Let's begin today by listening to and taking heart to the living word of God. And I quote, those who die in the Lord will live. Their bodies will rise again. Those who sleep in the earth will rise up and sing for joy for your life giving light will fall like dew on your people in the place of the dead. This is the word of the Lord spoken through the prophet Isaiah. Would you please join with me and stand? We're going to sing about our hope for an eternity. Christ, our hope in life and death. Join with me and sing. What is our hope in life and death? Christ alone, Christ alone. of a from his command, and one will keep us to the end, the love of Christ on which we stand. Oh, sing hallelujah, our hope springs eternal. Alleluia, now and ever we confess Christ our hope in life and death. What truth can calm the troubled soul? God is good. God is good. Where is his grace and goodness known? In our great Redeemer's blood, who holds our faith when fears arise. a stormy trial who sends the waves that bring us nigh onto the shore the rock of Christ Oh sing hallelujah our hopes bring O sing alleluia, now and ever we confess Christ our hope in life and death. Unto the grave what will we seek? Christ he lives, Christ he lives, and what reward will heaven bring? Everlasting life with him, there we will rise to meet the Lord, then sin and death endless joy when Christ is ours forever. Thank you. You may be seated. This morning when I called Steve to check on him, or Pastor Steve as you know him, he asked me that when I got up to welcome everyone that I would say who I am because some of you look at me and say, why is the guy with the Texas accent even here? And I understand that. But I married into one of the branches, so I also am family. I am the son-in-law of Clyde Box. Clyde Box is the brother of Marcy. So that's how that all works together. And sometimes when I say I am kin to Clyde Box, people give me looks. And I've come to learn that. But I am so thankful to be here today. And so on behalf of the family, thank you. for taking your time to be here for this great celebration, not only of Marcy, but also of the Lord and what He's done in her life. Today we come together, and honestly, we come in grief and hope. Scripture speaks honestly about death, and it does not ask us to deny the pain of this moment. In fact, the Bible tells us in Psalm 116, precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints. And so this moment really does matter. It matters because it marks the loss that we feel. And it reminds us that this life that we love so much is known and held by God in his very hand. When I served on staff at the Brook Hollow Baptist Church in DeSoto, Texas, same place Steve served, we had a beloved music minister by the name of Bill. One day, Bill received the news that he had contracted cancer. It was terminal. And my father-in-law, Clyde Box, who never really was at a loss for words, went to see him in the hospital and was at a loss for words. He didn't quite know what to say to Bill, and so he told me. My father-in-law told me it was awkward for a moment, and he just kind of stood there. And Bill broke the silence. and looked at him and made a statement that I have never forgotten. He said, Pastor, don't be worried about me. Don't be afraid. There has to be a door. When he was saying that, he was saying what you and I both know today. That for the believer, death is not a dead end. It's not finality. For us as believers, death is a door, is a doorway into the Lord's presence, into joy, into peace, into seeing the ones that we love, into truly, Jesus said, eternal life. And so we gather to remember a life that God gave and to grieve a loss that we feel deeply in a place in our hearts. And honestly and quietly, God will speak into us and we devote ourselves into the care of a faithful and loving God. Let's begin with a word of prayer to that God. Lord Jesus, we are so grateful that we are yours and we are grateful that as we gather here today, we have Marcy to talk about who we love so deeply and we have you to talk about and to praise today. And so I would just ask that during this time that you will speak to hearts. We know that your Holy Spirit is here even this at this moment and walking down up and down these aisles and touching hearts and will continue to do so. And so we place this service into your hands knowing that you make no mistakes and that your perfect will would be accomplished today. We love you for that, and it's in Jesus' precious name, your name, that we pray, amen. But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives and he will stand upon the earth at last. And my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God. I will see him for myself. Yes, I will see him with my own eyes. I am overwhelmed at the thought. The word of God spoken by his servant Job. The timeless theme, earth and heaven will pass away. It's not a dream, God will make all things new that day. Gone is the curse from which I stumbled and fell. Evil is banished to eternal hell. No more tears, never crying again. Praises to the great I Am. We will live in the light of the risen Lamb. all around. Now the nations bow down to sing. The only sound is the praises to Christ our King. Slowly the names from the book are read. I know the King, there's no need to dread. No more tears, never crying again. Praises to the great I Am. We will live in the light of the risen Lamb. See over there, there's a mansion prepared for me, where I shall live with my Savior eternal. No more tears, never crying again. Praises to the great I Am. We will live in the light of the Ring. In the past six weeks, Steve and I have been texting back and forth and calling and he was putting together a life history. And as I read it again this morning before I came in here, it just reminded me of how that there's no real way to put a life history of someone on a few pages. I have a page and a half here to give a few details and then thankfully Steve is going to give us some information about and tell us some stories about his life with his beloved wife and then I get to bring a message and I have a few things in there. And before it's all over, we hope you are still awake and enjoying and rejoicing in her life because we have a lot of stuff to say and so I'm going to try to be as quick as I can about it. Helen Marcy Lou Berman, Marcy to all of us, but affectionately called Marmy by her grandchildren, was born January the 12th, 1943 in Dallas, Texas to William and Vera Webb. She was the youngest of nine children. Her two oldest sisters died in infancy, so she has now met them for the first time. She was the first one in her family to trust Jesus. and besides her mother and Marcy and her niece Linda Carol who was more like a sister to her decided to go to a tent revival at the Hampton Road Baptist Church and they both said yes to Jesus. She started going to the Galilean Baptist Church in her sophomore year where her walk with the Lord really began to blossom. Her first concern was for her lost family, and she began to pray for them earnestly. In 1960, her brother, Clyde Box, trusted Jesus Christ as his Savior, and that was to play a surprising role in the years to come. That same year, she graduated from Sunset High School in Dallas, and she enrolled in Tennessee Temple College in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She graduated in 1964 with a BA degree. It was there that she met Steve, and eventually, she fell in love with him. If you do not believe that Steve Berman knows how to pray, you now know that he does. They were married in 1964 in Dallas, Texas, and they were blessed with three children, Bradley Stephen, Marcy Renee, and Douglas