Three Funeral Services

I went to three funeral services recently.
One was for a beloved pastor from a former church.
The other was for the mother of a dear friend.
The third was for the mother of the associate pastor at my church.

The services were beautiful and uniquely suited to each person.
The families honored their loved ones well.
We, who knew them, knew even more about them after the service.
All of them believed in the Lord Jesus and trusted Him for their salvation.

Even though the families grieve, they grieve in Hope.
They know they will see their loved ones again.
They know this life is not the end.
In many ways, since their loved ones died in Christ, it is only the beginning.

Our beloved former pastor ended every service with the same doxology.
I cannot read that verse without thinking of him.
At the end of his funeral service, there was to be a benediction.
And then I heard it.

It was the doxology, said by our beloved pastor himself.
It was the way he ended every service I ever attended.
How perfect that his own funeral service would end the same way.
There was not a dry eye in the room, since everyone always associated this doxology with him.

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. (Jude 24-25)

For my friend’s mother, I was struck by something small, yet so significant to her family.
My friend’s mother always held your hand.
If you were talking to her, you could be sure your hand was enveloped in hers.
It was more than her trademark; it was an actual, physical connection.

Everyone spoke of it.
As pictures were being displayed on the screen, they ended with her hand being held by another.
I am sure in some way, this hand holding will be continued.
This gesture is too special to have ended with her.

For the mother of the associate pastor, a legacy of faith was laid out before us.
I have known this woman for many years, from a former church.
She had health issues for as long as I knew her.
Brain tumors, operable at first, left her with many physical challenges.

Her smile, her unwavering faith, and her complete trust in the Lord Jesus sustained her.
Her son, the associate pastor, honored his mother well during the eulogy.
He said she never complained, though she had every right to.
He read the words on a sign in her kitchen, which I also have on a magnet.

Some houses try to hide the fact that children shelter there.
Ours boasts of it quite openly, the signs are everywhere!
For smears are on the windows and little smudges are on the door.
I should apologize, I guess, for the toys shrewn on the floor.
But I sat down with the children and we played and laughed and read;
and if the doorbell doesn’t shine, their eyes will shine instead.
For when at times I’m forced to choose the one job or the other . . .
I want to be a housewife – but first I’ll be a mother!

She loved her family.
Even in a hospital bed in their home, her family was paramount.
There were pictures of her grandchildren around her.
And her smile, that beautiful smile, filled her face.

We sang, Jesus loves me and I love you, Lord.
Simple, children’s songs, which really means, they’re for everyone.
I sang them to my own children.
These songs were very dear to this precious woman.

What touched me was the way her son praised his father.
He spoke of his example as he cared for his wife, who was ill for most of their married life.
Four children, and fifty years of marriage, and he stayed, and he served, and he loved.
Beloved pastor, mother of my friend, and mother of the associate pastor…such love.

Examples of God’s great love for us in the midst of our suffering,
Examples of our love for each other in this journey of life.
Pictures, though poignant, displayed the brevity and fragility of life.
Focusing on what is really important, not what the world promotes and upholds.

Love of God.
Love of His Word.
Love of family.
Loving one another with great love.