The Service in PDF format is at: Don Malcolm service
AS WE GATHER: Today we gather in the name of the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to remember the life of Don Malcolm and to proclaim the victory of Jesus Christ who has been raised from the dead. Both the Old and the New Testaments of the Holy Bible speak powerfully of the resurrection of the dead. Isaiah, Hosea, and Paul all remind us, “’Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Such is the wonder of the Christian faith. When a Christian loved one is taken from us in death, we have the assurance that he has won the victory! Our struggle with sin and death, pain and sorrow continues, but his victory is complete! Our sense of loss can be overwhelming, but his victory is won!
OPENING SONG: “For the Beauty of the Earth”
By: Conrad Kocher, 1838 arr. by William H. Monk, pub.1861 © Public Domain
For the beauty of the earth, For the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth Over and around us lies:
Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the beauty of each hour Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale and tree and flow’r, Sun and moon and stars of light:
Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of ear and eye, For the heart and mind’s delight,
For the mystic harmony Linking sense to sound and sight:
Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human love, Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth and friends above;
For all gentle thoughts and mild:
Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise.
CALLING ON GOD PSALM 121
Pastor: I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
People: My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.
Pastor: He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
People: Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
Pastor: The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
People: The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
Pastor: The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
People: The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.
OPENING PRAYER
Pastor: Let us pray. O God of grace and mercy, we give thanks for Your loving-kindness shown to Don and to all Your servants who, having finished their course in faith, now rest from their labors. Grant that we also may be faithful unto death and receive the crown of eternal life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING: Revelation 21:1-7
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
SONG OF COMFORT: “Crossing the Bar”
Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar
When I put out to sea,
But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out
the boundless deep
Turns again home.
(Twilight and evening bell,)
Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell
When I embark;
For though from out our bourne of time and place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.
Time of Sharing
WORDS OF COMFORT: Pastor Lucke
SONG OF CONFIDENCE: “O God, Our Help in Ages Past”
O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home!
Under the shadow of Thy throne
Still may we dwell secure;
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And our defense is sure.
Before the hills in order stood
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
To endless years the same.
A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.
Time like an ever-rolling stream
Bears all its sons away;
They fly forgotten,
as a dream dies at the opening day
O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come;
Be Thou our guide while life shall last,
And our eternal home!
Pastor: Heavenly Father, give to the family of Don and to all who mourn comfort in their grief and a sure confidence in Your loving care that, casting all their sorrow on You, they may know the consolation of Your love. Lord, in your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Give courage and faith to the bereaved, that they may have strength to meet the days ahead in the assurance of a holy and certain hope and in the joyful expectation of eternal life with those they love who have departed in the faith. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Receive our thanks for Don and for all the blessings You bestowed on him in this earthly life. Bring us at last to our heavenly home that with him we may see You face to face in the joys of paradise. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: O God of all grace, You sent Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to bring life and immortality to life. We give You thanks that by His death He destroyed the power of death and by His resurrection He opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. Strengthen us in the confidence that because He lives we shall live also, and that neither death nor life nor things present nor things to come will be able to separate us from Your love, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.
THE LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. Amen.
CLOSING SONG: “We’ll Meet Again”
We’ll Meet Again
Don’t know where, don’t know when
But I know We’ll Meet Again
Some sunny day
Keep smiling through
Just like you always do
‘Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds far away
So will you please say hello
To the folks that I know
Tell them I won’t be long
They’ll be happy to know
That as you saw me go
I was singing this song
We’ll Meet Again
Don’t know where, don’t know when
But I know we’ll meet again
Some sunny day