Clyde. Steve was called into the ministry after they were married, and they moved to Dallas in 1967, where, here it is, Marcy Berman's brother, who came to Christ after she prayed for him, Clyde Box, was starting a new church. It was called the Brick Hollow Baptist Church and Steve became his assistant and he worked in that capacity for seven years. In 1974, Steve and Marcy and their three small children moved to the state of Washington, where Steve founded and pastored the Temple Baptist Church in Lacey, Washington. It was a time of blessing. It was also a time of challenge and learning to trust God's goodness and God's provision. Steve said he wouldn't have made it without Marcy. And that's understandable, the way she helped, the way she loved. Marcy taught school for nine years, seven years at Temple Christian Academy, and at the same time, in her gracious way, she loved and served the folks at church. Not because it was her duty as a pastor's wife, but because she loved Jesus with a passion and she wanted to please Him. She loved children and children loved her. She was indeed the Pied Piper of the church and school because children loved to be around her and her joy was working in the nursery and she did so for over 50 years. In February of 1990, they moved to Grants Pass, where we find ourselves today, to minister at this church, Faith Baptist. They thought it was a little bit of heaven, and they served here for nearly 30 years. They counted it as one of their greatest privileges, the opportunity of encouraging 13 missionary families in 12 countries. Marcy always endeared herself to women and children. And in the Philippines, she spoke to the wives of 75 pastors over the course of two weeks. She was always nervous speaking, but the reality of her love for Christ was always evident. She was an avid reader. And after the Bible, she also loved reading Christian biographies. And she couldn't wait for spring because she could plant flowers around the house. There's only one thing that Marcy really ever hated, And that was the bugs who ate her handiwork. But her greatest joy outside of Jesus was her family. She cherished her children and grandchildren and her one great grandchild, Atlas. She looked on every minute spent with them, every meal cooked for their enjoyment, every prayer offered up on their behalf as her ministry truly in the Lord. She held each one of them in her heart And as I've heard her say, and you probably have too, her greatest desire was for all of them to come in and know Jesus and allow Him to be the Lord of their life. In her last year, she was weak in body, but always strong, fervent in spirit. She had a smile for everyone she met, no matter how miserable she felt day in and day out, until she saw the Lord's smile on Christmas Day when he said, Marcy, come home and celebrate my birthday with me. She survived by her loving husband of 61 years, Steve Berman. Three children, Bradley Berman and his spouse Amanda of Broomfield, Colorado. Renee Wiley and her spouse John of Medford, Oregon. Douglas Berman and his spouse Andrea of Grants Pass. Two granddaughters, Hannah Wiley and Jessie Berman, four grandsons, Nathan Wiley, his spouse McKenna, William Berman, Caleb Berman, Anthony Janowski, and the great-grandson, of course, Atlas Wiley. She survived by her brother Bill Webb of Mineola, Texas, and many loving nieces, nephews, and friends who count themselves blessed to know Marcy. But her lemon is marmy. It's the colors of her walls outside her house trimmed in white. It's like her lemon bars, mostly yellow, but snow dust with sugar on top. The inside of her house is the same color, but it smells more like butter than lemon. She's always cooking something for someone. She loves her fried eggs for random snacks during the day with her iced tea, crushed ice, and a lemon wedge. Marmee is the queen of her house, but she doesn't know it. She just is. Everything from her silver crowned hair and black and white wardrobe with splashes of bright sweaters because she's constantly cold. She always thinks about, her husband calls her, excuse me, she always looks like a million bucks, as my grandfather likes to say, and he still calls her baby. When she's cooking, she wears the most beautiful old dress speckled with white flowers and 20 years of love. How that dress has withstood the test of time is beyond me. Maybe the dress stays intact because Marmee was so full of life and rubs her life into the threads as she bakes and cleans for everyone she loves. We made homemade tomato soup when I broke up with boys, and cookies for the holidays, and we made pie crust and always left the extra bits for cinnamon and sugar. Her pie crust always turns out flakier than mine. I think it's because her hands are so soft and so cold. lilac sleepovers, oatmeal dress, mixing water. Marcy is my favorite smell. Something about the witch hazel, nanny of a cold cream, and Colgate toothpaste is her. But you only smell her when you kiss her. The earliest memory, gardening in the faded buttercream house. We mixed blue raspberry colored fertilizer in solo cups for the plants. I couldn't drink it, it was bad for me, but it was good for the flowers. We fed the daisies. The first time I tried iced tea was from a blue kitty cup. Marmee is the only Southerner who drinks her iced tea with no sugar. I didn't like it, but I do now. Morning sun coming through the east-facing window in the parsonage while she reads her Bible, drinking her coffee. She hasn't changed as long as I can remember. She drinks her coffee and writes out her scriptures for the day. I'm so thankful that one day those who know him get to abide with him. But while we're here, he wants to abide with us. We're going to sing Abide With Me. Look at the words as we sing this together. Abide with me, fast falls the eventide. The darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail and comforts flee, Oh, abide with me. Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day. Earth's joys grow dim. its glories pass away. Change and decay in all around I see. O Thou who changest not, abide with me. with thee at hand to bless. Hills have no weight and tears no bitterness. Where is destiny? Where graved thy victory? I triumph still ♪ Bow thy cross before my closing eyes ♪ ♪ Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies ♪ ♪ As morning breaks and earth's vain shadows flee ♪ In life, in death, O Lord, abide. Therefore, we will not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes. not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. Since we have seen, what we see is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. For we know that when this earthly tent that we now have is taken down, that is, when we die and leave this earthly body, We will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. We grow weary in our present bodies and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. For we will put on heavenly bodies. We will not be spirits without bodies. While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and we sigh. But it's not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies to close us. Rather, we want to put on new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. God himself has prepared this for us. And as a guarantee, he has given us his Holy Spirit. So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies, we are not home with the Lord. Yes. We are fully confident and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies for then we will be home with the Lord. These words are given to us through the Apostle Paul. I'm overwhelmed. Marcy did what I never could do. She packed this place out. She used to always tell me, she'd say, I