality, and human dignity may also give a platform for deeper discussions about the meaning of life and an opportunity for us to point our electoral allies toward the author of life.

So as the nation nears her 250th birthday, as Christians wrestle with their place in the public square, let’s “seek the welfare of our cities” (Jeremiah 29:7) by loving the country God gave us, working where we can to elect good leaders who put in place good policy that helps us and our neighbors flourish.

We do this with confidence, knowing that God isn’t immune to the issues and problems we face in America in the 21st century. He is still on the throne. He is gathering history to himself. And he is leading us ultimately toward that city whose “builder and maker is God” (Hebrews 11:10).

Daniel Darling serves as director of the Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and as assistant professor of faith and culture at Texas Baptist College.