Lyla Gunderson

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Welcome

On behalf of the family I would like to thank you all for coming to celebrate the life of Lyla Gunderson. We have gathered here to praise God and to witness to our faith as we celebrate her life. We come together in grief, acknowledging our human loss. May God grant us grace, that in pain we may find comfort, in sorrow hope, in death resurrection.

In the midst of life, we are in death;    from whom can we seek help?                        (NINTH CENTURY)

Our help is in the name of the Lord    who made heaven and earth.                        (PSALM 124:8, UMH  846)

God who raised Christ from the dead    will give life to your mortal bodies also    through the Spirit that dwells in you.                         (ROMANS 8:11, ALT.)

Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed. For this perishable body must put on imperishability,    and this mortal body must put on immortality. Then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:    "Death has been swallowed up in victory."    "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" But thanks be to God,    who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.                         (1 CORINTHIANS 15:51, 53, 54 b-55, 57)

Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;    my body also dwells secure. You, [Lord,] show me the path of life;    in your presence there is fullness of joy,    in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.                         (PSALM 16:9, 11, UMH 748)

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Obituary

Lyla was born November 1, 2020, to her parents Demetri and Lieren (Tindol) Gunderson in Lubbock, TX. Lyla was a sweet and strong girl with an incredible love for her family. She had a heart like no other, and loved to sing with her mom and dance with her daddy. She always had a strong will and enjoyed being outside and getting her hands dirty on the farm. She loved her Cheese and Bluey, and her big brother Daniel who was her best friend.

Lyla Jean Gunderson, age 3, of Snyder, TX, passed away Sunday, April 7, 2024, at Covenant Women and Childrens Hospital in Lubbock, TX, after a lengthy battle with cancer.

She is survived by her,

Parents,

Demitri and Lieren Gunderson of Snyder TX;

Her Brother,

Daniel Gunderson of Snyder, TX;

Maternal Grandparents,

Douglas and wife Robbi Tindol of Snyder, TX;

Paternal Grandparents,

Danny and wife Tina Gunderson of Snyder, TX;

3 Uncles;

2 Aunts;

and Numerous Cousins.

Donations can be made at Caterpillar Corner or First Bank and Trust Snyder for Lyla Jean Gunderson Scholarship.

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Jesus stressing out his parents.

The Gospels hold only one account of our Lord Jesus Christ as a boy. It is a story of a time when the parents of Jesus suffered great distress. While on his family's annual trip to Jerusalem, he stayed behind to talk to the teachers at the temple. Mary and Joseph couldn't find him, even when they retraced their steps, even when they asked all of the relatives if they had seen their son. When they did find him three days later, Mary asked him a pointed question, which Jesus answered with another two questions. “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know I must be in my Father's house?”

Life with Jesus must have been unusual. He was Joseph's son, and he would work with Joseph. Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born to Mary, and was growing into his role as Son of God. When reading the account of Jesus as a child I often wonder what he was like growing up. Did he listen to his parents and have perfect obedience? Did he sing psalms and praises louder than others due to his intimate knowledge of the father? Did he have a passion for helping people or listening to those in need? The one thing we do know is that he knew the Scriptures well enough to discuss them with the teachers.

When I think and wonder about how exceptional Jesus might of been as a child I can’t help but be reminded of how exceptional Lyla was. Lyla loved to create, draw, and play like most children her age. She really loved to paint your nails and I was told that she even painted Doug’s fingernails a time or two. She was full of life, full of spunk, and full of sass but even more than that she was filled with only that which comes from God. Let me expand on that a little. In Psalm 139:11-16 it states:

English Standard Version Psalm 139

11  If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,

and the light about me be night,”

12  even the darkness is not dark to you;

the night is bright as the day,

for darkness is as light with you.

13  For you formed my inward parts;

you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

14  I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works;

my soul knows it very well.

15  My frame was not hidden from you,

when I was being made in secret,

intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

16  Your eyes saw my unformed substance;

in your book were written, every one of them,

the days that were formed for me,

when as yet there was none of them.

God created Lyla and knitted her together with some incredible attributes for a three year old. It says that God weaves us together for the days that were formed for you and I. You probably don’t know this about me but I love numbers and all things math and when I read this verse I found myself wondering. Lyla was on this Earth for 3 years, 5 months, and 6 days. If you calculate that out and expanded it you would find that Lyla had 1253 days. When you start to calculate those things you become overwhelmingly aware at how little time she had and you may look at that number and begin to loose heart and mourn for the little time that she had but scripture also tells us this in:

2 Corinthians 4:16–18 ESV

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

In she short amount of time that Lyla had she experience more struggle than many of us might face in our entire life but I know that today Lyla is experiencing know more pain or struggle because she is in the presence of God in worship with all those who came before her and I know this because of Mark 10:13-16

Mark 10:13–16 (ESV)

And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them.

But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.

Like I said earlier, Jesus blessed Lyla with an incredible character and exceptional attributes. Joshua 1:9 says.

Joshua 1:9 ESV

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Lyla was the strongest and most courageous little girl I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. She would help the nurses start her IV, take blood, give shots, and many other things that make many of us squirm. In the face of pain and struggle she continued to laugh, play, create, love, and care for those around her. When I think about Lyla and her life the verse that comes to mind for me is Matthew 5:13-16.

Matthew 5:13–16 ESV

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Lyla was the salt and light of this world. One story that I absolutely loved hearing was when Lyla came across a little boy who was in the hospital and he was afraid and crying. Lyla saw this, walked up to the boy, and began consoling him and reassuring him that is was all going to be okay and that it wasn’t going to hurt. She took time to love and care for someone when she was the one who needed love and care. She was selfless, strong, and courages. I know that the days ahead are going to be hard and difficult. I know that you will cry and grieve your loss. Andrew Garfield said this about grief when speaking of his mother who passed away.

“I love talking about her, by the way, so if I cry, it’s only a beautiful thing,” Garfield explained. “This is all the unexpressed love, the grief that will remain with us until we pass because we never get enough time with each other, no matter if someone lives till 60, 15, or 99.”

Grief is a natural thing when someone has passed away. We will grieve the loss of Lyla. We will shed tears and feel our hearts ache but I would encourage you during this time of grief that you would not remember Lyla for her illness. That you would not remember her simply because she was taken so young. But that you would remember her for the courage she had when facing overwhelming odds. That you would remember her for the strength she had to get up and face the day with such an incredible personality and determination. Remember her for the way she cared for others when she was the one who needed to be cared for. Remember her for being the salt and the light of this world. And remember her for all this things God did through her is the 1253 days on this earth and then begin to ask yourself what you are going to do with the rest of the days that God has blessed you with.

Amen.

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