John H. Artman - 9/14/20

Many people we meet along life's way are used by God to mold and change us. It seems some people are used more than others. John Artman was one of those people. We gather today to celebrate John's life and his imprint on our lives, we gather to comfort each other, and I hope we will draw strength from the hope that comes through a relationship with Jesus. In the Bible we read these words Jesus spoke to his friend Martha at the death of her brother,

25 “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. 26 Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” (John 11:25-26)

This is the question that is put before us as we stand at this gravesite: Do you believe this?

Please pray with me,

Our Father, you are the giver of life. We thank you today for the life of John Artman. You have blessed us through Him. Now as you receive Him into your presence, we ask that you would comfort us by rich memories and the warmth of your Spirit. We ask this in Jesus name. Amen.

John H. Artman was born on June 1, 1931 in Paducah, KY. We don't know a lot of details about his early years. As youth he lived across the Ohio River in Metropolis Illinois. He had kind of a Tom Sawyerish life with his friends. He once swam across the Ohio River. After he graduated High School he served honorably in the Korean Conflict. He spent some time serving in Munich and was part of an Airborne division. His time of service provided, I believe, a special bond years later between he and his grandson Adam.

When John returned to Metropolis after the war, he asked the Lutheran minister for ideas on a college. He suggested he travel to the Lutheran College in Carthage, Illinois which was aptly named, Carthage College. While going to school he met the daughter of one of the restaurant owners, Frances Hope Wear.

Fran and John were a team. They were a model of what we all hope our marriage could be. Every day Fran wrote a letter to John. All the letters were saved and cherished. When John would make up lesson plans or prepare books or manuals, John would write, and Fran would type.

John was a tough guy with a mind that loved to learn and to help others learn. He was tough as a dad. He expected you to behave and to work hard. He was stubborn and straightforward in his dealings. He was pretty straightlaced. But Fran had a way of getting him laughing. When he laughed everyone else laughed along.

Somewhere along the way it appears John was involved in Freemasonry. Also, somewhere in his story he lived and worked in Nashville where he met Johnny Cash.

John began teaching in Dallas City and then went on to Keokuk Senior High where he taught until retirement. John was made to be a teacher. One of his students said,

He was a diminutive man, startling in appearance. He liberally applied Vitalis to his jet-black hair. His eyes were as dark as his hair, flashing with intensity and determination as he looked out over the students in his classes. He hit the high school like a raging bull, full of ideas and challenges for all who crossed his path. He grabbed hold of my destiny's lifeline and shook it vigorously all my years in High School. He changed my life forever. But I didn't realize it at the time.

Mr. Artman was brilliant, challenging, demanding, unrelenting, and constant. His red pen streaked across page after page of writing, shredding words like grass under a mower's blade. Draft after draft wilted beneath his critical eyes. Slacking was not an option. Yet these strong expectations did not defeat us because nothing could compare to the pride which came with success. . . His praise was as earnest as his criticism was sharp.

Mr. Artman would great his students at the door of the classroom. He had control of the class from that first moment on. He taught German, English, Journalism, Humanities and Images of man (A Study of Civilizations). The latter course ended with a huge project that pushed students to do something big rather than something easy.

John spent a year with a group of teachers in Nepal as part of an exchange program. He loved to teach as much as he loved to learn. John was known to at times, read 3-4 books in a day! He loved studying other cultures and worked to express his own ideas through writing. He wrote two novels and some 40 other education books. He loved to learn and to stimulate others to learn. Many of his students went on to be teachers or writers themselves. They will all remember that "pork chops are done, people are finished."

John had lots of interests. He loved studying World War II. He was a great Ping Pong player and played some over in Nepal. He loved raising a big vegetable garden. Though he would tell you athletics and academics don't mix he did enjoy watching his family play sports.

When Connor was young , he and John made a book together. I assume this was during the summer. Each day John came up with learning activities for his grandson. The result was a book of learning Connor still cherishes.

John often stayed quiet in a group of people unless he was asked a question. He would give a complete answer to the question and then return to silence. Perhaps he had learned the adage: "Never pass up an opportunity to be quiet." It sounds like John was the kind of guy who was listening and learning while he was quiet.

John adored his wife Fran. He used to love going for a ride with her along with their dog, two-bits. After Fran died, John and two-bits went for drives.

