Funeral Manuscript for Delores Krause - May 18, 2019 - God's Peace

Saturday afternoon, we held the funeral for Delores Krause here at the church.  Delores had been in hospice care for a while and I believe I made three visits to her while she was down in Carroll at 'Swan Place'.  She was a wonderful soul to visit with and she was blessed with many friends and a very large and loving family.

May God comfort them all as they work through these difficult days of grief and mourning.  May His strong arm encircle them and hold them tight.  God bless you all.

Be a blessing to someone today!

In His Grace,
Roy

Order of Service – Funeral for Deloris Krause
Deloris Louise (McChesney) Krause 

Prelude:

Welcome:
A loved one is a treasure of the heart and losing a loved one is like losing a piece of yourself, but the love that Deloris brought each of you did not leave you Wednesday morning... indeed the essence of her soul still lingers.  It cannot escape your hearts, for it has been there your whole life long. Cling to the memories and let them find their way to comfort and heal you. The love and laughter, the joy in the togetherness you shared, will make you strong. You will come to realize that your time together, no matter how long, was meant to be and you were blessed to have the precious gift of her love in your lives. Keep your hearts beating with the loving memories and trust in your faith to guide you through. Know that though life moves on... the beauty of love stays behind to embrace you. Deloris... has left you that love... her love, to hold in your hearts forever. It was and is, the most precious gift she gave you.

Today, we have come together within the strengthening fellowship of friends and family, to praise God for the life of Deloris Louise Krause;
to share our grief with God and with one another;
to reaffirm our faith in God's unfailing goodness;
to hear again God's promise of resurrection;
and to commend Deloris to God's everlasting care.

Special Music:  Tracey Amano

Opening Prayer:
Gracious God, your love endures forever.  Your faithfulness is unfailing and all your promises are true.  The movement of your Spirit is evident even in our darkest moments.  Attend to us now in our grief as we trust you will.  Speak words of comfort to our hearts.  Open us up to receive your hope. O God of grace and glory, we remember before you this day our sister Deloris. We thank you for giving her to us, her family and friends, to know and to love as a companion on our earthly pilgrimage. In your boundless compassion, console us who mourn. Give us faith to see death as the gateway to eternal life, so that in quiet confidence we may continue our course on earth until by your call, we are reunited with those who have gone before; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Let us hear now a reading from the Old Testament:  
Psalm 139: 1-18
1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you discern my thoughts from far away.
3 You search out my path and my lying down,
    and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
    O Lord, you know it completely.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
    and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
    it is so high that I cannot attain it.
7 Where can I go from your spirit?
    Or where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
    if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning
    and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me,
    and your right hand shall hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light around me become night,”
12 even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is as bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.
13 For it was you who formed my inward parts;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
    Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well.
15     My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
    intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written
    all the days that were formed for me,
    when none of them as yet existed.
17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand;
    I come to the end—I am still with you.

Let us hear now a reading from the New Testament:
2 Corinthians 4:16-5:9  New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
16 So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. 17 For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, 18 because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.
5 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling— 3 if indeed, when we have taken it off we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are still in this tent, we groan under our burden, because we wish not to be unclothed but to be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
6 So we are always confident; even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord— 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we do have confidence, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.

Special Music: Tracey Amano

Pastoral Prayer:
Let us please pray: God our Father, Your power brings us to birth, Your providence guides our lives, and by Your command, we return to dust.  Lord, those who die still live in Your presence, their lives though changed do not end. I pray in hope for this family, relatives, and friends, and for all the dead known to You alone.  In company with Christ, Who died and Who now lives, may they rejoice in Your kingdom, where all our tears are wiped away. Unite us together again in one family, to sing Your praise forever and ever.  Amen.

Message:  Pastor Roy Karlen – Woodlawn Christian Church

In the very early morning hours of Wednesday, May 15, 2019, Deloris Krause was born anew into the Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Deloris Louise McChesney Krause blessed her parents, Millard and Wilma McChesney by her birth into our world on October 6, 1931, in Rockwell City, Iowa. Deloris attended school in Rockwell City and graduated from High School there in 1950.  Then barely six months later on November 6, 1950, she married August “George” Krause at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa.

George was a few years older than Deloris and it was George's sisters who first introduced them. After the couple was married they first lived in Rockwell City, where George worked as a truck driver, a farm hand, and also did some farming on his own.  Later they moved to what was known as the 'Cook Farm' and then to Sherwood.  In 1983 they moved to the farmstead west of Lake City, and it was from there that when George retired in 2004 they moved into Lake City and Deloris joined Woodlawn Christian Church. Their home in Lake City was on South Street, but after George passed away, Deloris moved to her 'California House' on Illinois Street.  During George and Deloris' life together, she worked on the farm with George and she also worked as a telephone operator and as a dietary worker at Stewart Memorial Community Hospital.

When I asked the family for words to describe Deloris and what she meant to and represented in their lives, they told me the following;  That she was strongly family-centered, that she was always loyal, that she had many friends, that she had a wonderful sense of humor, she was determined, supportive, a caregiver, she was open and available to her family and friends, hospitality was important to her, she was an inviting soul, and how very, very much she loved her family.  They emphasized how she especially loved her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  Her family was her world, and she had a locket made up with all the birthstones of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, she treasured that locket and she's holding it today.

