Sermon for (Ardith) Delores Bruce by Pastor Garth Wehrfritz-Hanson, based on Ps 121 and Jn 14:1-6, December 18, 2023, Messiah Lutheran Church, Camrose, eleven o’clock.
Your loving Delores Bruce, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, family member, friend, neighbour and child of God, and so much more, has departed from this life; for her eternal home in heaven. All of you who knew and loved Delores shall certainly miss her. She meant so much to you, she inspired and influenced your lives in many ways. Her life made a difference in your lives.
Delores loved and valued her family relationships. At least one of her children, if not all of them would phone Delores pretty much every day. That speaks volumes about her love for you and your love for her, the high quality relationship you were blessed to have with her.
Speaking of love, Delores was also a person of faith, she knew, experienced and was most grateful for God’s love, that is why she could be a loving person, and remind others that God loves you.
Whenever I visited her in the hospital; she always appreciated having a devotion time together where we would read from Scripture, share a brief meditation, thoughts, or reflections, and pray, and she also deeply appreciated receiving the sacrament of Holy Communion. Prior to going into the hospital, Delores was faithful in her church attendance at Skudesness Lutheran Church. So we give thanks to the LORD for Delores’s strong faith in God and God’s Word, and reliance on Christ for forgiveness of sins by participating in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.
A favourite Bible passage of Delores’s was Psalm 121. It is a beautiful psalm of trust in God’s protection. It also has the superscription “A Song of Ascents.” So it is a pilgrim psalm, a travellers’ song that the ancient Israelites sang as they travelled to and from Jerusalem for the Jewish festivals. In biblical times, travelling could be dangerous, there were bandits who could beat and rob you, and there were wild animals that might attack you. So the psalmist confidently placed their trust in the LORD for a safe journey. So too Delores placed her trust in the LORD as she journeyed through life. Life has its ups and downs, its twists and turns, I’m sure, Delores had her share of ups and downs, her twists and turns, however as the psalmist assures us, and assured Delores: “My help comes from the LORD,” and, “The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time and forevermore.”
Few psalms are so well-known as Psalm 121, mostly because it has been sung as a hymn for many generations. John Campbell, the Governor General of Canada from 1878-83, wrote the Canadian favourite, “Unto the hills around do I lift up my longing eyes.” (Lutheran Book of Worship #445) The hymn was popular among Canadian soldiers during World War II.
The message of Psalm 121 is simple and powerful: God watches over us as permanently as the mountains or hills mark the horizon. Verses 3-4 reflect the terror of a sleepless guard or soldier lest they doze while on watch at night. Unlike human guards and soldiers, who can and sometimes do get tired and fall asleep, God does not fall asleep. No, God always watches over us. As the psalmist affirms, “the LORD is your keeper.” I’m sure that Delores found comfort and peace in those words of promise that the LORD was her keeper in all of her ups and downs, twists and turns throughout her life. I hope and pray that all of you will too.
That’s why in John 14:1-6, Jesus also gives us a wonderful promise. The promise is that those who believe in Jesus and in God the Father have a dwelling place waiting and prepared for them in the Father’s heavenly house. Why? because Jesus is the way, the truth and the life that leads us into our Father’s heavenly house. When Delores was in hospital, she was between homes. She realized that she required more care and could not return to her Hillside condo, she was approved for placement, however she was not able to move into a new home. Now she no longer needs a temporary, earthly home—she is in her eternal home. As we journey through this life and are away from our home for some time, such as when we go on a long holiday—when we arrive back home again, we often say: “There’s no place like home.” For Delores now her journey in this life is over. How much more, thanks to Jesus, she can say: “There’s no place like home,” since now she is in her perfect, eternal home with Jesus, her Lord and Saviour.
There are many people who journey through life as lost souls because they do not believe in or know Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. If we believe in him like Delores did; then we can live with confidence that we know where we’re going and how to get there. We too shall eventually be able to say: “There’s no place like our eternal home with Jesus.”
What a wonderful message of hope these words of Jesus are for us today! Hope for a better future for Delores—since now her suffering is over, and she is at peace. Hope for you and I—as we continue on in our Advent season’s journey of waiting and watching for, and being prepared for the coming of Jesus. Hope for us as we journey ahead and celebrate our Saviour’s birth. For he is our Immanuel—God with us now and always, just as he has promised us through his Word.
So we give thanks to the LORD for Delores’s life; for all the good she was able to do; all the hope she gave you and others; all the love she shared with you thanks to the saving love and grace of Jesus Christ for her. For that, thanks be to God. Amen.
