Mother Gracie’s Funeral
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The Struggle Is Over
The Struggle Is Over
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Mother Gracie struggled physically for many years with her breathing. I believe it was asthma. I prayed for her many times for God to heal her.
Her struggle reminded me of Apostle Paul’s struggle with the thorn in his flesh. Three times Paul said he besought the Lord that it might depart from him and God would not remove it. There was a reason it was there, it was to keep him humble and keep him in a place where he depended on God.
God didn’t remove the thorn, but God told Paul and I quote from the NLT “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.”
Paul then says and I quote verse 10 “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Well how in the world can you be weak and strong at the same time? Your body can be weak, but your spirit can be strong, because God will strengthen your spiritual man in times of weakness!
That’s how Mother Gracie was able to hold on all these many years. Yes, I prayed for her many times, I went to the hospital and prayed for her, she had other men of God lay hands and prayed on her, but it was still the same result. And although she may not have been healed of her asthma and breathing difficulties, it was God who kept her up until she reached her time.
See, we must all understand that everyone of us has an appointed time! PERIOD!!!
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
The LORD knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever.
Job himself said:
Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass;
Can I tell you something? I believe in the power of prayer! But we must understand one thing about God and his will. Our days are numbered! And you don’t know when you will arrive at your last number!
And Job said once you reached that number, God has appointed bounds that you cannot pass.
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
As much as we hate talking about death, as much as we try not to think about death, as much as we avoid it, the fact remains that at some point…you will die and you don’t know when you will die.
And you need to know and understand that after you die you’re going into judgement.
I think if Gracie could talk to us today, I believe she would say “BE READY!”
I went to the hospital the day that I got the call. I prayed for her and I believed God that God would answer prayer. As I was leaving the hospital, the LORD told me, “I’m taking here” and I battled with it.
Because I told the Lord, I said “Lord I just prayed for her and asked you to restore and heal her.” And the Lord told me “Her Struggle is over”. And I wrestled with that thing, I wanted to tell my wife what the LORD had just said, but I wanted to make sure it was God speaking and not unbelief.
Because how can I pray a prayer of faith and then 10 minutes later turn around a say “The Lord is going to take her.”
But I told my wife later on and when they ran the diagnostics on here it confirmed what the Lord had told me.
I came to church that night and had to teach Biblestudy and can I be just honest, I want to apologize to those members who feel like Pastor has too many transparent moments for me, I want my pastor to be strong and be a strong example for me.
That’s not me, sorry…I try to be honest and real with people because people may look strong on the outside but be struggling on the inside.
I came to church that night and I really didn’t feel like teaching biblestudy. I told Deacon Troy, I said….you know Deacon Troy, sometimes it’s hard being a pastor. I myself, I feel like I am a part of a great congregation…and this congregation has its quirks. I have to tell stuff over and over, we have some defiant/disobedient members. Gossipers, willful sinners, people with attitude problems and what church doesn’t? But this church has been good to me and I love my church and I love the members of this church.
And the hardest thing to me isn’t dealing with the hard folk. It is when you make connections with them and then you lose that connection. It is hard when a church member, especially your good members, when they go to sleep in the LORD.
Gracie was a good member! She was a very supportive member of our church. And it hurts when you lose a good member.
Even more, it hurts when you lose a family member. And we ask why?
Closing:
Gracie didn’t just struggle physically, as her pastor I also saw the spiritual struggle. Before I started teaching Sunday School she would ask questions “If God is this…..then why are these things happening? If God is so powerful, why hasn’t he healed me or why does he allow others to suffer. Because she was so concerned about you Janice.
We would try to encourage her in the word of the Lord. I would watch the conversations with her and Bishop during Sunday School and Bishop would get a little frustrated during Sunday School or Bible-study.
I became her Sunday School teacher, and I explained things according to what the scriptures said and sometimes she wouldn’t like my answers, but I gave her the word.
But over the years, I watched her faith grow stronger and her profession started to change. See you have to understand that the devil was after Gracie! He thought he could throw affliction her way and thought he was going to get someone that he thought was weak.
But she kept getting encouraged, kept getting the word, kept getting stronger in her faith, and then she started pressing and praising God no matter what. That’s a lesson right there, that was the last message she heard me preach…..praise God no matter what, love God no matter what comes your way.
She started bringing a tambourine to church or whatever instrument she could and she made a joyful noise. Sometimes she only had enough strength to sit there…..but you’d see that hand go up with that tambourine in her hand giving God the praise.
And one night I heard here say “I know God is a healer, whether he do it or not….He is still a healer. See when you stay under the word, a shift will happen, it will transform you, it will build you up!!!
And the thing that I rejoice off of today as her pastor is that her faith was tested and tried but she still stood and held her ground! And if I could talk to her today, I would tell her as her Pastor that I am so proud of you…..you hung in there, you maintained your faith. And like Job, you never charged God foolishly!
And now the struggle is over!!! I saw her struggle to get to the house of God, but the struggle is over. Sometimes she struggled to make to the altar, she struggled to make it to the prayer line. Didn’t have much breath, but she used every bit of breath she had to give God praise and would sing a song and she allowed nothing to stop her from giving God the praise!
And if you are her children, and if you are her sister, brother, nieces, nephews, grandchildren, then learn from her and be like her and place your faith in Christ like she did, and DON’T YOU LET NOTHING STOP YOU FROM SERVING THE LORD!!! I KNOW YOU MIGHT HURT RIGHT NOW…BUT INVOKE THE GOD OF MOTHER GRACIE WILLIAMS…HE WILL PULL YOU THROUGH THIS HARD TIME AND HE WILL GIVE YOU A GARMENT OF PRAISE FOR THE SPIRIT OF HEAVINESS.
Conclusion:
Now Mother Gracie is resting in the LORD. I’m sorry I didn’t really preach preach……come tomorrow and you may hear some preaching.
Mother Gracie is resting, the struggle is over, she is sleeping in Jesus…and if she is sleep in Jesus…that means one day she is going to get up.
So family, look at death the way the Bible sees it for the believer. For the believer death is just sleep.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Make sure that when it is time for you to go to sleep, you go to sleep in the LORD! How do I do that? Believe the gospel, repent of your sins, be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38) and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
My job today was not to preach to cause you to get saved. My job was to eulogize Mother Gracie and to encourage this family who is hurting. But Jesus will be with you in your hurt and in your bereavement.
Close with prayer