Funeral Text of Ida Faulstich

October 27, 2004 Rev. Dennis Angland

Steve, Jeff, Brenda, Louise, Julie and Roger, August, family, friends of Ida Faulstick.

Saturday for a while Ida was, at least when I got there, able to talk and one of the things she said was “Don’t talk about me.” And so, to the best of my ability, I’m not going to. What does it mean when someone who is about to face their Creator says, “Don’t talk about me”? She was a life long member of our tradition, the Lutheran tradition, and I knew exactly what she meant. And it came out in the hymns she requested before she lapsed into what I would call a coma.

۰ Lift High The Cross

۰ Children Of The Heavenly Father

and we’ll close with

۰ In The Cross Of Christ I Glory.

It was an expression of the catechesis she had undergone, and the faith in which she lived since baptism, namely her faith in Jesus Christ and in his death and resurrection.

At that time, that Saturday morning, she requested a text to be used for her sermon and it was John 3:16.

“For God so loved the world.”

And she did enjoy the love of God and one of the things we shared Sunday night - the family life that you had with Vic and Ida, certainly you saw the love of God there just in the, I guess maybe in this presidential year all the values we’re hearing about these days, work ethic. Vic and Ida were able to enjoy the love of God in their relationship with each other after the kids left.

They said they traveled some; surely that was a wonderful experience of the love of God for you kids. So many different ways you knew the love of God. In your family, with your parents.

But the verse goes on,

“For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

When you know you are going to approach God who lives in unapproachable light, what do you think about? Ida had a refrain in that hour, however long it was, before she was not able to talk anymore, in a very weak voice she repeated several times “We are saved by grace.”

Now why didn’t she talk about you kids? She always talked about you kids. Why didn’t she talk about her life? She had 80 years of life to talk about. Why is the refrain, hours before you meet God who lives in unapproachable light, “We are saved by grace”? It’s because, though you hold your mother in the highest regard, God viewed her flawless. Now your mother was not flawless. But that’s the way God saw her. And the way God saw her that night was by grace.

And so as she was waiting seeing Him, that’s what was on her mind, more than anything. And that was an appropriate response to that hour. Let’s think about its ramifications; what that means.

I don’t know if some of you here are still debating where you’re at in this regard, perhaps some of you are. What’s going to go through your mind at that hour, if God gives it to you, before you can no longer talk or perhaps think? Where are you going to turn?

The purpose of John 3:16 – it was written, it’s been recorded, we have it 2000 years after it was recorded for this reason, because it’s an offering on the part of God who lives in unapproachable light, so that you can come to Him. For those of you who already know that, it’s reassurance that you can come.

But it has more significance than that. We are saved by grace. It also has meaning for today. Your mother liked one-liners you said. Something like

۰ “Don’t advertise your troubles, there’s no market.”

۰ “You better make up your mind and make the best of it, you’re going to have to anyway.”

۰ “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.”

All of these flow from grace. They flow from grace. Grace is the foundation upon which you say things like this. “Don’t advertise your troubles, there’s no market.”

I understand what’s going on, it has to do with some repentance probably. Accept your lot; make the best of it. Live in the love of God. Fear, love and trust in God with all things, meaning the first commandment, “Thou shall have no other gods,” all that flows from grace. You’ve been brought to Him, and then able to live in God without fear.

“If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” She spoke that to me at least twice in my memory. Relative to her Savior. Stand up for Jesus. That flowing from grace.

I think probably the best way to talk about this, the significance that we live by grace in our every day living, comes from the wedding text, and actually the verse that follows it, too. But the wedding text, Romans 12:12, which reads,

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

That all starts out,

“Therefore I urge you brothers in view of God’s mercy, (in view of grace), be joyful in hope.”

Death doesn’t have a door; it doesn’t have a window. You cannot look forward to what God has in store for you by looking through a window of death. You can’t see a thing. Be joyful in hope in view of God’s grace, in view of God’s mercies. That’s how we can be joyful in hope, that’s how Ida was joyful in hope, that’s how you can be joyful in hope. Be joyful in hope, be patient in tribulation.

If you look at tribulation, there is no cause for rejoicing, but rather for frustration and discouragement. Ida carried a physical burden with her for a long time. I’m sure it was hard, but she was able to be patient in affliction, in view of God’s mercy. In view of God’s mercy, in view of God’s grace. In view of the fact that He was with her, would be with her, through it all, till now. And then be faithful in prayer.

Ida would come to see you; she would travel out West. She came to you and when she came to you, you responded and came to her and you opened your hearts to her I’m sure; particularly you girls probably. You would talk. Well, God has come to you. That’s what grace is, He has come from His unapproachable light, through His Son Jesus Christ, He has come to you as a loving Father. So talk to him. Be faithful in prayer.

I’ve talked a lot about Ida, but not really. I have let Ida talk. And I have let Ida talk because she let God talk. They speak with one voice. I made a phone call to you guys, I don’t remember if it was Ida’s phone or Roger’s phone and after the “Hello” I said “Roger?” and you said “No.” Was it Ryan? Was it you? It wasn’t Roger. Steve? It was one of you. Same voice, same voice. And so, listen to Ida, listen to God. We are saved by grace. Amen.