Alan Spencer Funeral Service

Prayer

Father,

It is at this time we ask that you quiet our spirits and help us to yield our hearts to your wisdom. Give the Spencer family grace during this hour and a deep sense of your presence and love. Comfort them during this service with you love that passes all understanding. In Jesus Name. Obituary

Two Songs:

Jealous of the Angels

Go Rest High (Video to be played)

Obituary

Alan Lee Spencer, 47, of Bentonville, Virginia passed away on Sunday, November 22, 2020 in MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, D.C.

Alan was born in 1973, in Manassas, Virginia, the son of Jean C. Alt and the late Edward “Bud” Spencer. Alan was a graduate of Brentsville District High School, Class of 1991. He worked for twelve years for the City of Manassas Park – Water Division as Crew Member 3 Position. He was a founding member of Outcast Bass Club. He spent most of his time on his boat fishing, enjoying the outdoors, and camping at Ed Allen’s Campground and Chickahominy Lake. Alan loved to cook on his smoker, was an avid NASCAR fan, cheering on both Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Jr., enjoyed bluegrass music, and spending time with family, but especially his grandbabies. Alan was affectionately known as “Hacksaw”.

Alan married Melissa “Missy” Diane Shumaker on October 27, 2001 in Winchester, Virginia.

Along with his mother and wife, Alan is survived by his stepfather, Pete Alt of Warrenton; grandmother, Dorothy Childress of Warrenton; daughters, Samantha Spencer Saffelle (Drew) of Winchester, Kirsten Rae Spencer and Taylor Nicole Spencer, both of Bentonville; son, Brian Michael Spencer of Bentonville; five grandchildren, Camden, Maren, Logan, Kynslee, and Emmalee; sister, Michelle Allison (Bill) of Bristow; brothers, Edward “Buster” Spencer (Debbie) of Strasburg and Christopher “Bubba” Spencer (Tiffany) of Remington; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Psalm 23 Funeral Meditation

Psalm 23 NKJV

A Psalm of David. 1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.

For centuries the Twenty-third Psalm has been one of the most treasured passages in all of the Bible.

It is among the most familiar, so much so that even people who are not religious or very knowledgeable about Scripture recognize these words.

They are among the most comforting, often being quoted in times of trouble or distress, and almost always being read when we gather for a funeral. In fact, I was privileged to read this Psalm to Alan at his bedside just a few days before his passing.

There are many images in this psalm which hold particular meaning.

One image comes from the verse, Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me, Your rod and Your staff they comfort me.

It would be so wonderful if God would simply promise to us that we would never go through difficult times. But we do go through great and terrible difficulties all of the time, and God constantly warns us of these dangers and difficulties in His Holy Word.

The Apostle Peter wrote in his first letter (1 Pet 4:12 CSB) “Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you, as if something unusual were happening to you.”

The Bible constantly tells us that there will be difficult times in life, and Psalm 23 voices such a warning. It does not say, “God will keep you from danger,“ but rather it describes that there will come times, and they come for all of us, when we feel like we are walking through a dark, dangerous valley -- a “valley of the shadow of death.“

But what the Word of God does make very clear is that as we move through such times, God is with us. God is there to comfort us and sustain us.

“As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for YOUR rod and YOUR staff comfort me.

God is frequently described in the Bible as being like a shepherd who cares for and tends to a flock of sheep.

The rod is used by a shepherd to ward off evil and to direct the sheep as they walk. The staff with its large crook at the end serves to support the sheep’s body when it crosses a dangerous chasm. The Lord protects, guides, and supports us. He does not send us through the dark valley with a cheery promise to meet us again on the other side. He goes with us every step of the way.

In recent days, Alan could certainly have talked about how he had been through such a “valley of the shadow of death.” But he was never alone. Not only did he have his dear wife Missy and the family, he had God at his side, like a shepherd who kept close watch on him.

Another image in the Twenty-third Psalm which I would lift up today is this: Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

The end of our journey through life on earth if you are a Christian is to be with God forever. When we come to Christ in faith, confessing our sin and asking His forgiveness we are made members of the household of God, and our destiny is made secure through faith. Sometimes the journey is filled with joy, and sometimes it is very sad and lonely. Yet the promise that God has given the believer eternal life with him sustains you in your journey and gives substance to your hope.

The goodness and mercy that follow us are not something we achieve for ourselves. They are given to us by the sheer grace of God. Were it not for God’s forgiveness, our sins and mistakes would quickly disqualify us for eternal life. But with God there is goodness and mercy, supremely evident in his Son Jesus Christ. Our life on earth and our life with God forever are the product of his grace alone.

This is something all of us do well to remember as we look now to the days ahead. The grief we feel and all the emotions that go with that grief can tempt us to unbelief and irrational behavior and deep and dark sadness.

Nevertheless, the goodness and mercy of God will follow us all the days of our life, giving us broad latitude to work through our grief and sorrow, and forgiveness for our mistakes. For it is not God’s will that anyone living or dead be separated from him forever.

We have gathered in this hour, not only to grieve the death of Alan, but to give thanks to God for his life and eternal life with God.

We have gathered, not only too mourn over how different lives will be without his, but to give thanks to God for how full life was when he was in our midst. I would like to read a beautiful eulogy written by Missy to honor the memory of Alan that I think demonstrates just how full your life was while Alan was with you.

