Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator, and from Jesus Christ, our risen Lord and Savior, Amen.
There are three pieces of scripture before us this morning. The first is Psalm 23, which Dana just read. Psalm 23 tends to be a psalm read at just about every funeral. It has a reputation for being a death psalm. If you listen to the words, it is nothing of the sort. It isn’t a death psalm. It is a life psalm. The Lord is my shepherd, I will not need anything. He leads me to the best pastures and stillest waters. The psalm is about a Lord who loves us and gives us life.
And life is something that Don Nelson had. He had a lot of life, almost making it to his 95th birthday. Life however, is not something that can be measured in years. Life is measured in both relationship and connection. Don had quite a bit of both.
There is a long list of relationship and connection. He served in the Army Air Corps during WWII. He was a charter member of Tyler Kiwanis. He was involved with a number of activities at First English. He started the Junior Choir. He worked with the youth. It actually seems these past few days, that every time I talked to somebody new, they told of something else Don did at First English.
He was a member of the American Legion. He was connected to other people. He was in relationship with others.
He was a family man who dearly loved his first wife Margery. He took great care of her when she was ill. He was such a family man, that when he married Avis, all of her children and grandchildren weren’t step-children and step-grandchildren, they were children and grandchildren to him. They became his family.
I think Don’s story of his community and family life are good images of what God does in our lives. God gives life. God gave life to Don and everyone who knew him through family, through his community, and through his faith.
I wanted to share my own story about Don. When I first arrived here at First English, one of the things Don would do every Sunday when he was on his way out of the narthex, is he would shake my hand like normal, and then he would attempt to arm wrestle me. He would use most of his grip, and it was strong, and he would say something like “see, I still got it!” I am pretty sure he could still beat me at arm wrestling. He still did have it. I want you to keep this image of Don, reaching out to grab your hand in a very strong manner, keep that image in your minds.
I think that kind of strength is a good image for the strength that God has. We read about this strength in Paul’s 1st letter to the Corinthians, which Andrea read. Paul was writing to the church in Corinth that was in deep conflict with each other. Paul writes, “When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’”
Those are verses reflecting the strength of God. The strength of God is shown in defeating death. That image I told you to keep in your mind of Don reaching for your hand to grasp it with his strength? Well, that is a lot like the strength of God as it is shown in these verses. Where death is your victory?
Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians is a teaching letter of Paul. Paul was correcting some of the teachings of the church at Thessalonica. Paul was teaching them about death. “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died.”
How fitting was the passage that Lon picked for today. Just like Don showed his strength with grabbing your arm, God shows his strength by defeating death. Furthermore, the scripture read for today, it isn’t for Don. It is for all of us assembled and gathered here – those of us who are mourning our loss. It is for those of us who need to hear the Gospel. The good news, that Jesus is our savior.
“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” These words are for us. Paul was writing to the Thessalonians, but also to us. It is because we have a sure and certain hope in Jesus Christ our Lord.
And finally, there is a verse that Don himself chose that we didn’t read today, but it is on the very front of your bulletin. From the Revelation of John. “And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who from now on die in the Lord.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.” That verse that Don chose… it shows the strength of God. Just like Don would reach out his hand… Jesus reaches his hand out to us.
In the name of the Father, and of the +Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
