I had the privilege of speaking at my 94-year-old aunt’s funeral this past weekend. On January 14th, she took her last breath on earth and her first breath in heaven. While we weren’t ready to let her go…she was so ready to meet her Jesus.
Aunt Gerry had planned some of the details for her funeral…so we had some information with which to begin. I was not at all surprised she wanted Psalm 8 included in the service. It is the only praise chapter which is addressed entirely to the Lord.
The first verse brings us straight into the presence of the LORD: “O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!” That presence is maintained throughout the chapter, right down to the repetition of the same line in the final verse. “O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!” This phrase puts “bookends” around this chapter as it reminds us to whom we are addressing. This… is how Aunt Gerry lived her life…with the majesty of our God as the bookends of her life. She knew that her Lord was the Almighty God. She knew the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was the same God she so faithfully served. She knew there was no one greater than her Jesus and she served Him with everything she had within her.
Gerry served as a missionary nurse in Africa for 37 years and in everything she did, she always wanted God to be glorified, not her. She knew how important each person was to her Jesus and she wanted to make sure everyone knew about His great love for them.
Gerry is in heaven today, not because she was a good woman, even though she was an amazing woman. Even Gerry wasn’t good enough to earn a place in Heaven.
-Nobody is that good.
-Nobody has ever lived a perfect life but Jesus Christ.
The Bible tells us that all of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
But you see, Gerry was forgiven. And she is in Heaven today because she opened her heart to receive Jesus as her Savior and Lord.
She is in Heaven because she trusted in the cross and in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Likewise, you and I will go to Heaven too if we put our trust in Him. Aunt Gerry didn’t just talk the talk…she walked the talk…and each of us can have that same vital relationship and have the majesty of our God as the bookends of our life.
I once heard the story of a young girl who walked through a cemetery every night because it was the shortest route to her house. When asked why she had no fear of passing through the graveyard she responded, “The reason I’m not afraid? My home is just on the other side.”
Saturday, we gathered to celebrate the life of a woman who had made her way home over to the other side and is now walking the streets of gold. I so want to make her proud as I learn from her example and serve the Lord…our Lord…whose name is majestic in all the earth.
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