Ep17 - When Suicide Strikes

As our Suicide Awareness Month comes to a close, we’re taking a look at some of the bigger questions that come along with the topic, such as ‘Was this my fault?’, ‘Could I have done more?’, and ‘How could God let this happen?’.

To do that we’re hearing from Al Hsu, a writer in the US who wrote the Discovery Series When Suicide Strikes for Our Daily Bread Ministries, our parent ministry. Al sadly lost his own father to suicide when he was in his twenties, and has wrestled with each of these questions himself.

In this episode, Al unpacks the concept of “false guilt” that’s common among suicide survivors, and shares with us that grief isn’t a race and that we have a gracious Heavenly Father who gives us permission to grieve.

To read more of Al’s story, check out the following two blog posts which we’ve adapted from Al’s 6-part Discovery Series with Our Daily Bread: I Lost My Father to Suicide and Suicide and Suffering: Asking the “Why”. You can also check out Al’s book, Grieving a Suicide: A Loved One’s Search for Comfort, Answers, and Hope.

If anything that we talk about has brought up something difficult for you, please reach out to someone for help; whether that’s your family, a trusted friend, your pastor, counsellor or psychologist.

If you have questions on this topic or are looking for further resources, please head to our Suicide Resources page. And, if you’ve found Anxious Faith helpful, find out how you can support the work we’re doing here.