Dealing with a Difficult Death - Shannon Strickland Maherg
DEALING WITH A DIFFICULT DEATH
Funeral Sermon for Shannon Strickland Maherg
Proverbs 3:5-6
June 6, 2007
When we are faced with tragedy we often don’t know which way to turn. We don’t know what to think. We don’t know what to feel. We don’t know what to say. In short we simply don’t know how to respond. Fortunately in God’s word he has given us some direction for dealing with difficult situations and circumstances and that includes times when we are faced with a tragic or difficult death.
I want to read to you today from Proverbs 3:5-6, which says:
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. (TNIV)
From those verses we can find four things that will help us to hang on through times of tragedy and sorrow.
1. ACCEPT THAT YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND IT ALL.
· v 5b - “lean not on your own understanding…”
A. When tragedy strikes, some people begin to waver in their faith.
1. They begin to doubt. It starts with questioning God.
2. There are no easy answers to these questions that will arise. (Why did this happen?)
a. Part of the answer lies in the fact that not everything that happens is God’s will.
b. He has given us something called a free will…our decisions / choices.
1. The result is that sometimes we hurt people; sometimes they hurt us; sometimes we hurt ourselves.
2. Sometimes we simply make mistakes and sometimes accidents just happen.
3. Isaiah 55:8-9“‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways’ declares the LORD. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”
· Things will happen in the course of this life that we will never understand….
BRIDGE: Rather than wasting your time asking questions that have no answers you must…
2. HOLD ON TO YOUR FAITH.
· v 5a – “Trust in the LORD with all your heart..”
A. We Need an Anchor To Hold us in the Storms of Life (Our FAITH)
1. WHEN…World is turned upside down; senseless tragedies occurs; loved ones die; hearts ache…
· Heb. 11:1 - “faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
2. We don’t have to understand it all, but we must have something to believe in
a. An anchor for the storms; a compass to guide in dark / difficult days (Eph. 2:20 – The Chief Cornerstone)
· So I urge you: Hold on to your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You still may not be able understand, but you will be able to stand.
3. NEVER GO YOUR OWN WAY.
· 6a “in all your ways submit to him…”
A. Why Is This So Important?
· Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”
1. Father really knows best…(when young, my Dad didn’t know anything; the older I got, the wiser he got)
a. John 14:1-6 - If you are looking for your way in life, Jesus is the way. Follow him.
· Accept that you don’t understand it all, hold on to your faith, don’t go your own way and:
4. GOD WILL GET YOU THROUGH.
· 6b “and he will make your paths straight.”
The Sequoia trees of California tower as much as 300 feet above the ground. Strangely, these giants have unusually shallow root systems that reach out in all directions to capture the greatest amount of surface moisture. Seldom will you see a redwood standing alone, because high winds would quickly uproot it. That’s why they grow in clusters. Their intertwining roots provide support for one another against the storms.
One of the ways that God gets us through is by the intertwining support system of our family and friends. God comforts us and he uses us to comfort others. Paul wrote about this in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4:
3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. (Thank the friends, family for their support during this difficult time).