John 14:1-6; Romans 14:7-9; Isiah 40:27-31
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Ann and Duane were attached at the hip. They gardened together. They traveled together. They played games together. They worshipped together. They raised their family together. And they took great pleasure and pride in attending their grandkids’ school and sporting events together. I always thought of them as Tweedle Dee and, well, Tweedle Dee-Dee; neither of them could rightly be called Tweedle Dum. They were both whip smart and just ornery enough. But everyone knew who the boss was. It was Ann, of course. After all, she was three months older. Ann was the matriarch, and everyone knew it and loved it.
Ann was born in Jefferson Township and educated in parochial country schools. Later, she taught in a country school herself, where she could really be the boss. Ann loved teaching, and not only in the classroom. She loved teaching her grandchildren all sorts of useful things: gardening, canning, cooking, baking, sewing, cross stitch, quilting, and more. Often all those things came together in a single day. Potatoes dug fresh from the garden, peas picked that afternoon, and by supper there would be Potatoes and Creamed Peas, farm to table in the truest sense.
Ann loved her garden, though she hated rabbits. Marigolds lined the perimeter to keep the varmints out. It was once a huge garden, though it grew smaller as Ann and Duane grew older. Ann thought digging potatoes was one of life’s great joys. Duane and the grandkids were less convinced. Strawberry and rhubarb season always lined up with granddaughter Helen’s birthday, which meant Strawberry-Rhubarb Cake. Unfortunately, Helen didn’t like rhubarb, though Brian did, so things worked out just fine. And then there was American Rinderwurst. For those unfamiliar with this delicacy, it is roast beef mixed with seasonings like nutmeg, ginger, and allspice, plus onions and oatmeal, ground together, frozen in a cake pan, sliced into squares, and served with maple syrup. Is it meat? Is it cake? Perhaps it’s meat cake. Whatever it was, the family ate it and remembered it. Ann was also a master canner. Her pantry was stocked with tomato sauce, pizza sauce, canned beef, vegetable soup, and more. She provided for her family with cheerful diligence.
She loved quilting too, creating beautiful wall hangings for every season. The winter one featured a snowman, and rumor had it the snow wouldn’t stop until the snowman came down and something more springlike replaced it. Every grandchild received a special quilt made by Grandma with love stitched into every square.
Together, Ann and Duane enjoyed traveling to Gulf Shores. Duane liked fishing in the ocean while Ann preferred watching the water from the balcony. They loved taking family and friends to local attractions like Lambert’s, where rolls flew through the air, and the restaurant called Roadkill, which somehow was always packed. They enjoyed fresh seafood, crab, shrimp, and fish, and they especially loved playing cribbage, Pinochle, and 500 with dear friends like Helen and Romane.
Above all, Ann loved her family. She loved having you around. She found joy simply listening to you talk about your children, your families, and life together. She was immensely proud of her grandchildren and faithfully attended their sporting events, concerts, and school activities. The last sporting event she attended was Kimberly’s volleyball game. Kim gave her a small autographed volleyball afterward, and Ann treasured it. She loved family reunions and visiting cousins. She somehow knew everyone’s name and exactly how they were related, which is remarkable when you consider she seemed to be related to nearly everyone.
And through all these things, Ann and Duane remained steadfast in their faith and devoted to their church. They were fixtures in the Sunday Divine Service and active in church life. Ann faithfully served in the Dorcas Society, helping with meetings, devotions, and funeral lunches. Together, Ann and Duane made sure their children were raised in the faith, attended church, and learned their catechism. Sunday worship was not optional, and catechism memory work was going to happen, thanks especially to Duane. They lived just one block west of church while Chuck and Betty lived one block east. Sunday after Sunday, the same familiar saints gathered together in these pews. And now the matriarch has joined Eugene, Betty, Larry, and the other faithful departed who rest in Christ. Clarence, that makes you the patriarch now. May the Lord bless you with health and long life before He calls you also to His rest.
In many ways, Ann and Duane aged together and declined together, though each in different ways. Perhaps that is why it is not so surprising that they died only a few months apart. These last years were difficult, not only for them but also for all of you who loved them and cared for them. At times it may have seemed as though God was hidden or distant. If you ever felt that way, even for a moment, know that you are in good company. The prophet Isaiah gives voice to that very complaint: “Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God’?”
But then the prophet answers with words of comfort and truth: “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary… He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength… but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength.”
Ann and Duane waited on the Lord. They lived in His Word and received His gifts. They came here again and again to hear His promises, to confess their sins, and to receive Christ’s body and blood. And now the Lord has renewed their strength in the only way that finally matters. He has brought them through death into everlasting life in Christ Jesus.
Dear brothers and sisters, we do not grieve as those who have no hope. We know where Ann is. She is with Christ because she belongs to Christ. Saint Paul says in Romans 14, “For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.”
Ann lived to the Lord. She died to the Lord. She is the Lord’s. Death has not taken her away from Him. Nothing can separate her from the love of God in Christ Jesus.
And that same Lord Jesus speaks tenderly to us today in the Holy Gospel. On the night before His crucifixion, knowing the sorrow His disciples were about to endure, He said: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms… I go to prepare a place for you.”
These words are not wishful thinking. They are the promises of the crucified and risen Son of God. Jesus prepared a place for Ann by His holy life, His innocent suffering and death upon the cross, and His victorious resurrection from the grave. Because Christ lives, Ann lives also. Because He rose bodily from the dead, Ann too shall rise bodily on the Last Day.
The same Lord who placed His Name upon her in Holy Baptism, who fed her for decades at this altar with His true body and blood, who absolved her sins week after week, has now brought her safely home. The weakness and weariness of old age are gone. The hands that once gardened, quilted, canned, and cared for others now rest from their labors. She waits now in peace for the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.
And dear friends, this promise is for you as well. Christ is still the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is still present in His Word and Sacraments. He is still forgiving sins, strengthening the weary, and comforting the sorrowing. He is still bringing His people safely home.
So take heart. The matriarch has gone home, but she has not gone alone. Christ has taken her to Himself. And one day He will call all who trust in Him to that same heavenly feast. Then you shall see Ann again, not worn by age or illness, but radiant and whole in the resurrection of the righteous.
Until that day, wait upon the Lord. He will renew your strength. He will sustain you through grief and loneliness. He will not forsake you. And when your own final hour comes, He will do for you what He has done for Ann: He will bring you through death into life everlasting.
Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.
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