Reathel June Weierman
Celebration Of Life
Welcome
On behalf of the family - I would like to both welcome you and thank you for being here to honor the life of REATHAL JUNE WEIERMAN.
And let me say, that you have no idea how much your presence today, means to them. The family will never forget that you took the time & made the effort to show them, how much you care about them and how much you love REATHAL.
What I’d like to do at this time is to read some scripture - my reason for doing this is because the Word of God is powerful - it is living and it is active. And God says of His word - in Isaiah;
As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater. So is my word that goes out from my mouth; It will not return to me empty BUT will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. - Is 55:11,12
AND TODAY – I am confident that God’s Word will do just that… accomplish what He desires and achieve His purpose - as I read several passages of Scripture.
THE – first one I am sure is very familiar to all of us (Psalm 23) AND – at a time like this, the beauty and power (of these 3000 year old) are: unmistakable, breathtaking and reassuring…
NOW PICTURE – in your mind David, with all of the struggles he had been through (wars, fighting, conflict, sickness) writing these words…
Psalm 23
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Even 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 overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
The next is Psalm 46…
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
7 The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
"Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth."
The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
The final passage are some words that Jesus spoke to His guys on the night of His arrest.
Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; Trust also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms;
if that were not so, would I have told you that 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.
4 You know the way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. – John 14:1-6
PRAYER…
3000 years ago… King Solomon (David’s Son) grabbed a pen & paper… and wrote the following words…
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: 2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, 3 a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace… He has made everything beautiful in its time.
God through Solomon says; There is a time for everything…
AND – he is so right…
QUESTION - what is it a time for right now, this moment – here in this place?
TODAY - is a time to:
1. remember
2. turn
3. rejoice
4. and refocus
Today Is A Time To Remember
UNDERSTAND - you are not here today to honor death.
You are not here because your loved one died we are here because he lived.
YES – you are here because you’ve had the privilege and honor of knowing & loving REATHEL.
And for that you can and should be thankful.
Read obituary…
This past Thursday I had the opportunity to meet with Pam and Debbie and listen to them talk about their mom…
And as they talked and shared and reminisced – there was no doubt in my mind at all…
That this two daughters loved their mother.
I asked them what words they would use to describe their mom…
• And the very first thing that came out of their mouths without any hesitation was that their momma was what they called a LOVE BUG
• They said that she just loves… and they had so many examples.
• Yeah Reathel pretty much told everyone – all the time “I love you”
• And she would not say causally but was always sure to look you in the eye
• I MEAN - she would tell everyone at the Laurels even the ones given her a shot “I love you…”
• Once when a doctor was given her an exam that was rather painful, she said “I don’t know why you are hurting me, but I love you.”
• There was a time coming back from a Dr appointment in a Juant Bus where the strap that was buckling her in began to get really uncomfortable… “get me a knife…” after the ride… “you almost killed me, but I love you…”
• Debbie shared about a time when she and a nurse were using a small sponge stick to swap her dry mouth… “I love you”
• Again Reathel was a LOVE BUG
• But she was also tough and spoke her mind and as loving and fun as she was you best not miss behave… and if you did… well, then came – the look, the gritting of the teeth and “I said sit down”
• Pam and Debbie said that Reathel always was wanting to make sure that others felt included and were included
• Reathel loved…
Bingo, playing cards
To laugh and she loved to party
Spoiling her grandkids
Collecting spoons and bells and gift shops
Sweets and passing out candy bars
Going capers, Midnight runs to the post office
Dancing and mysteries
Going out and getting the stink blown off
• She loved helping people if she heard of a need Pam and Debbie said that she would fold up money really, really small – place it in their hands and of course say, “I love you…”
YES – we are here today not to honor death but to celebrate life… and I gotta tell you, I really enjoyed hanging with Pam and Debbie and hear them go on and on about their mom for almost 2 hours…
At this time some of the family will be sharing about Reathel…
YOU KNOW - I’ve always felt that the ability to remember is one of the greatest gifts that God has given us.
NOW - of course, it can be abused, as any gift can.
Some people use it to focus only on the negative things of the past.
BUT IF - we learn how to use our memory in a positive way, it can be a tremendous blessing to us...
Helen Steiner Rice, has captured the essence of this truth in her poem entitled, ‘Love Always Remembers,’ It goes like this;
May tender memories soften your grief,
May fond recollections bring you relief,
And may you find comfort and peace in the thought
Of the joy that knowing your loved one brought
For time and space can never divide
Or keep your loved one from your side
WHEN memory paints in colors true
The happy hours that belong to you
YES - it’s true that death can separate our loved from us in a physical sense, but they can still be with us forever in our hearts and in our minds.
SO AGAIN – we are not here to celebrate death, we are here to celebrate the life of REATHEL JUNE WEIERMAN!
And it was a good life, amen!
