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EuJulie

(Eulogy)

We spent last week saying goodbye and getting ready to celebrate Julie's life.  It was a combination of memories, pain and perspective.  I found myself zoning out remembering way back, walking through our house on Greenleaf in my mind, riding my mom's Volkswagen rabbit, and doing art projects at our kitchen table ... then remembering hearing many crazy tales of my mom trying to roller skate down McKinley Hill and wrapping snakes around her ears to scare the other kids.  As we went through her belongings we found pictures of fun holiday get-togethers dating all the way back to when my mom was a child.  Some pictures reminded me that my mom wasn't just a mom but also had a career.  As many of you know, Julie worked as a nurse and had a few jobs, but the one I remember the most was the Blood Center.  Being someone who hates needles, I didn't even like to visit there, but she always told me how much fun she had there ... but it still didn't make me love going in there though.  I'd just grab a cookie say hi and get out.

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 As I mentioned, it has also been a painful stretch for everyone, but the pain helps us think about our priorities, enjoying each moment and how time goes so fast.  It's easy to get caught living like life on earth as we know it will last forever. Even my mom struggled with this at times. "Open the blinds and enjoy the sun mom." I would say, "Who cares if you bleach the carpet." As days like today prove, it doesn't last forever, and the carpet we treat like a baby often out lives us.  As I was thinking about this, I had to ask myself, what would my mom want us to talk about today above all else?  What matters now?  Like right now, like mom slip me a note from where you are now and what would be on it?  The answer was not hard.  I feel like she would say that those memories are great, but they're nothing compared to what's to come.  So let's get real for a moment.  If I weird you out, I promise you don't have to make eye contact with me on the way out.  

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OK, let me tell you what Julie believed.  

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Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)  Oh boy, here we go right?  Let's actually look at this, because if this is just some preachy thing to say and not the truth, I vote we just skip it.

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What do we mean by "the way?"

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Yes, Julie was a wonderful person, mother, sister and grandmother, but it says that it is by His grace alone and her relationship with Christ that she is hanging with Jesus right now.  In other words, it's what He did, His sacrifice for us, not what she did or didn't do.

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Let's talk about truth.

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She believed the Bible to be true and that all of it points to Jesus ... like actual history, and Jesus is alive and that we are a part of a bigger plan, but let me upset the apple cart again and ask this.  OK, so might this just be something nice to say at a funeral?  How can we be so sure right?  Is this just for wishful thinkers?  Julie was not just a wishful thinker.  Let me give you just a taste.  

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I read that some nerds like myself tried to calculate out some of the odds of what's written in the Bible.  If just eight of the biggest most obvious statements or prophecies concerning Christ to come true by chance it would be like this.  Cover Texas two feet deep in silver dollars then have someone blindfolding you.  Now, go pick out the only coin with a check mark on it.*  Julie's hope was in Christ both intellectually and spiritually.

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What does it mean that Jesus is life?

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Let's talk spiritually here for a moment.  This woman walked by faith and had a relationship with Christ that carried her through her life, a relationship that got stronger as life got harder.  Exactly the opposite of what you would think.  Even when life was not going as she may have wanted it to, she didn't walk away from God ... quite the opposite.  It was this relationship that transcended all human understanding.  The more she leaned on him, the more He was there giving her something the world cannot.  

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Speaking of faith, here's one story I remember.  Many of you know that my mom went through major brain surgery 20 years ago.  Months afterward I had to tell her that she was in a coma for a week afterward.  She kept telling me that she was awake, and I kept telling her that she surely was not.  She said that she surely was and made her case by saying that she could clearly see someone dressed in white sitting beside her bed.  I'm not even going to pretend to know how all that works.

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And what do you mean nobody comes to the father except through Jesus?

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I'm not here to judge.  Who am I?  All I can say is that's what the man that was prophesized about, did miracles, came back from the dead, and proved Himself to be God in human form said.  Fortunately, it's a free gift out of love.  Any other method we would dream up would be based on our effort, and when would it be enough.

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It's still a choice though, a leap of faith Julie took.  It's not a belief that guarantees earthly riches and success ... often quite the opposite.  Through this relationship Christ works through us.  All this information is great, but it's when this broken world sees compassion they get a glimpse of Jesus ... that the head knowledge moves to the heart. Often how this plays out is God working directly through pain and suffering to bring about something amazing ...  many times greater than the suffering.  Shortly before she passed we asked her what was one of the most fun things she did in her life.  She responded, "supporting children around the world.". Let me tell you more.

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My wife and I connected with a couple in India who walked away from all earthly comfort to help the some of the most desperate people in the world.  Eight years ago we started working together.  Let me be clear, we did not go looking for this.  God presented this to us.  The story of the last eight years is seeing God work through the struggle to do something amazing. and what we are talking about today is a big part of the story. 

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So as you may know, my dad passed away quite young.  When it was clear that my mom wasn't going to live to be 90 either it was not that awesome, but we saw the opportunity ... God's opportunity.  Together with our friends from the opposite side of the globe we started building churches, schools, and orphanages together to help some of the most vulnerable people in the world ... freeing women and children from lives of slavery and showing people at the bottom of society their value to Christ.  Over the past eight years my wife and I have been able to be very hands-on with this project and see the impact that it is making.  Literally hugging kids that were slaves, seeing starving people fed, seeing women born into a caste considered the lowest of the low make a beautiful piece of clothing and understanding their value, kids that wander the street getting to go to school, and so much more.  God used our family's situation for something greater.  Not only is this awesome now, but all the pain will pale in comparison to the glory experienced in heaven.  Yes, love wins and after this tough detour, in the end God restores this broken world.

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So despite all the pain she endured Julie's hope was in Christ and saw the big picture.  I'm going to read you something from Mark.

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When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!” Jesus knew immediately what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you question this in your hearts? Is it easier to say to the paralyzed man ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk’? So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!” And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, “We’ve never seen anything like this before!”

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Mark 2:1-12

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Like the man in the story, Julie's real gift is grace.  Healing came later.  In other words, she has now picked up her mat and gone home.

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We're going to walk out of here and go back to our normal lives, but eternity awaits all of us.  Like Julie, my source of hope and life is Christ.  How about you?

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- Ben Field

 

 

* Case for Christ by Lee Strobel

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