just, what can I do? I need to do more. I said, Marcia Lou, you're spreading more stuff around this church just by walking around smiling and loving on people than anything else. I used to say I preach sermon, she lives them. Thank you everyone for being here. I am overwhelmed. Not only for your being here this morning and some of you have come a great distance at great expense. I think I count about 36 of our family members from nine states, East Coast, Alaska, Arizona, and every part in between. Then I got just floored when the police department walked in and the fire department walked in and said, we got this. I just feel safe. Thanks, guys, for being here. But I wanna thank you more than just for being here. I wanna thank you for this past year, for your love, for lifting us up in prayer. Truly, it was the Lord who saw us through, who gave us strength when ours was depleted, who came alongside when our emotions were drained, who anchored us in the storms of life were overwhelming and encouraged us with his everlasting living word. Thank you very much. Now I want to give you some glimpses of my life with Marcy. And you are here, of course, because you loved her. But I've had the unbelievable joy of living with her every day for more than 22,000 days. She was a blessing to you, she was a gift of God to me. I know I'm gonna say some things that some of you have heard probably more than once. Please be patient and just listen while I reminisce out loud just for a few minutes. By the way, you'll notice in your program, there's no room for testimonies. And that was her idea. She said, I don't want people talking about me. And I said, Marcia Lou, we were sitting in the office and we were talking about this. And I said, Marcia Lou, that's what I called her when I wanted to get her attention. I said, people are going to want to share what you meant to them. And she looked at me. See, you people don't know that side. She said, she's sitting in her chair, I'm facing her, and she said, you promise you're not gonna do that. Promise? Yes, dear, I promise. But I didn't promise not to say anything. So I'm gonna say a few things. Our life began in late January 1961 on the corner, this is very important, corner is very important, of Orchard Knob and Union. Ring a bell? It's in Chattanooga. And it had to be a Friday or Saturday evening because college students were out and about and, you know, going to the happy corner and just having a good time. And I was with a friend by the name of Dan Haworth. And we were standing on the corner of Orchard Knob and Union. And I was, in Gerald's words, trying to be cool. And I was leaning up against the telephone pole with my leg propped up against the pole just kind of, you know, be in there. And this cute girl walked by. And she spoke. And I've wondered lately, what would have happened if she hadn't spoken? Things might have been different. But I think God had her say some very meaningful words, knowing the impact they would have. And so she said, with an exquisite Texas drawl, those awesome, electrifying words, hi, y'all. And I fell in love. It was her voice, which I have loved to hear every day for 61 years. It never grated. It could be firm, never loud. My children have never heard their mother yell or scream. Get firm? Absolutely. Get the look? You got it. But her voice was always appropriate, always kind. I said never loud, unless she was playing a game. She could get loud then. So when she walked away, I told my friend, I said, Haworth? I said, that's the girl for me. And so the quest was on, except it wasn't easy. These Texas girls are tough, and this one had convictions. And like steel, they didn't bend, because her heart belonged to God. To the people who thought sweet little Marcy could never be strong, I would like to tell you that I don't know that I've ever met anybody stronger. Don't try to make her choose between you and the Lord, because you will lose every time. I know from personal experience, and some of you know that story. We met again at Orchard Knob in Union at high noon. And she told me to hit the road, Jack, because we're not going the same direction. I hadn't planned on saying that, but it all worked out. I got my heart right, chased after her, pled for a long time, and finally she gave in. By the way, she wasn't just naturally sweet. Nobody from Texas is naturally sweet. In fact, no one from anywhere is just naturally sweet. But I've got to be honest. I really have to be honest. It bothered me. It did when people, because somebody would say, well, Marcy is just, it's just easy for Marcy to be sweet. No, she made a decision to be a certain kind of person. She made a choice to be sweet because she knew it pleased the Lord. She knew it would represent him well. Something else I really loved about my wife, you're going to see it on the PowerPoint. She's always smiling. I loved her smile, beautiful smile, sunshiny, beautiful smile all the time. And she was unaware of it, but she was always smiling even when she wasn't smiling. Her lips just kind of had a little turn up. And she could be in the office reading a book or playing a word game on her phone with a friend or writing a note and she would just be kind of got that little barely noticeable grin. So one day we were in the office and I noticed it and so I just stared at her. And finally she looked up and said, what? And I said, you always smile. Do you know that? I take it back. Sometimes, the only time she didn't smile, sometimes if she was in a deep sleep, she would frown. But other than that, I said, you always smile. And what'd she say? Nothing. She just smiled and went back to reading. I want to choose my words carefully here because I don't want to make it sound like the Berman household was a perfect household. We had five centers living in our house. No house with five centers is a perfect household. But it was a happy place, I think I can honestly say. It was filled with joy and happiness. The rule of the house, it was an unspoken rule, but life is short, we're going to have fun. And so no matter what kind of a day I had at the office, I knew that when I got home, everything was going to be great. Because she set the mood. She set the temperature. She set the atmosphere. And it was just... I'm telling the truth. She was never bossy, never naggy, which doesn't mean she didn't speak her mind. or let you know how she felt, because she did. A couple of times, I walked in the door and she said, tonight we're talking. When she said it like that, you didn't say, what about? You just said, okay. She never was mean about it, but you knew where she stood. I love that about her sometimes. I want to share one period of our life that shows how much, as I look back, I'm amazed at my wife. And so let me share a couple of things to kind of give you what makes me appreciate her so much. In fact, I really wonder how she did it. This one period of time, our kids were little. Doug was in kindergarten. Renee was, I think, in first. Brad, you might have been in third or fourth grade. But she taught school 45 minutes away. You had to get on a freeway and drive north to Tacoma, teach school, come home. So she'd get up at five o'clock, get the kids ready. Drive 45 minutes, teach till three o'clock, get the kids, come on home. Sometimes they stopped at Winchell's and they could scrounge a couple of quarters together and they'd split a donut or two. But she came home, started cooking dinner, preparing for the next day, washing clothes, washing kids, and still had time to minister to the folks at church. And she did it for a whole year. I mean, she taught school a lot longer than that, but this drive. Without pay, I might add. We started the