Applause…
I mean – we applaud when our team wins the game or a runner finishes a race well)
A Time To Turn
A time to turn to God…
A time to turn to the (all knowing, all powerful, all present, eternal, invincible, unshakable, never (confused-weary-or overwhelmed) KING of kings and LORD of lords)…
Why, BECAUSE…
• He is the GOOD SHEPHERD who wants to lead you beside quite waters and restore our soul
• He is YOUR refuge/strength/fortress – an ever present help in trouble
• He is the only one who can get you safely through the valley of the shadow of death to other side
• He will NEVER leave you or forsake you, but be with you always to the very end of the ages
• He is the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort
• Because as Peter says in his first letter, “cast all your cares and anxiety on Him because he cares for you…”
QUESTION
ARE THERE – any concerns, sorrows, hurts or cares – in this room today… I KNOW – there are… SO - cast them/put them/give them to the God who cares about you…
UNDERSTAND – The Lord cares about: your sorrow/your hurt and your pain…
DID YOU KNOW – that David says in Psalm 56 that God keeps track of all your sorrows, that HE collects all your tears in a bottle and records each one in His book…
AND THAT IS WHY – He wants you to turn to Him today…
HE - does not want you to carry this (or any burden for that matter on your own)
He wants to help.
He can help.
He is dying to and in fact He did die so He could help.
TODAY - is a time to: Remember, to Turn and…
A Time To Rejoice
Why?
Because we know where REATHEL is.
At home with the Lord!
For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands.
2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies.
4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us.
Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.
6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. – 2 Cor 5:1-9
YES - REATHEL is at home with the LORD!
SHE HAS – entered that perfect forever that the apostle John writes about in Revelation.
Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water... - Rev 7:16,17
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away..... - Rev 21:4
FINALLY TODAY – is…
A Time To Refocus
LISTEN - the truth is my life and yours is like a mist that appears for a little while and then is gone. In Ecclesiastes 7:2, God says this:
It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every person; the living should take this to heart.
YES - death is the destiny of every person; the living should take this to heart.
IN OTHER WORDS – the day is coming when it will not be me standing up here or you sitting out there…
BUT RATHER – it will be our lives that people have gathered ‘hopefully’ to celebrate…
AND – when that day comes, as it will for each of us.
Hopefully we will have lived our lives focused on what it is that really matters… Amen?
NOW - one day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students and, to drive home a point, he used an illustration those students will never forget. As he stood in front of the group of high-powered over-achievers, he said, “Okay, time for a quiz.”
Then he pulled out a two-gallon, wide-mouthed pickle jar and set it on the table in front of him.
Then he produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, “Is this jar full?” Everyone in the class answered, “Yes.”
Then he said, “Really?” He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar, causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the space between the big rocks.
Then he asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?”
By this time the class was on to him.
“Probably not,” one of them answered.
Good!” he replied. He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand into the jar and it went into all of the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question. “Is this jar full?” “NO!” the class shouted.
Once again he said, “Good.” Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked at the class and asked, “What is the point of this illustration?”
One eager student raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit some more things into it!” “No,” the speaker replied, “that’s not the point. Instead, the truth this illustration teaches us is:
If you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all.”
YOU KNOW – life can get kind of crazy at times (do you agree?)… AND – we get so busy with the water, sand and gravel that we have no time left for the big rocks…
NOW – we know that the big rocks are important…
I MEAN - we don’t deny that…
IN FACT - we are often heard saying…
"Hey, SOMEDAY I’ll get around to what matters, when things settle down (when I get my finances in order/when the kids are all grown/when I get a better job/when I retire
(you fill in the blank)…
YEAH - someday… I’ll starting doing all the stuff I know I should be doing and make time for those big rocks…
BUT – the truth is things are not going to settle down – someday is never going to come.
And if you keep waiting for things to settle down before you get around to doing what really matters in life, you NEVER will get to them.
YOU NEVER WILL - do what God made you to do.
You NEVER will – give back to the world the things God created you to give back….
YOU NEVER will, become who God made you to become.
AND YOU – never will love the people in your life the way you want to love them…
Someday. One day. When. If. Then it’s over…
In the book One Month To Live the author compares our life to a roller coaster ride…
Life is unpredictable; you never know what’s coming next. Sometimes you go around sharp turns and think the wheels are coming off… Sometimes you go into dark tunnels where you can barely see your hand in front of you… Soon though, you pull into the station and the ride has ended. It seems as though the ride of life just gets started and then it is over…
HEY LISTEN UP – (I’m about done… but this is real important)…
UNDERSTAND - everyone in this room is holding a 2 gallon pickle jar… Me, you the person sitting next to you…
AND – this jar is your life… And we only get one. We only get one shot at this thing…
AND – let me I tell you whenever I stand up here or sit out their at a time like this… I am compelled to really think about my 2 gallon pickle jar and what really matters...
YOU SEE – it’s at times like this I begin to see the difference between what is urgent and what is important…
UNDERSTAND – the important is seldom urgent and the urgent is seldom important…
SO – I guess the question of the ages is, what is it that will really matter when we get to end of our road…
I MEAN – just what are those big rocks…
YOU KNOW – I think I’ll let Jesus answer that one…
One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" "The most important one," answered
Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." - Mark 12:28-31
SO – what are the big rocks…
LOVING GOD – with everything you got… with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'
SO – big rock #1 is loving God
LOVING THE PEOPLE – God has placed in your life… loving them the way God loves you, loving them the way you want to be loved.
SO – let me ask you, is the big rock of loving God in your jar…?
Maybe you are here and you have never surrendered your life to Christ… I and others here would love to talk to you about that…
Or maybe God has been displaced a little by the water, sand and gravel of life…
Today can be a time of refocus…
ONE MORE QUESTION – is the BIG ROCK – of ‘really’ loving the people, in your life in your jar…
IF – love them now, while you can.
YES WHAT – an opportunity today is (though hard difficult…) to refocus our lives…
