God’s compassion for the suicidal
In 1 Kings 19:4-14 Elijah feels suicidal, and tells God to take his life.
God doesn’t get angry at Elijah.
He doesn’t tell him that he’s being silly, or that suicide won’t solve anything. He doesn’t freak out, nor does he ignore Elijah’s cry. God validates Elijah’s pain. Through an angel, God provides Elijah with food and water because Elijah is probably exhausted (he had fallen asleep under a tree after telling God that he wanted to die, and this was probably the safest thing at that point for Elijah). Getting to the point where you don’t want to live any more is an exhausting place to be. You cannot think of anything else other than wanting to end the pain.
Once he’d finished eating, Elijah lies down again. But God wants to continue validating Elijah, and continues to have compassion over him. He wants to be with Elijah during his crisis. He wants to keep Elijah safe. The angel comes back again (1 Kings 19:7) and this time adds (and validates) that the journey is too much for Elijah (1 Kings 19:8) and that he needed more food. Elijah was then able to move on and travel for forty days and nights to reach Horeb.
I really love 1 Kings 19:4-14. It tells us a lot about God. He cares about people who are suicidal – he is loving, gentle, patient, compassionate, and he knows what we need. He provides Elijah with physical, spiritual and emotional healing.
The church could probably learn a lot from the way God deals with Elijah. Suicidal thoughts are something which are incredibly common but the church doesn’t always deal with them in the best way. Often, suicidal thoughts are invalidated and ignored rather than validated and accepted.
The angel is gentle with Elijah. He doesn’t tell him to pray more, nor does he tell Elijah that suicide’s a sin or that he’s demon possessed. He doesn’t even tell Elijah to stop feeling suicidal – he simply tells Elijah to eat.
When you feel invalidated, remember that God validates you fully. He accepts and acknowledges how you feel, and he says it’s okay.
If you feel suicidal, I encourage you to reach out for emergency help.
My ask is also always open for people who need help.
