The wife of pastor Jarrid Wilson has shared the Bible verse that is speaking to her heart following his heartbreaking suicide last week.
Juli Wilson posted a photo to Instagram of a Bible opened to Philippians chapter 4 with verses 6 and 7 highlighted in yellow.
The verses read: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."
She captioned the photo: "Jarrid sent me this photo of this bible verse a few months ago while he was at work. It's speaking to my heart tonight."
Jarrid, an associate pastor at Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, took his own life one week ago after struggling with depression and anxiety.
He had been an outspoken advocate for suicide prevention, having co-founded the Anthem of Hope ministry with Juli to help people struggling with depression, self-harm, addiction and suicide.
In the wake of her husband's death, Juli has vowed to continue their suicide prevention work, saying that she wouldn't allow his death to "get the last word".
She also praised her husband and said she believes that he is now with Jesus.
"You're in the safest arms, my sweet jarrid. I am confused, completely heartbroken and jealous that you are face to face with our savior all in one. You are in HIS presence," she said in a tribute on Instagram.
"What a glorious day that will be when we are all reunited at his feet together. Until then, he is holding on tight to the boys and I during these horribly dark days."
She added: "I have such a deep peace knowing he's holding your hand right now too. I love you so much, babe. I miss you beyond words. I will continue to shout your anthem of hope until my very last breath," she added, referencing the suicide prevention project.
Greg Laurie, senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship, has spoken out about suicide since Jarrid's passing. He said last week that Jarrid was in heaven.
"Jarrid had put his faith in Christ, and that's why I believe, right now, he is in the presence of the Lord in heaven," he said.
"One dark moment in a Christian's life cannot undo what Christ did for us on the cross," Laurie added, reciting Romans 8:38, which states: "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
He went on to say that even people in the Bible, like Job and Elijah, had depression and times of darkness.
"Job wished he had never been born. Jeremiah, at least on one occasion, wanted to die. Jonah wanted to die too," he said.
"We can have times of depression, we can have times where we're sad, and it doesn't mean our faith is gone or we're a failure as believers. It means we're hopelessly human and we constantly need Christ."
