Untitled Sermon (2)

Death is like a great ocean and we are on this shore seeing people we love depart. But every ocean has two shores, and every person we see depart is seen as arriving on the other shore, death is not the end.

We come together today in the shadow of sorrow and grief, and yet we realize the glorious light, the greatest hope, that the world has ever known. The promise of an eternal life for the faithful Christian. There are many wonderful memories that shine out today in the darkness of grief like the stars in the night sky. Let us hold to them in our sorrow, for it is our memories that give us comfort and carries us through our lifetime

There are many occasions that draw people together, but none affect us more than the loss of, a mother, a grandmother,, a great grandmother, a family member, a friend and a faithful Christian woman. We gather today to remember Carolyn and the treasured times that we drew from her love, strength and encouragement. In this, all gathered here today extend to her family love, sympathy and compassion. We weep together in our grief.

In Times like this we turn to the only place that we can find genuine comfort, The Word of God. I believe that Carolyn would echo the words of Paul as he wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:6-8 -I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:

The love Carolyn had for her family was apparent and she also included that love to her church family. Carolyn had a reputation as a fighter that she had proven many times in her life. The independence in which she lived much of her life is a sign of this fighting spirit she had. This fighting spirit she had did not come from her, rather it came from the light of Christ within her and I believe this because of the conversations we shared. It came from her faith.

Whenever I would visit her, we would talk about many things but no matter where the conversation started, it always ended the same way, with her talking about her family and her church. Her faith saw her through many things in life that we all experience, the trials of life that we all share and with her she could always tie those times back to her faith, to her church and especially the cross. She anchored herself to the cross of Jesus Christ.

It is from this that she could go through the difficult days and find hope, find something to rejoice in, that this life is not all there is and she knew that there was a better place waiting for her and she was prepared to step out of this life and into the arms of Christ.

As Carolyn was standing on the shore of this life she knew what waited over the horizon, she knew her savior Jesus Christ. I knew this because we would talk about her faith, who Christ was to her but she also showed in unspoken ways, in the way she lived, her love of her family, neighbors and anyone that needed kindness. She lived a life modeled after Jesus Christ.

Yes she loved her family, always putting them first, loving her neighbors by the way she would watch over them, often from a chair on her porch to oversee those close to her. She lived a life of service to everyone and the love returned to her from her family especially from her grandchildren.

When listening to stories shared with me, something was said that stuck out to me. The question came up of who she loved the most, and grandchildren compete for a grandmothers attention and maybe argue over who she loved the most but something was said of that that I wanted to share.

I was told that the person she loved the most was the person that needed it the most at that time, no matter who it was. That is a love that comes from God because that is a sacrificial love, a love stirred by her faith in Christ.

While we gather here we are experiencing many emotions from the memories that we share of Carolyn, the happy times and just the ordinary days we shared together but today those times take on special meaning, they have a deeper impact on our life because this is the day that we celebrate her life, the legacy she leaves and the love that carries on.

It’s natural that we are saddened, that we grieve the loss of someone we love, that has been such a big part of our lives and we should grieve and this grief brings pain and it can overshadow all of our emotions.

Why is grief a necessary part of life and death? Why must we experience this feeling of loss? Grief and love are the same emotion, there is little difference, the grief we feel is love, the love we have for her, grief is love with no where to go because the recipient of who we love is no longer here, we believe. But she is here, she is here through the memories we share, the tears of sadness will one day be tears of happiness and we should trust and believe in the words of John, that Christ has gone on to prepare a place for us, for all those that believe in Him have a home with Him.

The Sermon Notebook: New Testament Help for the Troubled Heart (John 14:1–6)

We need to remember that we are not home yet! While the troubles and trials we face are part of this earthly existence, they will not follow us where we are headed! Praise God, the burdens of life are temporary at best

And for the Christian there is no greater joy than to be in the presence of the One that loves them like no one else can.

So today is not a day of mourning but a day of celebration. It’s not a day of regret but truly a day of rejoicing. Today we come to remember the life of Carolyn, and reminisce over all the special moments that we had with her. Whether her at church or around her kitchen table for one of the many birthday parties for children and grandchildren.

Carolyn had a relationship that carried some wonderful promises found in John chapter 14:1-6:

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know." Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Now I want you to imagine this, the moment that Carolyn took her first breath in Heaven the Lord was right there to welcome her. The first image she saw was the Lord Jesus Christ. He was there with His arms wide open to receive her in to that great mansion that He has prepared for all His children. And for Carolyn she experienced a love that we cannot even understand. We call the Bible the living word of God, she is experiencing now just how alive it is.

A love that forgives every failure. A love that mends the hurts only she knew. A love that understood every feeling that she had. It is an unconditional love that completely satisfies the longing of her soul.

In life, there is death because this is not our home, we are created for something far better, but to the believer in Jesus, beyond death is a boundless life waiting for us.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

- John 3:16-18

Carolyn’s life revolved around this promise and because of her relationship with the Savior, she is in a place that we can’t imagine and is experiencing a love incomprehensible.

But how about you? Each of us are going to comes to the end of our life one day. When that day comes, will you be ready for it? If it were to come for you today, would you be ready? Because Carolyn was a Believer in Jesus Christ, we can know that she is in the arms of the loving Savior. But do you know where you will be spending eternity.

Friends, as we mourn the loss of Carolyn, we have the opportunity to consider what will become of us in life after death. Think hard about what we just read in John 3. If you believe in the Son, you have everlasting life.

Just as birth was our ticket to this world, so death is our ticket to the next. It is less of an end than a beginning. Death is the end, the death of pain, the death to suffering, sin. the death of all sickness and ailments. But death is not the end of us!

Find hope in that Carolyn has left this life, to stand on the opposite shore to begin the life promised by God and her life is only now, just beginning.