@Former-Member
I am quoting directly and with slight alteration from some blogs written by Dr Tim Jennings a Christian psychiatrist.
Death by suicide does not determine one’s eternal destiny. Why? Because suicide is almost always a symptom of an illness, a problem, or overwhelming distress—and not an act of sin, not a willful rebellion against God. Instead, suicide almost always happens when a person is in some type of horrible pain in which they lose all hope of escape. In that mindset, suicide becomes their only perceived avenue of escape from the pain. We help those who are struggling with thoughts of suicide by offering hope—the hope of escape from their pain. We help identify the source of the pain and provide real interventions that restore them to wellness.
When one has been wounded, healing is often painful, but the pain of healing does not mean harm is occurring. Consider someone with a broken leg. Once the leg is broken, the process of setting the bone and physical therapy to recover strength is painful, but such pain is not evidence of harm.
Likewise, when someone has been injured psychologically their heart has been broken. There are deep wounds which have yet to heal. In the process this will be uncomfortable. Some of my patients initially misunderstand such pain and thus start the healing process only to withdraw and thus fail to improve. But for those who will tolerate the emotional discomfort of addressing their issues in a relationship with a competent professional, they experience healing and resolution of pain. If they engage the process with a competent professional therapist, they will heal and the pain will gradually resolve.
Many people get confused about Christ’s role in the healing process. Many patients tell me they have prayed and prayed for years for Christ to take away their pain, yet they get no better. This would be similar to a patient asking the physical therapist to take away his weakness while the patient never actually does the exercises. The healing Christ wants us to experience, and for which He provides His power to help us achieve, requires our active participation. It is when we activate our energies in harmony with His to begin, step by step, applying His methods to our life that our brain rewires itself. The unhealthy, painful, emotional circuits will eventually be pruned and healthy calming circuits will be formed and we are literally changed in the process.
When it comes to biblical examples of SI and actions we can ask: What is the condition of the heart of those who are suffering suicidal thoughts? Are these people like Elijah, a champion of God, whose heart was right with God, yet who suffered emotional discouragement, depression, and suicidal thinking? Or are their hearts like Judas, consumed with selfishness and who reject Jesus?
(Sampson is another example of someone who was reconciled to God having received supernatural power at the time of his death.)
