Hope After Suicide

When faced with unspeakable loss and grief closes in, we can go to the Lord, whom we recognize is the One who brings comfort, healing, and restoration. As we press in to Him, we can discover His goodness and faithfulness as He brings peace to our souls. Psalm 73 states:
25 Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
26 My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Within a period of eight months, a contributor to The Christian Heart website had experienced the suicides of two individuals that he had known. 

One was named Andy. The writer, out of Indiana, relates: 

I learned how to drive in his Chevy Blazer when I was just twelve. I went on dates with my future wife in that car. It was more than just a vehicle—it was a part of our story.

After Andy died by suicide, I found myself needing something to hold on to. Something tangible. So, I bought a Blazer just like his. It was my way of staying connected to a piece of him that I couldn’t let go of yet.

The other's name was Nathan, a friend of the writer's daughter.  They had been friends since they were in elementary school.  They had "reconnected" in eighth grade, not long before he took his life. 

She was certainly upset about Nathan's loss, saying to her father, through tears: “Dad, people have already stopped talking about him. It’s like he never existed. We have to do something.”

But what?  He said that after exploring some ideas, they arrived on this:

We didn’t want Nathan to be forgotten. We didn’t want anyone else to feel alone in this grief.

That’s when the idea for the suicide awareness car build was born. Not to win shows—but to start conversations. To bring hope.

And, of course, the vehicle of choice was a Chevy Blazer - they hired a designer and a company that provides wraps for vehicles got involved.  The writer says:

The day the designer finished our meeting, he learned his cousin had died by suicide. Another person on the team was already in therapy for suicidal thoughts. The connections were everywhere. The pain was shared.

The story continues:

Wrapping on the Blazer includes hand-selected Bible verses about hope, purpose and peace. We want people to ask about them, to be curious. Because the Word is the seed. All it needs is soil.

Talking about suicide is hard. I’ve been going to funerals since I was a kid—my dad’s a preacher—but nothing prepared me for this. As a society, we’ve avoided these conversations for too long. But the healing starts with a conversation.

It is helpful to be aware of the questions that arise following a suicide and rely on God to walk with us through grief.  There may even be a sense of remorse, perhaps wondering what you could have done to prevent it. 

And, as a result of the pain, we can gain a greater sensitivity to those who are hurting - we can heed the warning signs displayed by those who are close to us.  And, we can make ourselves available to listen, and to share the love and truth of Christ.   We can also be communicators of hope - and point people to where they can find help.

If life seems overwhelming to you today, you can take to heart these words from Max Lucado:

Suicide victims battled life’s rawest contests. They often faced a mental illness or illnesses and felt the peril of mental fatigue. What you and I take for granted, they coveted. Optimism. Hope. Confidence that all would be well, that she would be well. Their clouds had no silver linings, their storms had no rainbows.

If that describes the way you feel, can I urge you to consider one of the great promises of the Bible? The promise begins with this phrase. “Weeping may last through the night” (Psalm 30:5).

Of course, you knew that much. You didn’t need to read the verse to know its truth. Weeping can last through the night. Weeping may last through the night, and the next night and the next.

This is not new news to you.

But this may be: “Joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5). Despair will not rule the day. Sorrow will not last forever. The clouds may eclipse the sun, but they cannot eliminate it. Night might prolong the dawn, but it cannot defeat it. Morning comes. Not as quickly as we want. Not as dramatically as we desire. But morning comes, and, with it, comes joy. Joy comes!

This is the reminder of hope in our loving God - the hope that the father and daughter whom I mentioned earlier desired to relate to their community, to start conversations, to not be silent about a very real issue in our society today.