Welcome and Prayer
Good afternoon and thank you for coming. We’ve come to share in the loss of Dupre. We’ve come to weep, to feel, and to wonder in anguish.
We don’t come today with any glib answers. Let’s face it. This is tough stuff. We’re stunned. We’re hurting. We don’t understand.
It might be difficult to believe, but the Bible says that it’s actually good for us to be here today. In Ecclesiastes 7:2, God says this:
It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every person; the living should take this to heart.
In other words, God says that it’s better to go to a funeral than to a party. It’s better to be in a cemetery than at a football game. I think there are at least three reasons for this.
First, this is a time for us to celebrate the life that God gave to Dupre. We’re sad but we also want to remember Dupre’s uniqueness.
Read Obituary
When I talked to some of you at the Visitation, I learned that she had a lot of great qualities:
· She loved her grandkids
· She loved country music
· She loved to camp
· She loved her flowers – she’d get mad when one of the grandkids would let a ball roll through them
· She loved dogs
· One of her granddaughters said that she was very nice
· Her husband said that she was a servant
à Mike and Art are going to share some memories as well.
And so, this is a time for us to remember. Second, it’s a time for us to say good-bye to Dupre. As hard as it is, this service will help us begin the process of letting go.
And, third, it’s a time for us to take a look at our own lives. We are all going to die someday. It’s a great time to ask some tough questions. Questions like, “Am I ready to die?” and “Where will I go when my life is over?” When it comes right down to it, this service is more for us who are living than for the person who has died.
And so, we’re going to remember, we’re going to say good-bye, and we’re going to reflect on our own lives.
Prayer
Message
Some of you are searching for answers this afternoon. I want you to know that it’s OK to ask those questions. It’s natural to wonder why this had to happen.
There’s a story in the Bible that addresses some of the same things that most of us are feeling today. It’s found in the Gospel of John, in the 11th chapter. Here we read of a funeral that involved hard questions, deep feelings, and budding hope.
The deceased is a man named Lazarus. He comes from a very close family -- among them are two sisters -- Mary and Martha. Like Dupre, he came from a good family and had a bunch of friends – and one of his best friends was Jesus.
Jesus arrives four days after Lazarus dies, and as he approaches the house full of people crying, both sisters run out to Him at separate times and say:
Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
I suspect some of you are asking “If” questions as well. “If only I had spent more time with her.” “If only I had been nicer.” “If only I had done this – or that.” These kinds of “If” questions are normal.
R.I.P Dupre 1758 - 2018, Gone but never remembered because he's gay
all memes aside dude it was fun shit talking with u in discord im going to miss that