school, and Jerry Faulkner ran it. It was amazing. But we couldn't afford to pay the teachers, who were all degreed teachers. It was amazing. They did it for nothing. But I was reminded of the impact that she had on children on the day she went home to be with the Lord. I got a text from a young man who's 46 years old now. And he said, I'm reminded of Marcy always asking us little kids, who loves Jesus? And then all the kids would raise their hand. I do. I'm sharing this to tell you why I appreciate my wife because in all that time, I never ever heard her say, why did you start debt school? We never get to do anything fun. We're always working. I need some me time. Not ever. Tired? Yes. Complain? Never. it still blows me away. It took a little while for me to appreciate it. Had to get a little wiser, be a little more observant. She always had people on her mind and in her heart. She was the one who kept me apprised of, you know how men are, pastors, we just, we're doing our thing, we're running here, and Marcy would say, we need to go see so-and-so. Did you know that so-and-so is having a problem? And so she kept me apprised of all of that. And in fact, at one time it dawned on me that the only reason the church kept me around, they didn't want to lose Marcy. They didn't care about me. I wish I could have recorded the conversations Marcy and Renee had two and three times a day, every day, especially this past year. I mean, they were always on speakerphone, and every now and then, I'd be listening. And they would giggle and laugh and cry, but always talk about what God had shown them. I mean, they'd get so excited, and Renee would say, boy, listen to what I got. And Marnie would say, whoa, yeah, yeah, that's good. And so I'm listening, and it got pretty deep sometimes. And so I try to pick up a few pointers. And there were a couple of times when I said, wow, that'll preach. Last Sunday in May, I preached Renee's sermon. It was a good sermon too. Our favorite time was morning and evening, but morning. Drinking our coffee, joining with our favorite people to pray. Watching the hummingbirds. I'm not a bird watcher unless it's over the side of a shotgun, but But she loved the hummingbirds and She we had three of them coming to the feeder and she knew the three and I just loved her watching the hummingbirds and And then, of course, I had to go change the feeder. And we had to make sure that we washed the feeder, because those birds will care. I said, honey, they drink out of mud puddles. She said, it's got to be clean. She loved doing things, going places. We were privileged, really privileged. I can't even believe it. We've traveled to 17 countries, and we visited missionaries in many of those countries, and it was such an unbelievable blessing. But she loved to go to the coast. In fact, we had some plans to go to the coast this summer, but she was just too sick, couldn't go. And she loved going to Crater Lake and going to the lilac fields. She loved going to church. She just loved the word. She loved to hear it expounded. And one of the things she dearly loved was our ministry at Pear Valley. Pear Valley is a senior citizen, senior center, but it has one area that is a memory care, and so we would go there first, and we would sing with those people. It's amazing. You always remember the songs of faith that you learned in your youth. Those people never forgot. It was such a blessing to us. We would come away blessed out of our minds. Then we'd go to the other side and have our Bible study. And those people are watching right now, I think, hopefully. And she just loved that. I had to stop by there the other day this week and tell them that Marcy had gone home. But she just, I guess what I'm trying to say is who you saw at church is who she really was. And I don't even have to worry about saying it because everybody here knows it. Having said that, let me clarify something. She's not in heaven this morning because of her saintly ways. It took as much grace to save Marcy as the worst of sinners. And I just made a statement on purpose that's not a good statement. It shows you how we think. We categorize people, big sinners, little sinners. And as a pastor that I admire greatly once said, there's not really that much difference between the very best and the very worst of us. We tend to compare people with people instead of comparing ourselves to the Lord. Marcy is celebrating with the Lord this morning because of the full atonement he made for her on the cross. She trusted him. She trusted in that atonement. She saw herself as a wretched sinner. We have no idea how wretched we really are until we get a glimpse of Jesus, and then we know. She got her first glimpse of Jesus, as Gerald mentioned, when she and Linda Carroll went to that tent revival and got saved. But when she went to Galilean, she really got serious, 10th grader, really serious about the Lord. I mean, he was going to be the Lord of her life, not words. She wasn't a spectator Christian. Do you know when you're glad you made that decision? When you finally see him face to face. Then everything here means absolutely nothing. And all of us are gonna stand before him one day. Marcy was never about things. She appreciated nice things. She was content with what she had. I admit that I once perverted the scriptures by putting a little twist in Psalm 23. Surely goodness and Marcy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I shall dwell in the poor house forever. But the truth is, if she spent money, it wasn't on herself. And she did always look like a million bucks, and I always did tell her she looked like a million bucks. And she responded by saying, well, I'm glad you think so. So she had one great earnest desire. Want to guess? It's already been stated, yep. Her great desire was that all of her children, her grandchildren, and her great grandson would walk with God, obey His word, love Him with their whole heart, and meet her in the land that is fairer than day. That's what she prayed for. It has obviously made an impact on people. She did, but none more than me. She was amazing. I can't begin to tell you how much she enriched my life. I mean, she just always challenged me to do better, to live better, to love better. She would say, Steve, do you know how you just sounded just then? That was very harsh. I said, come on, Marcie. I wasn't harsh. I just said close the door. I can't wait to see that smile and hear that Texas heavenly drawl say it once again. Hi, y'all. I'm so glad you're here. Of all the songs sung today by all of us, this is the one song that Aunt Marcy wanted to have us all sing together. The Love of God. Let's stand together and sing. The robe of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell. It goes beyond the highest star and reaches to the lowest hell. bowed down with care, God gave His Son to win. His erring child He reconciled and pardoned from His sin. How rich and pure! How measureless and strong! The saints and angels saw Could we with ink the oceans fill And were the skies of parchment made were every stalk on earth a quill, and every man a scribe by trade. To write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry. Where could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky? how rich and pure, how measureless and strong. It shall forevermore endure the saints' and angels' song. You may be seated. I don't know that I've ever felt so inadequate to be a part of a service, but I'm honored. And when Renee asked me to read a letter that she wrote to her mom in October and then gave it to her mom, I started reading through this, and then I was at home when she sent it, so I handed it to Tammy, and I said, you read it. And she