Let's pray together.

Father, underneath all of our stories, there's a mystery.

And only you and Vernon knew it.

She was a broken person in many ways.

And what she did with her brokenness is amazing to us.

Many people had no idea what to do around her, and her life was therefore often lonely.

What she did with that loneliness was amazing to us.

It shamed me often. So I offer praise to the mystery of who she was that nobody really understood nobody but you and you were enough. You were

precious. My lovely Lord Jesus, she would say. So, receive our praise in this service for your grace in her life, and continue now to help

us honor you and to pay appropriate tribute to her. I pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

So when I was a pastor here, there were many, many times that I thought about Verna's funeral and what it would be like. I think there was a day probably about 20 years

ago when if she had died, this room would almost have been full.

Because the longer we live, the longer we outlive those who know us.

The longer we live after a certain point,

I think it's probably around 60.

The longer you live after 60, the smaller your funeral gets. Up till 60, you're probably still known and loved and admired and people feel responsibility and then

and then you begin to fade and ultimately you fade into a nursing home and then a few amazing people show up. When I stepped down from the pastorate to what's three years ago, four years ago

now, I thought well maybe I won't do funer,

Vernus funeral.

Maybe Jason will get to do that.

And so when the phone call came from Keith, I jumped at it and said, yes, of course, that's what I dreamed about doing.

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