ACC EMag #3 2020

Page 24

MENTAL HEALTH

Suicidal Ideation is not a Death Wish By Robi Sonderegger

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ollowing one of the most spectacular showdowns in antiquity (recorded in 1 Kings 18), word got back to Queen Jezebel that Elijah had completely exposed the fertility god, Baal, and the mother goddess, Asherah, as fraudulent. He had challenged all 950 prophets that ate at the Queen’s table to a heavyweight title fight on Mt Carmel. Not only did the Queen’s ‘fertility prophets’ prove impotent, the God of Israel deliver a great knockout punch – sending fire from heaven in a demonstration of His absolute authority. To add insult to injury, the crowds seized the charlatan prophets and put them to death. Upon hearing this news, Queen Jezebel sent a message to Elijah inferring, “If you’re not dead by this time tomorrow, then may it be done to me what I intend to do to you”. So, Elijah ran for his life into the wilderness.

It’s interesting to note that many leaders, just like Elijah, can seemingly take on the world… perusing incredible ministry exploits. Yet, they can also get knocked for a six when faced with personal peril. Elijah’s faith was so bold and his courage so fierce that he brazenly walked into this world heavyweight title fight – with the ‘bookie odds’ down at the local TAB stacked against him 950 to 1. Yet, upon hearing that a ‘WANTED Deador-Alive” poster has been distributed, calling for the capture or execution of Elijah, he became so unnerved that he ended up collapsing under a juniper tree asking God to take his life. The Final Straw If you’re a Ministry leader, you know this story well. Not just because you have studied it, but because you have lived it. For example, you preach one of the most anointed sermons ever, yet it’s misconstrued and critiqued 24

in a hostile Facebook chat. Sound familiar? Or perhaps your flawless reputation of upstanding character and integrity is undone by a moment of ‘moral’ mismanagement (there but the Grace of God go we all). Maybe it’s been years of investing your life’s blood, sweat and tears into the local congregation, only to go on long service leave and have a Coup d’état be staged for the church’s leadership!!! Or how about this… the funds are raised, the land is purchased, the engineering designs are signed off on, and then the building of a new sanctuary is blocked by one council member who is ‘hell bent’ on delaying or frustrating the approval process. Why is it that touching heaven can so easily be followed by a crash landing back down to earth? Why is it that the camel’s back has the capacity to shoulder such incredible weight,


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