read it and started crying, and I said, how am I supposed to do that? I don't even know. And so, it's going to sound strange, but last night I started, I have a favorite poet. Many of you would not know, Lord Byron is my favorite poet. And I was reading some of his poetry last night, and I started saying, I need to say it better. And so I started listening to videos on YouTube of somebody trying to quote Lord Byron. I thought, they're all no good. Nobody knows how to put any inflection. I listened to Holly just a moment ago reading that scripture and I said, Holly should have read this letter. I mean, she really knows how to do that, and I know my father-in-law was very good at poetry, but I am the one that was entrusted to read a letter from a daughter to her mother that she loved so dearly, so Renee, from the beginning, I'm sorry, I cannot put it as you would, but you've already told me you couldn't do it anyway, so at least the words get out this way. This is from Renee to her mom. Mom, how blessed I am that you are my mother. What a gift you are from God to me. I'm so glad that I was your only girl. I have had you all to myself. I'm selfish when it comes to you. I've never liked sharing you. I treasure every moment we've had together as mother and daughter. What a childhood you gave me. Thank you for teaching me the scripture from an early age and teaching me about Jesus. Your love for Him was contagious. So I fell in love with Him at four years old. I loved Good News Club, and you were my favorite Sunday school and junior church leader. You were my favorite school teacher, too. You've always been my favorite. Growing up, I felt your love through every meal you made, every Bible story you read, every birthday and holiday that you made so special. I love every memory of us in the kitchen together, baking honey oatmeal bread, cooking and singing while we're doing dishes. You have such a beautiful voice. And we blend well together. Thank you for the beautiful, godly example. You have always been to me. I pray I will follow in your footsteps. You've had to be strong and do hard things. You've shown me how to be brave and rely on God in difficult circumstances. None have been more difficult than what you have faced, we have faced this year, and we're facing now at this moment. You're displaying Romans 12 too in real time. You're choosing to be hopeful, joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer, total admiration and respect. In adulthood, you've been my best counselor and dearest friend. You're the one who can make me laugh the hardest. Oh, how I love you. I look forward to our daily phone calls. and our deep conversations about God, and what we've learned from the Scriptures, it's the best part of my day. I've always been a mama's girl, and you have never been able to be separated from you without weeping, and sometimes wailing. Starting at the daycare at Brook Hollow for one day, to summer camp, to the day you dropped me off at college, being away from you is just the worst. I love my mother. I'm praying the Lord will come back tonight so we can stay together. I love you, my darling earth angel. ♪ Somewhere over the rainbow ♪ ♪ In the sky above ♪ and my mother's side. Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue. And that look that I dreamed of, God, says it's real. I'll go beyond the stars and wake up where the clouds are far behind me. No trouble, sadness, or teardrops, way above the mountain tops, that's Angels fly. They fly over the rainbow. When? Tell me, when can I? We've habituated just right. My wife Tammy has loved Steve and Marcy her whole life. I have loved them for 56 years. That was when I came to Christ, and I met them. Steve was the assistant pastor at Brook Hollow. I was a little 13-year-old heathen who had come to Christ two nights before at a youth group party, a birthday party for one of the people in the youth group. And the youth pastor led me to Christ that night, and two days later I'm at church. And I was baptized. And I was introduced to Steve because he was up here talking a lot. Not preaching, that's Clyde's job, but talking, and I then got to meet her. And so one thing I know about Steve Berman is that he's very emotional. Y'all notice that? One thing I learned from him, and I'm serious, is it's okay to cry in the pulpit. I really never wanted to learn that because I've never liked doing it. And I fight it. And in my past 30 years that I retired from a year and a half ago, there were a few sermons. I was in the middle of them and I would start crying. And I would, this is my little trick, I would squeeze my toes in my shoe and try to cramp them so it hurt. and say, stop doing it, stop doing it. And his face would swim to my mind in all those years. So when I found out what was going on with Marcy and Tammy and I started praying, I guess about a year ago, and thinking about it and talking about it. And at some point, several weeks ago, I'm texting Steve and then we get the word about Marcy. She's gone home to be with the Lord. And I really want to help. I'm not always real good at it. But when I considered Steve trying to preach, the Lord said, just insert yourself. And so I called him and I said, look, when I'm there, if you need me, I'll be sitting right down there in the front. And if you can't make it through, you just point at me. And we do it one of two ways. Number one, I'll have my own sermon ready to go. Or number two, you give me a copy of yours and I'll just come up and do it. And he said, well, I need to do this. And I said, understood. But I am there if you need me. That night he called me and said, I need you. Can you do this? And my first thought was, what in the world did I offer? What have I gotten myself into? I just keep getting myself into messes my whole life. But it's beyond an honor, and I'm trying to make it through also, but I think I can. You have heard the gospel several times already. Have you noticed that? There's a reason for that. Without the gospel, there is no hope. I want to say that clearly. I know everyone in here loves Marcy, and so many of you love the Lord, but I want to make it clear. Marcy's in heaven because of the gospel, which simply means good news. Good news because sinners have no good news except that God entered into time and space. He entered upon this planet, born of a virgin, and He lived a perfect life to die on a cross from the first moment of eternity past. Jesus was scheduled to the cross, and that's because He loved you before you were you. So I don't understand that. Well, who does? It doesn't matter you understand it. It's exactly what God thoughts are. It's what God does. So to Steve and all the family, I just want to say to you that more people are praying for you today than you can imagine. I know Tammy got a prayer group together specifically for this day for you. And she would be here, except that we had our third grandchild, who is now nine days old. And Tammy has been serving and helping with the two boys who are three and a year and a half, which means they are two little banshees that just run circles in the house. And we were down there for 16 days watching them run and trying to clean up after them. And then our daughter had her baby and we were there for a few more days, came home for a break. I came up here and Tammy is sitting there waiting for the phone to ring and to go right back down there. So, I want to say that Marcy, Steve, has been to you, your wife. She's been your teammate, your best friend. She's the place you call home. And as mom, her heart has always been wrapped around yours, Renee, and Brad, and Doug. As Marmy, the grandchildren always lit up around her and she lit up around them. As