This past weekend I went to a memorial service for a man
at church who died on December 1, 2014. The program they passed out had the
title, “Celebration of a Life Well-Lived.” For what I heard and learned about
Gale during this ceremony, that was such an appropriate title. Inside were words
indicating his various roles: beloved husband, much loved Dad, much appreciated
Father-in-law, and much enjoyed Grandpa of nine grandchildren. Also inside was
a tribute written by Gale’s wife. The last line of her tribute really made an
incredible impact on me. She writes, “If you were sitting here next to me on
this cold December day, I know what you would say to my grieving heart: ‘Don’t
weep for me, because I am with Him, to whom I dedicated my life.’” Wow!
This ceremony made me think back to various funerals I
have been to in my life. I have been to some very dark funerals where you could
see there was deep sadness, anger, bitterness, and lack of hope for a person
who was taken from a family. And I have been to plenty where it was a
celebration of a life well-lived, like Gale’s. Don’t hear me wrong, even in the
ones that were a celebration, there was plenty of grieving, tears, and sadness
of missing someone who played such an important role to their family. It’s just
that you could see the hope and encouragement in their eyes that this person
was now with Jesus.
For me, these memorial or celebration services of a
believer gone home have been the most amazing worship experiences. You
can feel the amazing closeness of our Savior as he wraps the family in his
heavenly arms and comforts them. And you can certainly feel the powerful
message of selected worship songs as everyone sings with their eyes set on heaven
and our Savior. There seems to be a “wonderment” about what the person is doing
right then, sitting at the feet of Jesus. And also a sense around knowing that someday,
we too will go home.
The other theme that I left with from Gale’s service is
that he did not muster up a life well-lived in the last few years when he was
diagnosed with a blood cancer. No, he had lived this way since accepting Jesus
into his heart. You could see it in his children’s eyes and hear it in their
words. This was how Dad lived all the years they knew him. And the impact it
made on them and their own families was very tangible. Even on his
grandchildren. Near the end of the service, all nine grandchildren came up and sang
the song, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus.” The chorus of that song is so wonderful
and appropriate for the celebration we watched:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
What a fitting way to end this service. It was an amazing
celebration of a great man who was going home. I was wonderfully impacted. I
left that service with a prayer on my mind, “Lord, help me live a life
well-lived.”
Amazed by His Love,
Terence
