Williamson

her apartment. “Pills,” the caller said. It was neater, but still gruesome. Hard to explain for a Christian and faithful ministry servant, her death came after a decades-long decline due to illness. As with Bill’s growing sense of isolation and medication that didn’t do what it was supposed to, she gave up.

In both cases, I found myself standing at their funerals, two years apart, struggling to respond. If they had just trusted, God would have seen them through, right?

I’m thinking of this now because a friend recently faced the similar funeral of a believing relative. I wondered how the preacher would handle it. Would he address the cause of death directly? Would he talk about mental illness? Would he reference a lifetime of faith that preceded a final, fatal choice?

Suicide is on the rise, up 30% in the U.S. between 2000 and 2020, so more pastors will have to bring a biblical word to such a time as this. For every 100,000 people, 13 commit suicide every year. Men outnumber women 3.5 to 1, with people in middle age most susceptible.

“You’ll preach a lot more funerals than weddings,” an experienced professor said, “so spend your time in my class working on funeral sermons; the mother of the bride will take care of the weddings.” But he didn’t tell us how to preach after suicide.

I’ve done it several times. I decided to treat it as I would any other challenging funeral—the death of a child, a horrible accident, a violent crime, or a debilitating illness. After watching the dear pastor who led my mother’s service bypass it completely, I decided I would always speak to the overwhelming issue on everyone’s mind, even if I couldn’t

Williamson Baptist Association has called two pastors to serve as co-Associational Mission Strategists. In January, Mark Goldman, pastor of Herrin First Baptist Church, started as the Church Strengthening Strategist, focusing on building relationships with pastors. Goldman has served the Herrin church since 2017. He grew up in Southern Illinois, graduated from Pinckneyville High School and Rend Lake College, and Boyce College at Southern Seminary. He and his wife, Valerie, have four children.

Ashby Tillery, discipleship and missions pastor of Second Baptist Marion, started as the Missions Together Strategist in April, supporting and answer their questions.

“I don’t know why he felt so alone or made such a painful decision,” I’ve said several times, “but God can still be trusted with our lives and our souls. And God can be trusted with the confusion and the emotions we as mourners feel today.” I try to help those in attendance know it’s not their fault; anger at the deceased or blaming themselves for someone’s suicide will not help their own healing.

I don’t consign the deceased to hell: While some faith-groups may do so, ours still believes the one unpardonable sin is blasphemy of cradle ‘til after the grave. For the emotionally vulnerable, some verses about the value of living and letting God be in charge are bolstering, even if in that darkest moment their loved one did not value his or her own life. At the funeral, someone in the room has counted the pills or handled the gun. Someone in the room should be pulled back from the edge.

I point them to Jesus, obviously. More than once I’ve taken the grieving to Lazarus’s tomb. Though Jesus allowed his friend’s death to happen, he still wept. In the worst of situations, Jesus understands the loss; he the Holy Spirit. But I don’t promise them heaven either: While we hope a life lived in faith before this fateful choice was evidence of their salvation, blithe murmurings about “a better place” and “seeing them again” aren’t especially helpful at this point. It hurts too much to hear that.

I preach about the sanctity of human life. “Sanctity” is not only for the pre-born, it’s for all of us all along the way, from before the encouraging mission efforts in the association and serving as a cheerleader for Great Commission work. Tillery will also host mission opportunities through mission trips and student and children’s missions events. Tillery served with IBSA as zone consultant in the region until accepting the new position, and has served Second Baptist since 2009. He is married to Mandy and they have two daughters. feels just as we do.

Williamson Association worked with ReFocus and IBSA on revitalization and decided that two part-time mission strategists would better serve their local association.

And I end with hope. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.” Even when we don’t especially feel it, he is with us.

Eric Reed is editor of Illinois Baptist

media.

With The Lord

Gladys J. Miner, 88, died March 27. Miner was active throughout her life in student ministries and English as a second language serving through churches in Murphysboro, Carbondale, Downers Grove, and Rochester First Baptist Church.

Miner was preceded in death by her husband Melvin Miner, and her first husband LeRoy Swindell. She is survived by her brother, pastor Delbert Penrod of Rochester, sisters Virginia Cook of Cadiz, Kent. and Jama LeGrand of Gallatin, Tenn.