a sister, you could talk to her about anything. And as a friend, there was never any question. She is indeed the deepest and truest friend. We hurt today because we loved her deeply. Grief is not an enemy of faith. It's evidence of love. Tears are love finding its way out. And for some of us, they fall today. For some, it will be weeks from now. Sometimes it will be in silence, and sometimes it will be around others. Sometimes grief will hit you at the moment you never expected. Ken Guyer reminds us that when Jesus wept, he showed us that our tears are not signs of failure, because he could weep. They are sacred. Jesus weeps with those who weep. She is gone from our sight, but she is not gone. I will miss her way of making you feel at home. I can still smell those crispy waffles that she made when we visited. I honestly have never come close to having a waffle that good. It's not often I dream about a waffle, but I've had that dream. But I know where she is now, and so do you. She's with the Lord. She's at home. Truly at home. If you as a child of God would grasp that just for a moment, you have never known home. But that day is coming. She's alive in the presence of Jesus. D.L. Moody is famously known for a statement he made. Someday you will read that D.L. Moody is dead. Don't believe a word of it. At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now. What he said then, she is living now. She did not end when her heart stopped. She's more alive than ever. So today we come with tears and gratitude. Gratitude for her life, for her love, for all the time that we had with her. There were many moments and it still feels like there weren't enough. When I was 13, as I said, I came to Christ. And not long after that, I met Marcy. And from the beginning, she just felt like one of the people you're blessed to know. She was loving. She was humble. She was wise in a way when she talked with people. She could make you feel special when she spoke to you. She had a way of lifting up people without really making a show of it. And she was fun. Not everybody, I think, understands that. She was fun to be around. I can still see her getting up in the middle of a card game to put on her game hat. I remember that day we were visiting eight years ago when Steve was, at that time, retiring from the church, and he said, we're going to have so much fun. When you and Tammy get here, we're going to party. Let me interpret that for you. That means food. And we ate a lot. And we had fun. And Steve would have that laugh of his, which I just love. And Marcy would have that more silent, kind of a quiet laugh. But Steve said, we're going to take you on the river. Man, you don't know how fun it is. They have these flat bottom boats, and they just rip down the river. And they'll move all over the place. And you'll slide. It's so much fun. You can't believe it. And I said, well, let us pay. No, we're paying for it. We're going to go. We're going to have fun. Now, I live with my wife, Tammy, who must at all times be perfectly put together. And so I was kind of looking forward to seeing what was going to happen on this river. I had a jacket that was waterproof. I had a hat. I was ready. Tammy had a jacket, but it wasn't waterproof. And so I'm sitting next to her. We're sitting on this long line, and I'm thinking, in a minute, he's going to spin this thing around. It's going to flood us, and I'm going to watch Tammy say, ah! And her laughing. She would maybe be a little bit unhappy about the water. But they spun the other way where Steve and Marcy were sitting and that boat spun and this big wave came over and I'm watching and it drenched Marcy, drenched her, what we call in Texas a drowned rat. And I thought, what is she going to do? And I looked, and as I watched water running off her face, down her face, out of her hair, she started laughing so hard she had to close her eyes laughing. And I thought, she's amazing! Oh, my word. She just loved having fun. Tammy and I were able to come see Marcy about six weeks ago, November 12th through 16th, and she was weak at times, and she needed rest. Very thin, fighting everything that cancer burdens the body with, but she didn't want to stop. She wanted to talk. And when I would say something to her, she would say, tell me that again. She wanted to hear it. She wanted to know what we were talking about. She wanted to be fully involved. She waited. At one point, we were all talking. Everybody's laughing, telling stories, and we were laughing. And it's one of those moments, a perfect moment, in a conversation where everybody is laughing and we all go, and she inserted a little joke that we all went, because it was just so simple, childlike, and funny, and we just roared laughing again. She was picking up on everything. We just talked, laughed. I think at one sitting, I hopped up and gave her hugs three times. And that's what we did when we were together. And this past November, we got to drive one more time up the river and to get out and to see the overlook, and she modeled her coat for us. We took lots of pictures. We have a picture where Tammy and I are on each side of one another, and she has come into the middle of us, and we are all hugging her. Tammy and I are hugging her. I told Tammy before I left, I said, I really need for you to print that picture and put it in a frame. I need to be able to see that every day. Well, Tammy and I were talking and crying. this past Tuesday night, and I jotted down a few things that Tammy said. And after I jotted them down, I said, I wrote this down, can I say it? I have learned as a preacher you had better ask that. And she said, okay. So here's what she said. Aunt Marcy was like a second meemaw when I was young. When I went to stay at Stephen Marcy's house to spend the night with Meemaw, I watched her sing songs to Brad, Doug, and Renee, and it's those songs I sing now to our grandchildren. And yes, Tammy says, who loves Jesus? I do. She has changed a bit. Tammy is also called Honey, and then she says, who loves Honey? She doesn't ask who loves G. Tammy said she was the most perfect, pure, spiritual person I have ever known. And she paused for a minute, she cried, and she said, of course, Steve's the same. And she said, what I've already told you, when I was there, everything was a party. If you met her, you loved her, because she had that way of looking right at you, listening fully, and making you feel like you mattered. We can still hear her laugh, that easy, genuine laugh that drew you in and made you laugh with her. Those are just some of the gifts that she has left to us. We're grateful for Jesus today who made it a fact that sorrow is not the whole story. We're grateful because Jesus sought her when she was lost, and he forgave her when she sinned, and he carried her when she was weak, and he sustained her through every season, even this last one. He has her now. We did not lose her. He received her. That's the difference. for a child of God. She belonged to Jesus in life and she belongs to him now. And we're grateful for Jesus because what he did for Marcy, he offers to all of us. Scripture is clear. Everyone is born into sin and we do not drift closer to God, we drift further away. And we are not getting better. We aren't improving and we know it. We don't need to be convinced by anyone that our lives are broken. We feel it at a deep level. And because of sin, we need forgiveness, and we cannot earn forgiveness or manufacture forgiveness, and that's why Jesus came. He lived the life we could not live. He died the death we deserved to die, and He rose again so that death would not be the last word for us. At the cross, Jesus took our sin, and at the empty tomb, He