There is a path in life that becomes filled with distress, sorrow, and pain. Some people attempt to escape the pain through alcohol or drugs. The danger of this path is that it only pushes the pain away momentarily and it becomes a circular path of pain followed by alcohol or drugs followed by pain followed by more alcohol or drugs.
The distress, sorrow, and pain on this path can become so severe, or just so tiring, that one begins to contemplate suicide as an escape. Before making a choice to take that path, however, a person should consider what path options are available and what are the likely outcomes of those paths. Since some of the path choices are eternal and irreversible one should take their time making the choice. One should also seek the best available guide into the truth of the choices available and the best available help to avoid error.
This prayer is the best next step you can make: “God, In the name of Jesus I ask you to send forth your Spirit of truth to guide me and lead me into all the truth and show me things to come.” (John 16:13)
The book of Proverbs describes paths and their outcomes. Read it thoroughly several times before making your decision. Don’t rush through it. Take the time to carefully consider what it says.
Suicide is a final, irreversible path choice. Whatever happens after that is completely out of your control. If that path choice fails to provide an escape from the distress, sorrow, and pain it will be a failure that you will endure for all eternity. Once a person ends the life of their physical body, they no longer have the option to choose a different path.
Suicide is a choice that wrestles against our own flesh and blood when flesh and blood is not the cause or source of the distress, sorrow, and pain. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces. Those spiritual forces bring distress, sorrow, and pain against a person in an attempt to defeat them. Choosing suicide surrenders to those forces and lets them continue their action against you forever. In fact, without the help of God adding good things into your life, the pain caused by the spiritual forces attacking you is likely to be far more intense and continuous - for all eternity.
This prayer is the best next step you can make to resist all spiritual forces attempting to overcome you with suicide: “God, In the name of Jesus I put on your armor: truth, righteousness, the Gospel of peace, faith, salvation, and the sword of your Spirit. I thank you that with your armor on I can withstand all spiritual forces working against me.” (Ephesians 6:10-17)
Another choice is to continue on the path that has become filled with distress, sorrow, and pain. Most likely, however, choosing this path will bring a person right back to contemplating suicide.
One could take the path that daily puts on the armor of God, asks for the guide of the Spirit of truth, and follows the Spirit of truth’s guidance. Those two steps, taken at the start of each day, can profoundly change your life. The putting on the armor of God will reduce the intensity and frequency of distress, sorrow, and pain. The Spirit of truth will guide you into the truth of other things you can do: things that result in less pain and more joy.
A path that daily puts on the armor of god and asks for the guide of the Spirit of truth is most highly recommended for anyone - regardless of their current life situation. A person who is contemplating suicide is in a unique position to do two other things that are extremely valuable and highly desirable. The first of these is to choose the fear of the Lord: ask God to give you fear of the Lord. Nothing that can be desired can be compared to it. The path that chooses the fear of the Lord is filled with pleasantness and peace.
“God, In the name of Jesus I choose fear of the Lord. Please give me fear of the Lord.” (Proverbs 1:7, 3:11-18)
The second thing a person contemplating suicide is in a unique position to do is, ironically, end their life - not by ending the life of their body, but by giving their body to God for him to guide and direct to help others overcome the distress, sorrow, and pain in their lives. This is a choice to end one’s life by ceasing to live for oneself and instead live as completely as possible to help others. This is a selflessness that is highly valuable and desirable and is something many Christians struggle trying to attain (Mark 8:35). Ending their self-life is the path choice the person contemplating suicide has nearly made.
“God, in the name of Jesus I give you my life. From this point forward I count my life as ended and give myself to you for you to teach and to guide to help others overcome the distress, sorrow, and pain in their lives.”
What are the outcomes of choosing to put on the armor of God, ask God to send the Spirit of truth to guide you and lead you into all the truth, asking for fear of the Lord, and ending your self-life by giving yourself to God to help others? Is there still distress, sorrow, and pain?
The book of Proverbs describes paths and their outcomes. It frequently describes the pleasant path of choosing the fear of the Lord and choosing to have God guide your steps. My experience is that every bit of what it says is true. The testimony I have shared on this site is my witness to life on the path since 1983. Yes, sometimes there is some distress, sorrow, or pain. As I think about it, though, they seem so infrequent and so small even though some was intense at the time. And there has been joy: joy I could not have imagined before I made the choice to change my path by praying the prayers noted above.
If your life is filled with distress, sorrow, and pain - pray the prayers above and change your path now. Don’t try to escape with alcohol or drugs and don’t wait until things get so bad that you contemplate suicide. Realize that the possibility of suicide increases if you continue on the path filled with distress, sorrow, and pain. Avoid it, pass by it, go a different way.