A Light in the Darkness: Helping Those Struggling With Depression & Suicidal Thoughts
FOLLOW ALONG WITH AN AUDIO NARRATION OF PS. WARNER’S BLOG
From Robin Williams to Kate Spade to Anthony Bourdain, celebrity suicides have become rampant over the past 5 years. But these are not just limited to Hollywood names. More recently, Christians and even pastors have also succumbed – even some who had joined the battle against this malady.
Closest to home is the recent suicide of Jarrid Wilson, an associate pastor at Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California. He was the father of two young children, and was probably best known as an outspoken mental health advocate. Wilson founded the non-profit “Anthem of Hope” specifically to shine a light on these issues within the Christian community.
Whether inside or outside the Church and its ministry, the struggles and pressures of life are real, but the messages that are being heard are too often muddled responses and Band-aid solutions. My concern is how these messages are perceived downstream as they are disseminated throughout the mainstream Christian community.
Please understand that the human mind is incredibly complex, and can be fully fathomed by its Creator alone; however, I agree with theologian Abraham Kuyper who said, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of human existence over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not cry, ‘Mine!’”
God’s Word is a manual for life, and mental health is no exception.
Think about how completely open and transparent Scripture is on this subject. “He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps,” the psalmist said. “He has put a new song in my mouth: Praise to our God; many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord” (Psalm 40:2, 3). This is more than a song with beautiful melody and sweet harmony. It’s a description of a real life struggle, set to music. We can all relate to that “sinking feeling” of the mud and miry clay! One translation says, “He lifted me out of the pit of despair.” He’s talking about depression, anxiety, suicide, and the whole realm of mental health struggles.
“God’s Word is a manual for life, and mental health is no exception.”
My favorite is the Philippian jailor who was brought back from this horrible pit of despair – from the very brink of suicide – by the work of God. His testimony of what occurred in his life, how close he was to destruction, and the rescue, joy, and triumph he experienced is found in Acts 16:25-34.
To experience this kind of deliverance, we must first fully identify the enemy: Depression.
Depression is more than prolonged sadness or grief; more than a feeling of being overwhelmed. These are all feelings common to the human condition from time to time. But clinical depression is a medical condition which paralyzes all the otherwise vital forces that make us human, causing a person to feel numb to the world, lethargic, and disinterested in all the people and activities that formerly brought him joy.“It is the conviction that nothing good will ever occur,” said Dr. Keith Ablow, “sometimes coupled with horrific and constant anxiety that something unspeakably terrible is about to happen – in a minute, or this very night, or tomorrow.”
Depression is the Grand Impostor, posing as all-powerful, replacing faith and hope with doubt and despair. Depression is also no respecter of persons, touching lives across the board regardless of age, gender, nationality, or religion; causing even strong, seasoned saints to doubt love, friendship, and their faith. The devil will seize the opportunity to say you are not a Christian at all – at least not a very good one. This lie is only part of what is known as “maladaptive thinking,” the tape that runs like a loop through your brain night and day to convince you that you are worthless, helpless, and hopeless.
“Depression is the Grand Impostor, posing as all-powerful, replacing faith and hope with doubt and despair. ”
The human mind is capable of taking us to some very dark places that may in fact never exist. “We should fortify ourselves against the dark hours of depression by cultivating a deep distrust of the certainties of despair,” said author John Piper. “Absolute statements of hopelessness that we make in the dark are notoriously unreliable. Our dark certainties are not sureties.”
The Philippian jailor was on the brink of suicide because he thought that all the prisoners had escaped.
Not that this was a far stretch – besides the miracle of the earthquake that opened all the prison doors and broke all the prisoners’ chains, another great miracle was that not a single prisoner made a break for it.
“The hope for the depressed and anguished soul is God’s Voice of intervention.”
Perhaps it was Paul and Silas’s midnight prayer and praise meeting in solitary confinement that touched the prisoners’ hearts – or astounded them into immobility. In either case, the jailor, assuming the worst, had a very human reaction: I’ve utterly failed! My life is over! These conclusions were the result of false messages and assumptions regarding his situation. These suicidal thoughts nearly drove him to his death. As he draws his sword to end his life (today it would be a pistol), Paul shouts, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”
The hope for the depressed and anguished soul is God’s Voice of intervention. That Voice flows through us, the caring community, the family of God, and is the composite voice of love and concern and truth.
