Gladys Memorial

Gladys Bocanegra Memorial -

Welcome & Opening Remarks - Daniel

Opening Prayer - Pastor Josh

Thank you Daniel, I am honored to be here and for those who do not know me, my name is Pastor Josh Lotzenhiser and I have the privilege of serving as lead Pastor here at Church of Grace.

Let’s open in Prayer…

Father God, we thank you for your presence this evening. We give thanks to you for all that you have done and promised to do in our lives. We thank you for being Gladys’s savior and we pray for everyone here, the family and friends of Gladys that your peace would comfort them and guard their hearts and minds. You are the God of all comfort and glory, we ask that Gladys would be remembered and honored and you would be glorified through the testimony of her life. Amen.

One of Gladys’s favorite worship songs is called “Holy Forever” by Chris Tomlin. I invite you to listen to the song as it is presently played and reflect on the words and also the present reality that she is with He who is Holy Forever.

Worship Song - Holy Forever

Slideshow

Persona Reflection - Daniel

Family Reflections - Open Mic (Guests are invited to share brief memories and stories)

Worship Song - Way Maker by Leeland

Message of Hope

Gladys has moved on. The pain and grief felt is very real. It’s a grief that everyone experiences at some point and no one is excluded from. It is because we love that we have the potential for grief. Our loved ones that have passed on will be missed and their absence is painful. It is said that Christians experience true intensity of grief, more than those without faith in God, because Christians Scriptures teach that death was not part of God’s good and wise creation. Death, just like sin, is a parasite on our existence.

Yet the grief we experience today is not a hopeless grief, but rather it is balanced with the tension of hope because of the promise of our very good God and Savior Jesus. As we see Jesus experience the grief of his friend Lazarus in the tomb, Jesus wept; yet because of the power and love the Almighty God has for us, Jesus demonstrates that death is not the end. Jesus would go on to conquer death and be resurrected and promise that what happened to him will happen to all who believe. Thus, death is not an end but the beginning of a new chapter. For Gladys, there is no more pain, no more sorrow, no more evil – but rather the fullness of joy, peace, love, pleasure, and life in and from the presence of her Lord.

1 Thessalonians Chapter 4 verse 13-14 says, “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.”

Celebrations of life and memorials are powerful moments. Because if just for a moment, we are snatched out of this fantasy that we are guaranteed to wake up tomorrow. For a moment we cannot avoid the inevitable, for a moment we cannot hide from death and pretend that it’s somewhere off in too far future. For a moment the weight of life and death becomes real.

Yet, for the one in relationship with Jesus, there is no fear of any of this. Gladys, like the Apostle Paul, would say, “To live is Christ, and to die is gain.” “Where, oh death, is your victory; Where, oh death, is your sting.” For those of us who place our faith in Jesus, a day like today, is sorrowful yes, but also filled with a joyous hope for the future.

None of us are promised tomorrow, therefore, let us live presently with ambition to live for Christ, following Him; and in honor of His daughter Gladys, live with hope of a glorious future.

I invite you now to not waste this moment but join me in a moment of prayerful reflection of yourself. As God asked Adam in the garden, “where are you?” May you hear this question in your heart, “Where are you in relation to God?” Are you good with Him? Are you far from Him? There is only one answer, one way - believing in the Son Jesus.

—- —-

Gladys has entered the Lord’s final rest, and for that we celebrate and say thank you Jesus. We will continue to hold you, Gladyss family and all the rest of you in our prayers.

May we remember Gldys for her love, selflessness, and character as a woman of God, wife, mother, grandmother, sisister and friend, and especially mother and grandmother - Daniel, you and your family carry her leacy of faith. This reminds me of Paul writing to Timothy saying, “I am reminded of your sincere faith [Timothy], which first live in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” Bocanega family - this faith now lives in you.

Closing Prayer and Blessing - Pastor Josh

Food in the warehouse.

Closing Song / Dismissal