Stories of Alan:

The very first time I met Alan was something unlike any other moment in my life. If you have ever met someone and at that moment, without speaking any words to each other, you just had a calmness come over you and the sense of "home" while in their presence, then you would exactly know how we both felt that very first time we met. Alan and I both, at the time were married, I was in a divorce and he was just simply put, unhappy. We became the best of friends sharing stories of our children and where we were in our lives, and what we wanted out of life in general. the only thing either of us wanted was to be - happy. We both had decisions to make, none were easy, but the most importantly we knew we belonged together. We just felt it, an indescribable feeling, as if we had always known each other and knew we were connected in some way.

When Alan came into my life, he saved me. Saved me from living a life that never knew what true love was. He not only saved me, he saved my Brian and Sammi as well. They never knew what a real dad was until they had Alan. Alan came in and loved Brian and Sammi as if they were his own children. He adopted them and gave them the love that a father should have been giving them. Alan loved his family, his children, his grand-babies and me so deeply. That was his only downfall...he loved very deeply, from his soul if that makes sense. We know we only had him for 20 short years, but we also know he loved us all enough for a lifetime. He showed us how life could be safe and happy.

Alan lived and breathed for his children all four of them. He worked hard for them to provide for them and for me. Alan loved his children more than life itself. He loved his Taylor and Kirsten so much, and Brian and Sammi equally. He never said I have two daughters; it was always my three girls and my son. and when he had grand-babies, it was a whole new world of light in his eyes. He had a bond with each one. As each one is different, each one has their own personality, and yes, each one carries a trait of being a Spencer. His grand-babies are the light of his life. He was the best Pawpaw, and most loving Pawpaw.

Although Alan had his moments, some much like his father (Bud), as far as being stubborn, hard headed, and refusing to give up on anything. we loved him, unconditionally. Alan was a big, burly guy full of life, and at times hard on his son Brian, because he only wanted the best for him in all aspects of life. Alan was the biggest, most warm hearted, blue grass loving, teddy bear kind of fella, who would never let anything bring him down. Not even illness. He would push through every day, some days he would sleep a lot others he would maybe say he wasn't feeling well. But he kept on fighting all the way to end, he wouldn't give up. Just as his father wouldn't. As giving up is not what a Spencer would do. Alan was a very caring man who loved everyone. Always wanting to help others, always there when someone needed him.

Alans mother, Jean, would always introduce Alan as "her baby boy" and he would always respond with I am not a baby, lol. He was not a fan of being called her baby, but when we were home together, he would say, my momma called me her baby boy today. But of course, he would not share with her how much he loved that. She called him and sang Happy Anniversary to him/us just this past October, and he missed her call so when he played his voicemail, he heard her singing to him and with tears in his eyes, he had to replay it for me. It was a very sweet moment for him.

Alan had a love of fishing, camping and his crocs. Rarely would see him without his crocs on, if he could have worn them to work, he would have. And he met some of the most incredible people, most influential people who shared his love of fishing. He became very close with those who loved the sport as much as he did. He loved sharing that with his nephew Hunter and brother Buster. They had a fishing tournament just last year at the Chickahominy Lake. Hunter and Alan were talking a big game to Buster, as hunter and Alan were going to use Alan's boat to fish from during the tournament, Buster would be using his kayak. In the end it was very hard for Alan to admit that his brother out fished him from a kayak, but he did. Alan was proud of his brother, it didn't matter who out fished who, just that they had that time together. That is what was most important to him.

Alan was very proud of his family. His two brothers, his step sister, his nieces and nephews. His niece, Heather, he has carried her photos in his wallet, alongside of photos of his children and almost 30 years later, those photos are still in his wallet. Heather recently took a new job, and before Alan became too ill to talk on his phone, he let her know he was proud of her. His children, he could never say enough about them or do enough for them. He was always the protector and only wanted the man who loved any of his daughters to love them as much as he loved me.

Alan had the upmost respect for his step-father Pete and loved him dearly. Pete took a very big part in helping Alan grow into the man he was,  instilling values such as his work ethic, the love he had for his family.  Alan always looked to up to his stepfather.  Literally Alan looked down because Pete is so short, and he referred to Alan as not only his son, but Al.  Alan contributed who was as a man not only to his father but his stepfather who is a man in which Alan loved, respected, and appreciated

.Alan was my person, my other half, my oxygen. I love him so much from the depths of my being. I know he is not here with me, as waking up every day he is not here, but I know he is ok. I know he is pain free; I know he is healthy. I am greedy as I want him here with me to touch him, hear his voice, yell at him because he has refused to put his laundry in the hamper, or pick up his socks and shoes (or crocs I should say), but I know that my guy is where he needs to be, with his dad (Bud) looking down on us, and still loving us as he would if he were here. He loved me for a lifetime in the 20 short years we were together, and I would have rather had those 20 years of him loving me, and me loving him, than a lifetime of never knowing what that kind of love was. I will always have him in my heart, guiding me and helping me along the way of being a Mimi and a mom. I know he will forever be by my side, until the day comes that we are together again. We never could remember life without having each other in it. We never referred to our lives before we were together. It's as if we only knew life as the two of us, our four children, and our grand-babies. He will forever be my guy, and I will forever be his lady.

My mom and dad would always refer to Alan as their favorite son in law when in fact he is the only son in law. He would smile big every time he would say things like, your mom will make that for me, I'm the favorite, and he was correct. My mom would always do those special things or make him something special for dinner. At times, he thought he was more special to them than I was lol, he may have been correct. He loved my parents as if they were his own. Always there when he needed to be, always welcoming, always loving, always caring.

Thank you for everything,

Missy

We have gathered, not only to consider the shortness and uncertainty of life on the earth, but to give thanks to God for his gift of eternal life in heaven.

Give invitation and prayer to accept Christ.

The family would like to invite everyone to join them after Alan’s service for a time of food and fellowship at the home of his daughter. Further details will be available at the church.