A candlelight service is often conducted to remember the death of a loved one. Last week on December 30th, 2010 a young man by the name of Ethan Herman committed suicide ending his life at the age of 12. Many of our students knew Ethan and were shocked and heartbroken after hearing such devastating news. I knew as a ministry that we couldn't turn a blind eye to this tragedy but we needed to tackle this difficult subject head-on!! Every year there are 590 suicides in Minnesota with a 100 of those being youth 12-24. This is a very sobering and extremely sad statistic that brings me to my knees in prayer and further solidifies the fact that this is a very real issue with young people!!!
At our candlelight vigil we had our students rehearse Psalm 23 and then several students led out in prayer on behalf of Ethan's family and friends. In a time such as this the church can play a significant role in the life of a young person who is reeling from such a horrific event. A teenager that is dealing with the loss of a friend due to suicide can by greatly comforted by the prayers of their peers. It is my hope and desire for our students to incarnate the life and love of Jesus and intercessory prayer is one of those ways I believe bears forth His Image!!
Please be in prayer for Ethan's family: Mom and Dad (Jeff and Vicki) and sister (Brooke) as well as the countless others who are dealing with this tremendous loss...
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