Many people suffer silently with depression. Many families struggle with the complexity of having been affected by suicide. This weekend we are continuing our series, What Would Jesus Say To by looking at Robin Williams and families affected by suicide. Suicide and depression are two very challenging topics to address, but it’s a fact of life in today’s society.
The Bible provides hope, healing and a path to journey in life.
PLEASE BRING SOMEONE WITH YOU WHO COULD BENEFIT FROM A TALK LIKE THIS!! It could help save their life and their family’s future.
Praying for you,
Pastor Ken
Pastor Ken
I have been affected by suicide. I will be at one of your services this weekend. Interested in what you have to say. It was a horrible time and I deal with it in a different way every time I think on the death.
ReplyDeleteNo matter how depressed I have gotten in my life I am not brave enough to end it. The guilt over what I would leave behind is overwhelming. I tend to be of the mind "tough it out". I always feel there is someone else who has it worse than I. I feel selfish for even feeling bad for myself for even a moment. Those thoughts are a vicious cycle in depression. The guilt people feel.
I couldn't save my friend from his suicide. I accept that now. I honestly tried. He was determined and in the end what he wanted, to be guilt free from life. I refuse to feel guilt over his decision. I refuse to feel guilt because no matter what I tried, how I tried, he was determined to end his life.
May peace be with you Paster Ken. This is a tough one.
Thank you discussing this topic. Although sitting through the sermon was caused several emotions to creep back into me. I have been affected by suicide after finding my wife's grandfather who was suffering from serious health issues and the death of his wife less than a year before. I know now that there was nothing that I could have done to stop his decision, but it still is something that I struggle with from time to time. I appreciate you providing scripture to give hope that there may be a chance that he is in heaven looking down on us.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, my mother suffers from early onset dementia and schizophrenia. My father is one of the strongest men I know, but over the last year, I can see that he is struggling with the day-to-day issues that comes with both those diseases. My father is a man of strong faith that believes that he can get through everything without help, but I forwarded him the sermon recap highlighting that using an anti-depressant isn't a sign of weakness.
As you stated a person with a physical malady would quickly visit the doctor, but often are hesitant to get help for mental issues. Hopefully this will be the catalyst to get him to take the steps he needs to cope with the sadness of seeing the love of his life get worse on a daily basis.
The sermon was difficult for me to make it through without shedding tears on more than one occasion (basically throughout), but it was helpful to give me some solace and hopefully will lead me to get my father the help that I think he needs.
Thank you for taking on this topic and for your personal story about the loss of your friend. We all struggle with life in one way or another. God's love for all of his children gives me hope that I can reach out to my dad and get him the help that it seems he needs.
I am new to Cypress (although I did attend church when I was younger). I look forward to the message that you deliver and feel that I am in a better place now that I have returned to church. Thank you for the good work that you do and your fearless nature when it comes to tackling difficult subjects. You are an inspiration to me and my family and I appreciate the good work that you do