John loved his family. He was always interested in what they were doing and what they were reading. If they needed a suggestion on what to read, John always had a recommendation. He enjoyed going out for a hamburger (with only ketchup on it) and a strawberry milkshake. He liked certain Lil' Debbie snacks. He was a proud member of the Friends of the Library.

John Artman left a mark on all the people he met. If they gave him a chance, he left them much better off than when he found them. He loved to mold and challenge minds. He truly felt a mind was a terrible thing to waste.

John toughed it out for many years and finally reached the end of his "semester" early on Thursday, September 10, 2020. He will be missed. He will be remembered. And he will be celebrated. He can close the book knowing he was faithful in the work he was given to do.

Words fail to adequately capsulize a life of someone as big as John Artman. My guess is you will be hearing stories about his life for many years to come. And even then, you will have only seen a quick glimpse of the impact he made in his living.

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Being as well read as John was and being a precise thinker, I am sure John must have thought a great deal about what happens after we die. He was from a generation when people didn't do a lot of hugging and they didn't share much about their faith. The hugging was deemed invasive and faith was viewed as private.

People have lots of different views on death. Some see it as simply the end. We live, we die, and that's it. The result is a sense of meaninglessness in life. We are on a treadmill that is going nowhere.

Other people go to the other extreme, they believe everyone goes to Heaven except maybe the really bad people, which are always those people who are a lot worse than us. For them the only requirement for Heaven is you die! But even here we have to ask: what is this Heaven everyone enters? If it is the dwelling place of God, who is this God?

The Christian view of death is something very different. It says there is a God who is perfect and holy. He created earth and all creation perfect, but the creation rebelled - we rebelled. We decided to go our own way instead of on the path He laid out for us. As a result, we have a problem . . . a big problem!

Jesus came into the world to address this problem of ours. He came to build a bridge between our lost condition and God's perfect standard. Jesus came as the Son of God in human form. His purpose? To live a perfect life and to trade that infinitely valuable life as a just payment for our sin and rebellion. As I read earlier Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life, he who believes in me, will live, even when he dies."

Jesus said those who go to Heaven are those who embrace Him and the sacrifice He made on our behalf. This isn't about church attendance, or certain religious deeds. This is about believing Jesus was who He said he was. In fact, it is about betting your life and your death . . . on Him.

Why would anyone do that? That's what Easter is about. It is not about a bunny who likes to deliver chocolate, it is about Jesus rising from the dead. I know, it sounds ridiculous . . . until you seriously examine the evidence. I believe with every brain cell in my head that the evidence is compelling. Jesus rose from the dead! That gives him instant credibility in my mind. He says He is the way to forgiveness, new life, and how to live forever.

Oxford Scholar C.S. Lewis one of the most noted atheists who became a Christian said, "In the final judgment either we will say to God "Thy will be done" and put our trust in Christ alone; or He will say to us, "Thy Will be Done!" and we will be excused from having to spend forever with God.

I don't know what John Artman believed. For that matter, I don't know what you believe. I am confident God knows what we do or don't believe. My job is to tell you that I believe this is not the end of the story. As Lewis wrote in the last pages of the last book of his famous "Chronicles of Narnia":

And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before. (p. 100, The Last Battle)

We don't know what John believed. This IS what I believe. And I hope someday (hopefully not too soon) to meet John Artman in Heaven. And I hope you will be there too.

Until then I think we should remember some of the things John wanted us to learn,

Books feed the imagination; video games stifle it.

People are capable of a great deal more than they think.

Good thinking, like good grammar, can and should be learned.

One of life's greatest treasures is a partner who will work by your side and sit by your side on a nice drive or under a shady tree.

God gives us grandchildren as one of His most enjoyable gifts.

If you don't laugh all the time . . . it makes it that much more special when you do laugh.

Learning should go on delightfully throughout all our life.

The lives we impact with our time and attention will live on long beyond our life.

Will you pray with me?

Father, we now commit this body to the ground and this life, this amazing life, to you. Please welcome John into your presence.

Lord, continue to stir up wonderful memories in the minds and hearts of these family members, that they might find comfort and encouragement in them. Draw the family together to build on the deep foundation that has been laid for them. I ask in Jesus name. Amen.

With that I am officially . . . . FINISHED.