broke death wide open. And now He offers forgiveness, not as a reward for good people, but as a gift when we are honest enough to say we need Him. Marcy trusted Him all of her life. She rested on Jesus. And because of that, we can say with confidence today that she's with Him. And it's evident by looking at the crowd of people here today and by the wonderful gentlemen who are still standing at the back at this very moment through all of this, she was a great woman. I have been in ministry quite a few years. I'm 69 years old. I don't know that I've ever stood at a funeral setting and just said boldly, he or she was a great person. But those words need to be said about Marcy. Great in so many ways that I really struggle over what text to use. Yeah, of course, the first thing that came to my mind was Proverbs 31. Well, how can you not use Proverbs 31? She's the perfect epitome of Proverbs 31. And then I thought, she would not be happy with that. If I get up here and I just say, look how wonderful she was. She did this and this and this. And I thought, she is far too humble. She wouldn't want to be embarrassed. So I think I found the right text for a limelight avoiding sweet disciple by the name of Marcy. Here's the text. It's Mark 14, 3 through 9. And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as Jesus sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard, which was very precious. And she broke the box and she poured it on his head. And there were some that had indignation within themselves and said, why was this waste of this ointment made? For it might have been sold for more than 300 pence and have given to the poor. And they murmured against her. And Jesus said, let her alone. Why trouble her? She has wrought a good work for me. For you have the poor with you always, and whensoever you may, you do good, but you don't always have me. She's done what she could. It might be good to get the weight of this text just a little bit. First, the understanding that the perfume this woman poured on Jesus was something called nard. It's a rare ointment. It was imported from far away. It was incredibly costly. Many scholars think that it was probably a year's worth of wages. And second, we should notice that she broke the container. She didn't open it a bit. She didn't pour it out a little bit. She didn't save the rest. Once it was broken, there was no taking back. It was total devotion. Some watching, this is interesting too, some watching did not understand. People in the room saw spilled perfume, and they called it waste. And Jesus saw a heart broken open and recognized it as worship. And then he said the words that echo over her life, and I believe over Marcy's today, too. She did what she could. That is the story of Marcy's life. The longer I live, the more I understand we don't need Jesus to say anything more about us. There is no greater honor, there is no greater testimony he could give of us as to say they did what they could. Doing what we can doesn't mean perfection. Steve has already mentioned that. But it does mean loving the people that God gives you. It means using the days that God has entrusted you to and offering our lives back to Him, and that's what the woman did in Mark 14, and that's what Marcy did. If you met her, you loved her. That was the fragrance of a totally devoted life poured out to Jesus. So God entrusted her with Steve and the kids and the grandkids and the friends and a church to love, and she loved them and served them. And she shared burdens, and she claimed God's blessing in prayer, and her hands were held up to her children and grandchildren, and you guys have been shaped by her love. She didn't try to live someone else's life. She lived the life that God gave her. You know, maybe the world didn't notice, but Jesus noticed every bit of it, every moment. And over her life, we can hear Him say she did what she could. And those are powerful words. To do what you can with what God has given you is a simple definition of being a disciple. And here's the question for you and me. What would it look like if all of us took the life that God placed in our hands and we did what we could? That would be the best way to honor Marcy. If she could speak today, though, she would fight me over this. She'd say, don't say I did what I could. Say instead, He did what I could not do. And that's true too. What she could not do. Well, He saved. She would say, He saved me, and He kept me, and He carried me every step of the way, and He brought me safely home. So don't leave today only talking about Marcy. Leave today talking about Marcy's Jesus. And if you don't know that He's yours, if you aren't sure where you will step off into eternity, I'll be glad to talk to you. Steve will be glad to talk to you. This whole family will be glad to talk to you. The pastor, Pastor Mike, will be glad to talk to you. But the main thing is to make sure that heaven is yours. And it's so simple. I don't know why in the world we stumble over it. We make up all these things you have to do. You have to understand you're a sinner. You have to know that Jesus died for you. Believe that and accept him as Savior and ask for forgiveness and he will take you to heaven too. I'd like to point out today that just as in this text, this text is making an impact, even today people are preaching this text, I want to say that Marcy's making an impact today too. If you'll allow me, let me just kind of walk you through something here. We have already heard as a teenager, Marcy had a real desire for her family to be saved, so much so that her brother, by the name of Clyde, walked in on her crying and said, what's wrong, Marcy? Why are you crying? And she cried, she looked at him, she said, I just want my family to know Jesus. And I've heard from a number of people, including my own wife, that he looked at her and didn't know what in the world to say, and said, well, it's okay. Well, her brother did become a Christian, and an avid witness for Christ. He won a lot of people to Christ in the next few years. Then he started a church, and a lot of people came to Christ through that church. And then a lot of people who came to Christ led a lot of other people to Christ. One of those led me to Christ. And then from that, I don't know how many churches have been started or populated by pastors that came out of that church and missionaries that went out from that church. If I could say in my own situation, I served in churches and started a church 30 years ago, and through that church, people came to Christ. Atheists came to Christ. All kinds of folks came to Christ. We started other churches. We started mission organizations, missionaries. We went on the field, and churches were started. And every bit of that goes back to a little sophomore girl crying for her family to come to Christ. So no matter what I go to heaven, whenever I go to heaven and stand before the Lord, Jesus can clearly look at me and say, whatever you did, she did more. I mean, she kind of lit the fuse here. But we also understand there was an evangelist that lit that fuse. Because this is the way it works, folks. The way it works is when we love one another, care for one another, pray for one another, share Jesus with one another, and accept the love that he gives and give it to other folks. So today I would simply say about Marcy, great is her reward. I can't even imagine. I'll end with a reminder that Jesus keeps his promises. We do not grieve the other people who have no hope. The first funeral I ever preached I think I was 20 years old, I had come back from college and I was serving and the pastor called me in and said, hey, we got a call from somebody in the neighborhood and