The key to preventing suicide is this.........listen, let them talk, listen without judging what they are going through

19 [a]This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; James 1:19


Recently, there have been much written about suicide in this country. The Star Tribune reported that the suicide rate in Minnesota has gone up by 26% and nobody seems to understand why this is occurring. As a dad who experience the loss of his 10 year old daughter suddenly and unexpectedly I can understand. Now that I am beginning to feel my old self I was before the loss I  can understand why people go there. In fact, I am convinced that everyone of us is just one major crisis away from entertaining thoughts of suicide. It is when people find themselves in deep pain where they see no way out of their endless suffering when Satan does his greatest work telling the lies that death is better than living.   

Kevin Briggs is a retired police officer who has a new mission in life. He is one of those trained suicide prevention officers that roams the San Francisco Bay bridge in search of people on the verge of ending their life. He shared some amazing stories in this clip of the people he was able to persuade to give life another chance. 

He offers some advice to the rest of us that truly works with suicidal people. Simple advice that doesn't require you to have a PH.D to carry it out.

(1) Listen.  Kevin Briggs said what suicidal people need more than anything is someone to take the time to listen to them.  Listening  attentively sends a message that they are important. Listening allows them to put into their own words the suffering they are under.  It shows value to the other person.

(2) Let them talk. It isn't always easy to let the other person do all the talking because we think we have the words of wisdom that will give them the desire to keep living. In reality, God gave us one mouth and two ears and I think the message from God that we need to do more listening than yapping.  If my life story is any indication people in the throes of suffering need to be able to share their story as often as it takes for healing to take place.  My friend, Don, understood this well. Shortly after Maria died Don would call me a couple of times a week just to listen to the intensity of my grief. It didn't matter what the emotion was I was experiencing he would let me do all the talking because he understood what I needed to get through the pain of my loss.

(3) Do not judge them by offering them advice that worked for you.  As Christians it is very easy to open up the bible and find a bible verse that you think will make them feel better and make their pain go way. We must refrain from offering spiritual advice at this stage of their pain. They need you to let them talk and for you to listen. It is down the road when the danger of suicide diminishes that there will be time to build them up on a spiritual level.

Listen to them and let them talk without casting judgement are the keys to working with people in distress.