I published this post on June 19th, 2019.
Unfortunately there is a need to publish it again.
While this death hits closer to home, it is not my story to tell, so I will not be sharing the details.
Here is the link to Pastor Adam Hamilton’s sermon
Like a Broken Vessel: The Gospel and Suicide.
He is pastor at Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas.
Resources:
- National Suicide Hotline: 1-800-273-8255
If you or a loved one need help, please reach out. We are all in this life together and each person is a cherished son or daughter of God.
Bio: Michele Kearns is the founder and HUG© (Hope Unites Globally) Award-Winner of JoyReturns. She shares her widowhood adventures hoping to inspire widows to move through grief and rebuild their lives. A graduate of Kent State University with a Bachelor’s degree in communications, she’s currently using those skills as a virtual logistics contact center representative for a Fortune 100 company. She’s also managed call center teams, co-facilitated a grief support group, and helped small businesses with various writing assignments. Michele is a bookworm, and a lover of history, music, chocolate, red roses, and golden retrievers. She is also the amateur photographer behind the blog OgleOhio.com
JoyReturns 
There are those who’ve tried to hint
that I might rightly take my life,
’cause cancer is going to win,
and should I not thus spare my wife?
It is good they were not near me
when they rolled out that kinda talk,
because my fuse gets shorter daily
and I’m still built like The Rock.
I intend to leave a legacy
when I go to the Judgement Seat,
and that will be the memory
of the hardest man you’ll ever meet.
In cancer I have hit my limit
but it never broke my spirit.
Beautiful poem, Andrew. Your legacy will indeed be that of the hardest man any of us have ever met. In the meantime, thank you for teaching us to never have broken spirits while persevering through life’s circumstances. God bless you and Barbara.