the wife said that the husband killed himself. Go do the funeral. Thanks. Great. I don't have a clue what to do. And I went in, I took one of the other assistants with me, and I said, you gotta go with me, I don't know what to do here. And we walked in, we walked, knocked at the door, and the daughter let us in, and everybody's crying, and they all look angry. And I'm thinking to myself, I wasn't prepared for this. And I remember trying to ask some questions carefully, and finally the wife looked at me and said, don't talk anything good about him, don't say he's in heaven, because he's not, And my first thought was just say, y'all can handle this on your own. I didn't. Thankfully, I just looked at her and said, OK, I will not preach him into heaven, but I know this. I know that he loved you and I know that God loves you. So how about I talk about God loves you? Can we do that? Because I have to do that. And I did that that funeral and it was tough. This is nothing like that. Because we have hope. Jesus said, I go to prepare a place for you and where I am, you may be also. That's John 14, and that's a promise. Paul said to be absent from the bodies, be present with the Lord. The best thing about heaven is not what is there, it is who is there. Marcy's in heaven right now, not because she was a pastor's wife, or kind, or faithful, but because Jesus died for us and she accepted that sacrifice. And so the Bible says, clearly, we all know the verse, John 3, 16, God loved the world so much, He gave His unique, His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. You don't have to have it all figured out. You don't. You may have questions or doubts, so you can feel confused inside, but come anyway. One of my favorite stories is Mark 9, where a man comes to Jesus, and Jesus says, do you believe? And he says, well, I do believe, but help my unbelief. What he is saying is, Lord, I have a little sliver of belief. I do believe, but I have so many things bouncing around in my head that I'm unsure about, and I'm doubting, and I can't answer all the questions. And Jesus says, that's enough. Jesus met him there. Jesus does not ask for perfect faith. He honors honest faith. So some of us once walked closely with him and somewhere we drifted along the way. It happens because life happens and pain happens and disappointment happens and we drift. Could I just say to you maybe today is the day for us to be honest and to come home? Looking at this great life, could we start to understand it's better than a life bouncing between one desire after another, one disappointment after another, to put everything, your hope in Jesus? If you're confused about who you are or where you fit into this world, I want you to hear this. God is not wrong and you're not a mistake. He knows you fully and He loves you deeply. Just bring your whole self, questions included, to Jesus. Jesus did not come to make bad people better. He came to bring real life now and forever to people who are spiritually dead without Him. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be safe. So, Steve, choose your safe place, but you are hers. And kids, she prayed for you, prayed out loud. And grandkids and grandson, she bragged on you constantly. Friends, she loved you, she loved your laughter. So earlier we said today that we hurt, and that will not end when this service ends. Grief will ride home with us, and it will sit at quiet tables, and it will meet us at unexpected moments, but don't be afraid of that. That's not weakness, that's love. but let hope live and breathe in you because Jesus conquered death. Marcy is with Jesus. You will see her again. Between this day and that day, Jesus will walk every step with us. Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. Amen. Lord, we commit this to you. We commit your words. I know today, Lord, as I've tried to fumble through a few thoughts and scriptures, I know I have not done it perfectly, but I have done so out of love for you, for Marcy, for the family and friends that are here. And I pray, Lord, that you will help us to take the steps that we need to make. For some of us, it's just steps of gratitude, thanking you today. Seriously, thanking you, taking the time to thank you for Marcy and for what she's done in our lives and for some steps back to you and for some steps to you for the first time. And this is what we pray in Jesus' name, amen. When peace like a river attendeth my way When sorrows like sea billows roll Thou hast taught me to say, it is well, it is well with my soul. Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come Let this blast assurance control That Christ has regarded my helpless estate And has shed his own blood for my soul It is well with my soul It is well, it is well with my soul. my sin oh the bliss of this glorious thought my sin not in part but the whole And I'd bear it no more. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, oh, my soul. well with my soul. And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight The clouds be rolled back as a scroll The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend It is well, it is well with my soul. you ♪ Weak and wounded sinner ♪ ♪ Lost and left to die ♪ ♪ Raise your head for love is passing by ♪ ♪ Come to Jesus ♪ ♪ Come to Jesus ♪ ♪ Come to Jesus and live ♪ Now your burden's lifted and carried far away Precious blood has washed away the stain So sing to Jesus, sing to Jesus, sing to Jesus Like a newborn baby, don't be afraid to crawl. And remember when you walk, sometimes we fall. So fall on Jesus. Fall on Jesus. Sometimes the way is lonely, it's deep and filled with pain. So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then cry to Jesus, cry to Jesus, cry to Jesus and live. Oh, and when the love spills over and music fills the night, and when you can't contain your joy inside, then dance for Jesus. Dance for Jesus. Dance for Jesus. And with your final heartbeat, kiss the world goodbye Then go in peace and laugh on glory's side And fly to Jesus. Fly to Jesus. Fly to Jesus. And live. Fly to Jesus. Fly to Jesus. Fly to Jesus. Let's stand together. Let's sing, God be with you till we meet again. Be with you till we meet again. By His counsels guide, uphold you. With His sheep securely fold you. God be with you till we meet again, till we meet again. ♪ Till we meet at Jesus' feet ♪ Till we meet, till we meet ♪ God be with you till we meet again ♪ God be with you till we meet again ♪ Meet His wings securely hiding a a a a God be with you till we meet again. God be with you till we meet again. When life's perils they confound you. Put His arms unfailing round you. God be with you till we meet again. Till we meet, till we meet, till we meet at Jesus' feet. Till we meet, till we meet, God be with you till we meet again. God be with you till we meet again. Keep love's banner floating o'er you. Smite death's threatening wave before you. God be with you till we meet again. Till we meet again. Till we meet, till we meet at Jesus' feet Till we meet, till we meet God be with you till we meet again Before the benediction, let me just give one question, one ask of you rather, and that is you would allow the family to exit first and they will gather in the foyer. And so after all the family is left, you will just follow them out and they would receive your hugs and smiles and prayers at that moment. So let's, let's bow our heads. And as we prepare to leave, hear the words of Scripture as God's blessing over you. Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all. May that peace, the peace that does not deny sorrow but carries it through, guard your hearts in Christ Jesus in these days ahead. Go in his grace and in his care. Amen.