Are You Okay?

Come to church more, pray more, serve more, read more of your bible…. What if all they needed was a genuine “Are you ok?”

Did you know that In 2021, research found that 30,177 active duty personnel and veterans who served in the military after 9/11 have died by suicide – compared to the 7,057 service members killed in combat in those same 20 years. This means, military suicide rates are four times higher than deaths that occurred during military operations in Iran and Irak combined.

Suicide rates increased approximately 36% between 2000–2021. Suicide was responsible for 48,183 deaths in 2021, which is about one death every 11 minutes. The number of people who think about or attempt suicide is even higher. In 2021, an estimated 12.3 million American adults seriously thought about suicide, 3.5 million planned a suicide attempt, and 1.7 million attempted suicide. Among Christian leaders, 1 in 10 pastors admitted to contemplating suicide in a survey done in 2021. Many Christian leaders experience a lack of support from friends in their churches. The overwhelming pressure of ministry, criticism, rejection, etc., all play into pastors natural fears and insecurities leading to devastating consequences including suicide. Suicide among Children of God speaking in tongues and prayer warriors Christians, is a real thing, maybe a bigger deal than you know.
The church is not immune. People who seemingly have good families, a wonderful church and a bright future, continue to take their lives. The church can no longer afford to ignore this issue. We need to be proactive.

We have to make an effort to be mindful about our surroundings especially if you are a believer, a follower of Jesus Christ. Many people will come to church, sing Hallelujah, speak in tongues, and do it one last time because they have already planned to take their lives away. Maybe the reason why suicide rate declines during the holiday season is because people are more intentional about checking on one another, or caring for one another. We live in a broken world; you and your neighbors are more likely to be broken one way or another if you live on this side of the earth. Everyone on this planet goes through something or has gone through something that is likely to shatter their soul. Maybe that explains why the Bible says in Isaiah 61 that Our Lord Jesus has come to heal the brokenhearted and has commissioned believers to follow suit.
The Bible says in the book of Isaiah:
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the Lord has anointed and commissioned me to bring good news to the humble and afflicted; He has sent me to bind up [the wounds of] the brokenhearted, to proclaim release [from confinement and condemnation] to the [physical and spiritual] captives and freedom to prisoners, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance and retribution of our God, to comfort all who mourn, to grant to those who mourn in Zion the following: to give them a turban instead of dust [on their heads, a sign of mourning], the oil of joy instead of mourning, the garment [expressive] of praise instead of a disheartened spirit. So they will be called the trees of righteousness [strong and magnificent, distinguished for integrity, justice, and right standing with God], the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.” – ‭Isaiah‬ ‭61‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭AMP‬‬
There is a strong probability in life that every time you interact with someone, you are talking to the humbled and afflicted; to the captive, to the prisoner, to the brokenhearted, to one who mourns. These categories of people are the ones who need
⁃ Liberation
– Freedom
⁃ The oil of Joy
⁃ The garment of praise
⁃ Comfort
⁃ Their wounds bound up

If you have accepted the call and became a child of God then you have been commissioned to bring the Good News to these people daily. Stop asking them to go to church more, to read their bible more, to meditate the word of God more, or to serve more. What if all they needed from you was a genuine Are You Ok?.

There is an attitude we can develop as individuals to express that we care about others. Little things that are a huge deal like Are you Ok?
“Are you okay?” is a common expression we use here and there as a formula, but this is what it really means: it must be used to inquire about someone’s well-being or emotional state. It must seek to understand if the person is facing any challenges, physical discomfort, or emotional distress. Asking that question means you have positioned yourself as a commissioned officer and are ready to provide comfort, support or are ready to redirect the person where they can find help instead of harm.

One day my Senior Pastor Bishop Darlingston Johnson, while addressing the topic of suicide said The problem with low self-esteem is not that we don’t love ourselves enough, it is that we love ourselves too much. If we learn to redirect our thoughts off ourselves and turn them to our Lord Jesus Christ, there is a great probability that suicidal thoughts will be out of the way.
Our role as believers is to help the afflicted come back to their senses by:
⁃ Asking a genuine Are you Ok?
⁃ Taking a step forward and providing comfort and support
⁃ Listening to the afflicted without judging them
⁃ Offering Prayer to the afflicted for emotional healing, which will open their eyes and debunk their true identity (strong and magnificent, distinguished for integrity, justice, and right standing with God).

If you read this article to the end I would like to ask you: Are you Ok? If you are going through some challenges know that you are not alone. I am praying for you and I am available to listen if you are going through difficulties. You can reach out to me by sending a prayer request below! Know that Jesus came to heal the brokenhearted, so you don’t have to do this alone!