Becky Brosnan's memorial service

When i was approached to perform the memorial service, i was happy to help. Becky's best friend had started attending our church, and another woman in our church was trying to help Becky and her two kids.

i felt a level of security since i could walk into this volitile situation with a level of detachment and be a voice of calm to one of Spokane's biggest stories of the year.

Turns out, Lynne and I had some history with this couple.

We both attended Valley Foursquare and had children with cleft pallette issues.

Below are the comments i prepared for the memorial. I mainly went from the heart, but these were the concepts i was trying to convey.

Please note, these are raw notes and not punctuated w/ the queen's english in mind. Sorry John.



How do we go on when we an evil act encroaches upon us.
How do we go on when our sense of safety and our peace of mind get shattered.
What do we do? where do we go? how do we cope? …when questions scream louder than answers.

Most funerals I officiate are a result of someone dying because of a natural cause. Maybe too early, often after a long illness, sometimes because of a problem in the way their body functions.
Natural causes in a fallen world.
Becky Brosnan was taken too early not because of a natural cause, but because of man’s fallen nature.
Yet, for the rest of humanity, for all of history; murder and violent death were far more common. In fact, humanity’s first family, Adam and Eve, had to live with the same questions we face today.

And all of these questions revolve around one question…or one accusation…
Why?

And i ask you to reflect…what are you looking for today? An answer or comfort?

The best an answer can give is to fill in a blank in our fallen, imperfect minds about our fallen imperfect world.

And having an answer never comforts, because a spoken answer will never quell the unspoken pain.

Instead i would hope to introduce us to the answerer who becomes our comforter.

We look to the Bible in times like this because we find comfort in words from people who used language to articulate what the heart could not.

David, who saw more death and killing than we ever will, stated that there is a valley, in the Shadow of death…and that valley is one we walk through…and that we can fear no evil because God’s presence is near to those in grief.

Paul, who was a mass murderer before his conversion stated “Death where is your victory grave where is your sting?” And proclaimed that “Death will be swallowed up in Christ’s victory”… as well as stating emphatically, “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”

John, the last living apostle, watched all the other apostles get killed for their faith. Upon his final message, he painted a picture of heaven where the glory of God shown like the sun. Where believers of all ages reunite and tell the stories of God’s faithfulness in a world of faithlessness. Ultimately, John writes that: He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

And Jesus, the only individual who was truly perfect… The only man who helped everyone He came in contact with. ..The only human who could say “I and the Father are one” and “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” Said “ in my Father’s house there are many mansions, and if I go, and prepare a place for you, i will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am, there you will be also.”

Jesus, who took upon Himself all the worst man could offer did so to say to say to His creation: yes I see and have experienced the worst injustice man could inflict to show you that God the Father, enters into and shares the grief and pain you experience.

Yet, through all of this, one concept arises: eternity.

Man only sees time as going forward. God, from the perspective of eternity, sees that everything we experience on earth is but a blip in the face of eternity in heaven… with Him, with our loved ones, and because of Becky’s confession of and practice of being a follower of Christ, with Becky.

Even though nothing said will help us speed up the long grieving process, i hope and pray that to help start the process…we can all reflect that

1. Life is fragile. While this was an act of evil impulse, any of us, could also have our life ended by an act of carelessness, or inattention, or …natural causes.
2. Love is vital. Just as man can choose to destroy, man can also choose to love. Everyone of us has people in our life that need to know of our love for them and their importance to us.
3. Christ is essential. Every philosophy has its interpretation of death and whatever tasks are required to appease its interpretation of God. Yet Jesus who was the Christ, simply pointed to Himself… I am the way, I am the truth…I am the life…no one comes to the Father but me.

Becky knew Jesus and after her attack, opened her eyes in the presence of God in heaven.

We, though, must start the process of grieving and healing. Supporting one another, leaning on one another, and praying for one another.

800 wds 5 min

In conclusion, remember, that each one of us was once in our mother’s womb. During that time, our minds were functional and experienced, thoughts and feelings. During that time, we thought food just came into a tube, and that existence was warm, and easy. We even had loving voices speaking words of love and anticipation over us. Some voices we liked so much we would respond with an enthusiastic kick of appreciation. During that time we could not anticipate what lied outside our existence. No matter how much those nice voices told us about our home, brothers, dogs and family members, we had no frame of reference to fathom any of those things.

So I believe it is with eternity in heaven. All of our descriptions and explanations can not even touch the reality of what Jesus has prepared for those who love Him.

To answer the questions I opened with…How do we go on?

We go on. One small step at a time we move forward. For Becky, for her kids, for her friends…and for ourselves.

While our hearts grieve in sadness for Becky, we can know that her suffering in this life is over.

Because the only way we truly overcome death and suffering…is by living in the only place where death and suffering can not touch us…heaven.

Let us pray.

Walking the dog music thoughts...

So today i was walking Sessie...the dog of my heart, and my mp3 player had some interesting offerings...

First was "they all laughed" by Louis and Ella. The absolute effortless joy that came from these two icons was palatable. And i think that if our planet gets invaded by hostile beings, our best defense from certain annihilation is just to play Louis and Ella...
The Nearness of You
Lets Call the whole thing off
Baby, it's cold outside

it doesn't matter...these other worldly beings would listen to those two and say...ok...maybe we should let them survive.

Next came the greatest unknown musician of our lifetime.

We've all heard him...frequently... yet have no clue who he is...
Give up?

Johnny Costa was Mr. Rodgers piano player. His version "Don't do nothing 'till you hear from me" was four of the most intense minutes imaginable. His theme and variations thereof never stopped. And each verse gets bigger and slightly more outside. Then, at the point where human physicality and western twelve tonealty hit the breaking point, he restates the theme, lets us catch our breath, and the song ends.

Every song is like this...and every song was a one take.

After his death, the producer said that he just sat down and said off the top of his head what song he was going to play. After playing the songs...he would look at the producers and ask if that take was ok.

The prodcuer, knowing he was standing in celestial glory, would eek out "yea...that was great." And he'd go on to the next song.

The thing that hit me that time (as opposed to the hundreds of times I'd heard that before) was that i was not just listing to the most technically proficiant musical hands but the most facile musical mind.

He just heard and thought better than anyone. Ever. And his hands kept up.

The next song was Whitesnake...not so transendant.

My dog was happy...so that's all that matters.