By Lisa Wilmore
…And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? (Acts 16:25-30)
Dear Hearts,
It has become quite unsettling in my heart and mind of the number of suicide attempts as well as the success of these attempts. The suicide data for the United States of America, alone, taken from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is alarming, distressing and disturbing. According to this foundation, in the year 2020, 1.4 million Americans attempted suicide. On average, 132 Americans died by suicide each day. Men died by suicide 3.6 times more often than women. Women were 1.4 times more likely to attempt suicide than men were. The research also notes that 48,344 Americans died by suicide which is the leading cause of death for ages 10-34 and fourth leading cause of death for ages 35-54. Additionally, the foundation reports that 10.3 percent of Americans have thought about suicide while 54% of Americans have been affected by suicide. These statistics are definitely heartbreaking!
Lately, I have been in the midst of individuals who confess that they either attempted suicide or thought about committing suicide. I must admit as these individuals share their stories; my heart becomes so heavy laden due to the thought of them giving up. Not only giving up on themselves, but giving up on God.
Listen, without a doubt, there are some challenges in our lives that will “knock us off of our feet” and cause undue stresses; however, “suicide is not an option.”
My Christian friends, when it gets hard to bear, turn to God in prayer. He will see you through every struggle and trial that come your way. Our aforementioned biblical account is a familiar text to many, but contains a message of who to turn to when you believe that you have failed and there is no other way than to kill yourself.
If there had a been an exodus of men out of the prison, the jailer would have taken his life. Instead, Paul gave him hope in his actions (they remained in the prison even though the prison doors were opened). Rather than kill yourself, ask God,
“What must I do to be saved?”
