I just learned from my weekly e-mail from Youth Specialties that Lee Eshleman, of Ted & Lee fame, died last week. Apparently, he has been suffering for a long time from depression. On May 17th, he succumbed to the pressure and took his own life. He will be missed by many in the field of youth ministry as he was part of a team that created great skits with excellent Biblical points that students enjoyed. We used their Insider's View of Jesus curriculum a couple of summers ago, which looked at the life of Jesus through the eyes of Andrew and Peter. Hilarious, and thought-provoking. I also greatly enjoyed seeing them at the YS National Youth Workers Convention each year. I will miss his contribution to the kingdom of God. Here is a bit from Ted and his partner in skit-crime, Lee.
7 comments:
Hi Mike. I am troubled by Lee's suicide. I am not to judge--the Lord will do that. But how can a man who professes a strong belief in Jesus Christ kill himself? I can only explain it one of two ways. !. He was truly insane and he didn't really kill himself, his insanity killed himself. 2. He was a hyprocrite all of his life.
According to all of the reports, Lee had been suffering from depression for a very long time. Anyone who knows anything about depression knows that it can be debilitating.
I went to seminary with a guy that suffered severe depression. He had moments when he would come to my dorm room and let me know that he was afraid that he might do something to himself. We would call 911 for an ambulance to get him help immediately. He also loved Jesus Christ with his whole heart. I would certainly not classify him as insane, but there was a definite imbalance that caused him to think and act in a different way than he normally would. Nor would I call him a hypocrite, because I knew him and his love for Jesus. He was depressed, which can unfortunately end in suicide, as it did with Lee. To suggest that he was insane or a hypocrite I think is pretty uneducated, classless, and mean.
Christians do not commit suicide.
Hi, anonymous person.
You forgot to mention that Christians don't lie, hate, cheat, sin, lust, envy, judge others, and many other things. They are perfect and are only worthy of the label IF they are perfect. They do everything in the best way possible and if they DO any of these sins they are instantly NOT Christians and are bound straight for hell, where all non-perfect people must go, since they've obviously shown that they don't have the strength in themselves to live perfectly.
Oh, and Christians never EVER use sarcasm.
Well stated, Elfman!
I'm tired of people who call themselves Christians and who go on fornicating, embezzeling, voting Republican, committing suicide and saying: "Well, I'm not perfect, am I." Bullcrap. Their Christianity is only a facade. Their belief in Jesus is on the same level as their belief in Peter Pan or Frosty the Snowman. Get real here. You either are a true Christian or you are a hypocrite like Lee who killed himself because he was, oh my, depressed. Don't call yourself a Christian if you can's live like one. Falwell, Robertson, Roberts, Swaggart--you call those guys Christians? You call yourself Christians, well then, live your life like one.
....yawwwn.
I know that you are just trying to turn a crank here, but it's in rather bad taste, since a man is dead, you know.
Bad taste indeed.
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