That voice is a personal voice, one that is present and available. It is a confident, hopeful, comforting voice. It is a militant voice that does not relent in its pursuit of liberating the captives.
Dr. Keith Ablow rings soundly in his approach: “I have now treated a few thousand people with depression. I have not lost a single one to suicide while under my care. If this is more than luck, it is because I fear my enemy. I know depression is every bit as painful as cancer [a fact which studies have proven] and every bit as stealthy. I don’t dance with it; I let myself despise it and wage war against it—like the malignancy it is.”
He continues, “I utterly refuse to give up and will deploy any and every tool at my disposal to win, because I know that ever, single case of major depression is a puzzle that can potentially be solved. Every one of them. No exception. Period. Today –at this very instant—many thousands of people around the world are suffering with major depression and convinced that their best path is to end their excruciatingly painful lives. That is never, ever true. It is a fixed and false belief created by the illness itself, like an emotional virus that fools the psychological immune system into surrendering.”
“The voice that calls people back from the brink is, most importantly of all, a biblical voice. ”
The voice that calls people back from the brink is, most importantly of all, a biblical voice. The Word of God has the power to break depression and expose the lies of Satan and his minions who war against the human heart.
Coupled with that, the Church of Jesus Christ throughout the earth – and more specifically, every local church family – is the community best positioned to rescue souls on the brink of self-destruction. It is the community which has the only solution to despair and depression. I’m concerned by this generation’s use of social media to mitigate mental health issues. Yes, it is a commonplace means of communication, but while it may seem to assuage these problems, in the end it is far more palliative than curative.
Real community is what is called for.
The jailor rushed into that cell and cried out, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” What exactly was in his mind? We may never fully know, but Paul’s response rings down through the ages: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and all your household.” This was the ongoing conversation that ensued that night with the man’s whole family.
I’m moved by the picture we’re left with in Acts 16. We’re not reading an obituary but we’re listening to a testimony of real hope and real answers. We’re not attending a funeral service with a grieving spouse and children now forced to live with unanswerable questions. Instead, we’re part of a healing service, a restoration miracle, and a baptismal celebration, all followed by food and fellowship together. Rather than end his life that night, the jailor rejoiced with all his family as they found new life in Christ.
I’m blessed as I imagine him testifying to that gathering, “Oh, I was on the brink of ending it, man! I’m so glad they intervened; it’s incredible!”
“Does this mean that from now on everything in life is great? No, but God certainly is—and this makes life worth living.”
Does this mean that from now on everything in life is great? No, but God certainly is—and this makes life worth living. I think it’s entirely proper to say that Jesus is the Answer. Not that He answers every question, but I know that at my lowest points in lie I can run to Jesus and find strong hope and refuge in Him. His credentials are rock solid: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are bruised; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” I guarantee you that you can locate yourself somewhere in that promise.
Dr. Jeremiah Johnston said that the number one question he and the Christian Thinkers Society receive revolves around the question of suicide and mental health. That is why, for the last year, I have openly preached on mental health and the remedy found in the Word of God. I believe that the Church can and should be a leading voice here; that we should be that community called and empowered by God’s love and Spirit to declare and demonstrate that “the people that sat in darkness have seen a great light.”
If you find yourself in a place of depression and despair; if you are having suicidal thoughts, remember that Jesus Christ said, “Fear not: I have overcome the world.” In Him you can triumph over these situations and over the darkness that you are currently feeling. Join yourself to others in the family of God and ask them to pray for you and with you.
If you are having suicidal thoughts right now, PRAY THIS PRAYER:
Father God,
It feels like the darkness has taken hold of me and I can’t find my way back to the light. In this moment, when it seems like the best and only option is the false way of escape through suicide, I confess that there’s something in me that wants Your light to snuff out the darkness.
So I ask, Lord, that you would do just that. You are the Light that can shine into any darkness.
I know when I’m consumed with thoughts of death, I’m believing lies from the enemy. I ask, Lord, that You would remind me of these truths: when I feel alone, You are with me; when I feel invisible, You see me; when I feel worthless, My value is in knowing You and being known by You.
Lord, help me to understand that You are enough, because You are everything I need and more. Remind me that when I feel hopeless, You have hope in me and for me. Remind me that I am engraved in the palms of your hands.Remind me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made, and that I am worth more than I know. Remind me that this life is not mine to take. Remind me that suicide is not the only option. Remind me to love You and to love myself. Amen.
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