Eulogy For Ann Moore by Rick Gillespie- Mobley
Psalms 90:1-12 John 14:1-6 Ann Moore 5/20/13
God creates some people who are to become very important in the world, and God creates some people who to be very special in the world. Now some would say it is better to be important than to be special, but I think when we come to the end of our days, we’re not looking back to see how important we were, but rather were we special in the lives of others.
When death is staring at us in the face, we do not usually take great pride in our degree from MIT or Harvard or in our position as executive vice president, or manager of the store, nearly as much as we do from a child saying I love so much because of all that you did for me and I’m going to miss you. Ann Moore was not created to be somebody important whose name would cover the country and the globe at large, but I cannot think of anyone else who has been more special in the way that she has touched the lives of others. Most of us here have a moment in our lives that was made special because we were touched by Ann Esther Moore.
God sent Anne as a gift of joy to the world through the arms of Anlou Hale and Harry Thomas Dunkin on a warm day in May in the city of Tallahoma, Tenn. Ann was the first of 3 brothers and two sisters who were to follow. Her life started under some dark days, in that she was born in the heart of the south, where segregation, Jim Crow Laws, white only fountains and the KKK were the rule of the day.
But being born during dark times or difficult situations do not limit the plans of God for our lives as long as we are saying yes to the will of God for our lives. Ann had a jump start on getting to know the Lord through her aunt Evangelist Naomi. She armed them for the gospel battle sending them out with tracts to reach the lost for Christ. The anointing that was upon her aunt, also settled upon Ann.
When God made Ann, God made her beautiful, but he also made her feisty. Her kids and grandkids described her as being outgoing, funny, kind hearted, loving, giving and jazzy. Ann liked nice things and she liked looking good. Whether it was the fur coat she got from Deidra or the many hats she received from Connie or the tams she wore with Gail, she probably saw herself as a model in her own eyes. Ann didn’t mind showing off a little and laughing about it a little bit.
There is a verse in proverbs, that was written about Ann long before she was conceived in her mother’s womb. It could have been a prophecy of Anne’s future, for in it talks about a virtuous woman. It reads as following in the Message Bible Proverbs 31:25-30 (MSG) 25 Her clothes are well-made and elegant, and she always faces tomorrow with a smile. 26 When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say, and she always says it kindly. 27 She keeps an eye on everyone in her household, and keeps them all busy and productive. 28 Her children respect and bless her; her husband joins in with words of praise: 29 "Many women have done wonderful things, but you've outclassed them all!" 30 Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades. The woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-GOD.
Ann had a life that was written in a love story with a man named William Moore. They met through a family member and the rest was history. They married and gave birth to six children, five girls and one boy. They loved all six with a passion. But their hearts were larger than just their own kids. Their doors were opened to anyone who needed something to eat. Their home and their hearts were opened to other foster children as well.
When they made their vows of to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, They clung to it. We watched them live it out. And because they did, so many of you are alive today. I can still hear her telling me about Bill this and Bill that. I remember him telling me what a good woman she was. He was jealous that she was spending so much time working at the church. He claimed she thought she was one of the pastors on staff at the church.
One day after Mr. Moore had gotten up in years, he was going to surprise Ann by showing up in church without her knowing it. I was outside and he came in his suit looking real good. He said Rev. I told you one day I was going to surprise her. I said yes Mr. Moore, that’s good, but unfortunately today is Thursday. He said what. I guess I won’t surprise her after all.
Ann and Bill were there for each other through thick and thin and their marriage lasted over 50 years. Let’s give them an applause for showing what commitment really is.
In that passage of Scripture it said of her that “when she speaks she has something to say, and she says it kindly.” Tammie remembers how her Grandmother didn’t yell at her for missing church. She simply made a phone call and her sweet voice would say, “how’s my favorite little backslider doing today.” She’d call Gail in a deep disguised voice. “Hello, may I speak to Gail.” Now Gail knew it was her, but she pretended not to and said, “This is Gail”., Ann would then say, “This is the devil” and then she’d burst into laughing.
Her kids and grandkids remember those delightful phone calls in which she would call singing Rise and Shine and give God the Glory. And no matter how late you may been running, you waited until the song came to end before saying goodbye. Her calls were her way of saying you’re special to me and I want you to know I’m praying for you.
In that passage of Scripture it said of her “she keeps an eye on everyone in the household and keeps them all productive and busy.” Ann had a vision for her children and grandchildren. She wanted them to make something out of their lives and she encouraged them through the love that she gave. You may have thought her old school, but she was teaching them to respect their privacy with her rules of no doing your hair on the front porch and no eating your food on the front porch.
She wanted them to be able to speak among the best of them with her rules on grammar. She was not a fan of Ebonics. She wanted her children to speak in such a way as to move ahead in life in whatever field they chose for themselves. She wanted her children to be productive so she exposed them to piano lessons, ballet, dance, art school and more.
She had an eye not only for seeing the future, she had another eye for the present. Her kids and grandkids knew the look. If she turned and gave you the look, you knew it was time to stop and to behave. As the song says, “just one look, that’s all it took was just one look.” If you didn’t give in to the look, you would not be happy with what would follow. But Ann also was there for you when you needed somebody to listen to you. She’d offer advice to try to help take you further in life. It meant so much to Deidra when her mom was giving her advice on how to be a good mother to Tammie. Many of you were blessed with Moments when it was just the two of you and Ann was there with you with a smile, a hug, a comfort, or a laugh. You knew you could depend on her.
