This week’s #asiaforlifepodcast is covering stories from the 2019 Japan March for Life. Listen to the podcast here:
LISTEN: Japan March for Life—Depression, Cutting, and Suicide
—–
Okay, I’m gonna try this again…I’m waiting for a taxi. It’s raining, it’s cold, and I’m wet, because I got off at the wrong bus stop. Because after the March for Life, I got on the bus to go home to the guesthouse I’m staying at. And I couldn’t help but overhear two girls from North America talking about their cutting habits, and how depressed and hopeless they are, and how they don’t really wanna get help because they don’t see the point.
So I was about to get off at my bus stop, but decided to stay on, and just prayed for them. And then finally, when they got off, I got off too. And I very apologetically approached them and asked if I could share some stories with them.
So they were willing to listen and it wasn’t really a conversation. It was more just me pouring out my heart about how much suicide and mental illness are serious issues, that have—because of people I know—have really affected me personally. So I just wanted to say something to them. And they were willing to listen. And I’m grateful that I got the chance to speak to them, and they seemed really grateful.
And at the end I said, “I’m a Christian, is it okay if I pray for you?” And they were okay with that, and so I prayed, that God would show them His goodness and the goodness of every life. So it was kind of…(laughter)…I wasn’t terribly articulate talking to them, but I was desperate, and they knew that. They felt that and they appreciated that.
So at the end, they each reached out their hands to just clasp my hand, because I don’t think people hug here (laughter). Praise God.
So last year, 2018, I was here for the March for Life, and I was literally stopped in the tracks—or, stopped on my way to go to a meeting with Pro-Life Japan. I was delayed because someone jumped in front of a train. So [after that] I learned a lot about suicide in Japan and also, in a way, Hong Kong’s influence on the suicide problem in East Asia.
WATCH: One Hong Kong woman’s suicide led to thousands more [2018]
At that time, and now tonight, just right after the March for Life, I overhear this conversation. I’ve never heard anything like that before, and it just seems—the timing—that this is something God wants me to pay attention to.
So that’s all I’ve got. Let’s pray for an end to suicide and for people to know their value and worth and dignity,
And here’s my taxi. God bless you!
—–
This podcast episode was originally a Facebook Live video, which you can watch in full here:
Facebook Live: A Heartfelt Plea to Teens in Tokyo about Suicide
Recent Comments