rest eternal grant her, o lord

& light perpetual shine upon her

A reading from the Gospel of John the 14th chapter:

Well, Joyce was a character. Wasn’t she? She had a presence that was felt wherever she went. 

One of the ways she made her presence known was with all these great stories that she was so quick to share. 

That’s something her family learned from her, too. I recommend afterward, at the reception, to make sure to grab a seat near a family member, because there’s no shortage of stories about Joyce.

And one story I’m not sure how many people know is, when Pastor Saathoff’s wife died, Joyce was the working at the hospital. And when she found out, she made sure was at the door to meet Pastor Saathoff so he wouldn’t have to go into the hospital room alone…

That’s something only Joyce could pull off; giving pastoral care to her pastor.

And then, later; when Joyce could see that Pastor Saathoff had eyes for Mary, Joyce encouraged him to ask her on a date.

I’m not sure how many people can boast of having set their pastor up on a date. But Joyce is the kind of woman who wouldn’t think twice about doing something like that. 

That was her. That was Joyce. 

She was a character. And she had a presence you couldn’t ignore.

And Joyce made it easy, too. Because Joyce didn’t hesitate to let you know what she thought about something… 

When something upset her, you knew about it. 

If she didn’t like something, you knew about it. 

And, she could take it as well as she could dish it. 

Her family loved teasing Joyce with things they knew she couldn’t stand.

*Setting aside a little graduation money to buy one of those pink flamingo to set up in Joyce’s yard, simply because she couldn’t stand them. 

…And I can’t help but suspect that teasing Joyce brought y’all such pleasure because, you knew letting Joyce have an opportunity to air her grievances brought her joy. 

And that’s really the thing about Joyce’s personality; as much as she may have enjoyed giving you a hard time, what she really enjoyed was sharing what gave her joy. 

That's why she was such a character, because when something gave her joy; she couldn’t hold back.

If something made Joyce happy, you knew it.

If there was an important moment in life, Joyce made sure she was there t share it with you.

And when she cared about you, she made sure you knew it. 

*So many folks have told me how Joyce made them feel like the apple of her eye. And I can tell you, it’s a real thing Joyce could do. You’d walk in a room, and she’d just light up. 

It made you feel like the most important person in the world.

Because what really brought Joyce joy, was her loved ones. 

Sunday dinners. Game nights. Family vacations. These were all ways Joyce showed her love.

Yes, what Joyce especially loved, was her family. 

And it’s obvious you all love her very much, too.

What’s so great about Joyce’s personality is that when it came to her loved one, you didn’t have to guess. You knew Joyce loved you. 

…Because she let you know.

And she had plenty of ways of letting you know, too. 

I think one of the ways that captures Joyce in a nutshell is how we have this saying, ‘that you don’t know what you have ’til it’s gone.’ 

But that wasn’t how it was for Joyce, was it?

Joyce grew up as an only child. 

But she always wanted brothers and sisters. And she always grieved the untimely deaths of her brother and sister. 

So you can bet, when Joyce stared a family, there wasn’t going to be any only-children. She was going to have a family. She was going to make sure her loved ones had what she always wanted; each other. 

So when Kirk, Kim or Todd would would fight, as siblings do; Joyce couldn’t hold back her. Joyce couldn’t fathom why they’d fight. 

Her kids will tell you the way Joyce wouldn’t hesitate to ask, rhetorically of course, “Why are you fighting? You should be glad to have a brother / a sister.”

Joyce learned the value of family the hard way.

So she made sure her loved ones wouldn’t have to. 

*Talk about love.

Family was the most valuable thing to Joyce. 

So today, as we commend her to her redeemer, we see what Joyce knew all along. What a blessing the love we have with one another is. 

And more, today, as we commend Joyce to her Jesus who loved her completely, we take comfort in the promise that Jesus will not lose a single one of his loved one. 

We know that what gave Joyce such joy, is held firmly in Jesus’ strong hand. 

Jesus, before he goes to the cross, promises not to leave us orphaned.

Although we may not always see him, we will always be in him. And he in us. 

All the time.

This is because when Jesus promises to be our redeemer in baptism; he refuses to let anything prove that untrue. 

Not life, and not death; either. 

And today, that promise is fulfilled for Joyce. 

Now she is welcomed into the heavenly home Jesus went ahead to prepare for her. 

Now she meets her savior who is so passionate about his loved one, he makes sure he’s the first thing they see when they pass through this veil of tears. 

Now Joyce sees what we can’t; Jesus who promises to be in each of us. Jesus who, because he lives, we shall live also. 

Today that scripture is fulfilled for Joyce, as she receives the eternal life Jesus lives within her. Now Joyce’s faith is transformed into sight, as she sees that Jesus’ promise to be in us and us in him; is a promise that is even stronger than death.

And this is a promise our lives are lived in light of, too. 

This is a promise that can bring the likes of us comfort today; because we know that what brought Joyce such joy; her family, is held in Jesus. He in us, and us in him.

So when your final day comes, Jesus will be the first one to meet you, too.

You will see what Jesus promised, what Joyce sees. As Jesus lives, so shall we live. As he lives, so shall we. And when we die; all that will be left of us is the life Jesus lives unto eternity!

So as you go from here today, know you are not orphaned. 

Rest assured in the promise that that is stronger than anything life can throw at us. 

That because Jesus lives - so shall you.

And nothing will prove that untrue. Not life. Not death. Nothing.

Today we give thanks that Joyce sees for herself how true this is.

Amen.