Ann was way ahead of her time in recognizing the gift of being a part of a loving family. She loved her family and she showed it. Birthdays and holidays were a time of celebration for the Moore’s. Ann had everyone’s birthday circled on the calendar because each and every descendant of hers was important to her. Family ties meant a lot to the Moores’.
They knew what it was to get in a camper and go out have a great time together. Ann had a secret that made the family want to come together, and that was her great cooking. She made some dinner rolls that were out of this world. Her dressing was delicious and her peach cobbler made you want to come back for more. None of them family interviewed could come up with their favorite dish. They simply said everything she cooked was their favorite.
Ann was a woman of adventure. If you were ready to travel, she was ready to go. She was a world class traveler. She went to Egypt to see the great pyramids. She went to Spain to see the Rock of Gibraltar. She went to Jamaica and to the Bahamas to see the beautiful sandy beaches and colorful fish.
But she also appreciated the beauty right here at home in Cleveland. Fall was her favorite time of the year and she loved to see the handiwork of God in turning the leaves into beautiful shades of red, yellow and gold. She’d love to be in a car just going up the highways and seeing the beauty of nature in the fall. She found the goodness God in the simple things of life.
What made Ann the wonderful woman that she has been? Well you have to know that Ann had a relationship with a man who came to this earth over 2000 years ago. A man who claimed to be the Son of God. A man who told her, if you follow me, you will have eternal life. A man who gave up his life to pay for her sins by dying on a cross and being raised from the dead as the Son of God 3 days later.
Ann made up her mind to follow Jesus Christ. She gave her life to Christ, understanding that her life would not be her own to live anymore. Jesus was to live in and through her, so that she could make a difference in this world for Him.
Anne’s love for her family was so special because part of it was Jesus trying to show his love for each of you through Ann Moore. We are in this building tonight because Ann Moore was a part of a group of people who believed that God wanted to raise up a church in this location. That vision was over 50 years ago, and the church that Ann helped to start is alive and well today.
Ann loved Glenville. She became one of the greatest deacons the body of Christ has ever known. The word deacon actually comes from a word that means servant. Ann was not only a servant, she was a servant with a joyful spirit in what she was doing. Many of the people she served, never knew of the hard work she put in on their behalf. There were summers when she and Ms. Moffett made sandwiches for people that were delivered all over the neighborhood. There were meals she cooked for families after funerals and the people never knew her name. But Ann never was a person who needed to be seen in order to give her best to Jesus Christ.
She was one of the first to pay a tithe to support. Some of us give a donation of 1 or 2 percent and call it a tithe, but Ann consistently gave 10% as a minimum month after month year after year. She always pledged to whatever special offering or fund that was needed be it the AC/, The Access Chair, The New Life Campaign, or The Excellence In Giving Campaign. Her church could always depend on her to go above and beyond what was expected.
She was a person who spread love and truth in our midst. She was an encourager to the members and to us as pastors. She was that good and faithful servant who is going to hear the words, “Well done my child.”
You know when Ann moved out of the family home, a note was found that said, “I love all my kids, & I hope my insurance covers everything.” Ann was thinking about all of you as she left the home that was rich with a treasury of memories for her. Good and wonderful memories. She thanked God for each of you. But the greatest treasure she has offered you is an example of what a life in Jesus Christ can be like. Jesus was the foundation that kept her going until the very end. The last request she had of me was to help her make it to the church one more time. I’m so glad that a group of saints took the church to her for her birthday.
Giving your life to Christ is not about being perfect or super religious or anything like that. You see being a Christian is not about being perfect. It’s more of a process in which you begin to let God move in and begin to align different areas of our lives, with God’s purposes for our lives. Some of us take a lot more work than others.
The reality is, we are all going to go to heaven because we all have an appointment day with God. The issue becomes whether we stay in heaven or whether we are cast out of heaven into the lake of fire because we did not have a relationship with Jesus.
For we as believers have the promise from Jesus himself when He said John 14:1-3 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. [2] In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. [3] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. Let me ask you something, who is preparing a place for you in heaven if not Jesus.
In the bible it says "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
Do you realize God loves us all, but death will be the final separator between those who are living for Christ and those who are not. It’s not matter of who was good and who was bad. We all were bad, and God wants to give us all the same chance he gave to Ann Moore. If we do not know Christ, we are condemned to eternal death.
Jesus has gone forth to prepare a place for each of us. But like Ann , we must make a choice. Ann made a choice to lay down her own life anain and again in order to try to keep helping out some of us. She did it not because we deserved it, but she wanted to make a difference for us. Jesus voluntarily laid down his life for us, not because we deserved it, but because He wanted to make a difference for us.
None of us know the day nor the hour when we shall leave this world. Christ has died on our behalf that we might have life. It’s as simple as confessing our sins, our yielding our lives to him. For in the end, the only decision that will matter is what did we do with Christ. For only what’s done for Christ will last. Her decision made her not only special, but also important. For her fame of eternity in heaven will be remembered for generations after the important people of this world have long since been wiped from the pages of history.
For Ann Esther Moore Could say as the great apostle Paul did 2 Timothy 4:6-8 (NIV) 6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
To those who do not know Jesus Christ, Ann Moore will only be a memory. It will be a great memory, but still just a memory. For those who do know Christ, Jesus is waiting to meet us.
For the word of God clearly states, " Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men and women who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him.
According to the Lord’s own words, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left at the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down form heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left, will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words. Our God is faithful.