She loved watching her grandchildren grow up, she loved taking care of them and having them stay with her. Even though there were stories of them picking on and teasing her, there was a particular story about a snake placed in the dishwasher, a toy one mind you.... but, I'll allow the family to share more about that story with you during our time together after the service.

They told me about how she happily played cards with them all, even though they all knew that she hated playing cards.  There were stories about many camping and fishing trips to Minnesota. The family talked about how she enjoyed cooking and mentioned her great pickles and how there were always cookies. It sounded like you could never go hungry when you went to visit Grandmother.  If you were at her house in the morning you couldn't leave until you'd had breakfast, a full breakfast too, they talked about how great her pancakes were.

They also talked about how Deloris liked to sew and how she did quilting as well.

There were stories illustrating how caring she was, putting tea towels and bread sacs around the children's feet inside their boots to help keep their feet dry.  About warming up towels to ease the pain of ear infections and how she took care of her husband George. That she always tried to make things special no matter what.  She was always available when she was still able to drive, to take family members to Doctor appointments and such.  The family said she was always helping others and that she passed this important lesson on to all of them.

They told me that Deloris was a 'Shopaholic', right up to the end of her life.  She was always looking for a treasure at the Thrift Stores.  She liked clocks, and she collected plates, and glassware of several kinds, milk glass, depression, carnival glass, and others. It seemed that Deloris particularly enjoyed collecting Coca Cola memorabilia and in fact, she had the hallway by her room at Swan Place decorated with Coca Cola items.  She always drank Coca Cola.

Deloris enjoyed her friends and she was devoted to the 'congregant meals' while the program was still going here in Lake City.  She loved getting together with all of her friends for meals. She was an easy soul to visit with and I enjoyed visiting with her when I stopped in to see her while she was at Swan Place.

The family asked for me to share with you this poem in Deloris' memory:

To My Dearest Family:
To My Dearest Family
Some things I'd like to say
but first of all to let you know
that I arrived okay
I'm writing this from Heaven
where I dwell with God above
where there's no more tears
or sadness there
is just eternal love
Please do not be unhappy
just because I'm out of sight
remember that I'm with you
every morning, noon and night
That day I had to leave you
when my life on Earth was through
God picked me up and hugged me
and He said I welcome you
It's good to have you back again
you were missed while you were gone
as for your dearest family
they'll be here later on
I need you here so badly
as part of My big plan
there's so much that we have to do
to help our mortal man
Then God gave me a list of things
He wished for me to do
and foremost on that list of mine
is to watch and care for you
And I will be beside you
every day and week and year
and when you're sad
I'm standing there
to wipe away the tear
And when you lie in bed at night
the day's chores put to flight
God and I are closest to you
in the middle of the night
When you think of my life on Earth
and all those loving years
because you're only human
they are bound to bring you tears
But do not be afraid to cry
it does relieve the pain
remember there would be no flowers
unless there was some rain
I wish that I could tell you
of all that God has planned
but if I were to tell you
you wouldn't understand
But one thing is for certain
though my life on Earth is o're
I am closer to you now
than I ever was before
And to my very many friends
trust God knows what is best
I'm still not far away from you
I'm just beyond the crest
There are rocky roads ahead of you
and many hills to climb
but together we can do it
taking one day at a time
It was always my philosophy
and I'd like it for you too
that as you give unto the World
so the World will give to you
If you can help somebody
who is in sorrow or in pain
then you can say to God at night
my day was not in vain
And now I am contented
that my life it was worthwhile
knowing as I passed along the way
I made somebody smile
So if you meet somebody
who is down and feeling low
just lend a hand to pick him up
as on your way you go
When you are walking
down the street
and you've got me on your mind
I'm walking in your footsteps
only half a step behind
And when you feel the gentle breeze
or the wind upon your face
that's me giving you a great big hug
or just a soft embrace
And when it's time for you to go
from that body to be free
remember you're not going
you are coming here to me
And I will always love you
from that land way up above
Will be in touch again soon
P.S. God sends His Love
-Author Unknown

Truly, God sends his love to us, He did so through the life of His son Jesus Christ and by extension through the love of all those who love Christ.  When I asked the family about particular scripture verses they mentioned these verses found in the Gospel of John.

John 14:1-7   New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
Jesus the Way to the Father
14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And you know the way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Though all of you gathered today shall miss Deloris, you should all rest assured that this is only a temporary parting and that you'll each get to see Deloris' smile once again when you are reunited in Heaven.  Praise be to God.  Today Deloris is reunited with all of her friends and family that have gone on before her, and today she is in the very presence of our almighty and all-loving God... In her new home, the one made just for her in Heaven... Praise be to God...

Today, I have shared with you many things about Deloris' life, all of these are stories that the family relayed to me... I would now like to share with you one final story.  A story that the family does not know.

On the afternoon of Tuesday, May 14, 2019.  A group of 36 first graders from Kuemper Catholic School, were singing in the Chapel at Swan Place.  The staff asked the teachers, the leaders of the children if they could come down the hall and sing outside the room of one of the residents... a resident that they told the teachers, but not the children, of course, a resident that they told the teachers was dying.  The children gathered outside that room... that room adorned with Coca-Cola memorabilia.  And the children sang several songs for the women inside.  The woman was, of course, Deloris... and as the children sang loudly and gleefully the so, so familiar to us all song... “Jesus Loves Me”... the staff came out crying and told the teachers that Deloris responded and that they knew that she had heard those sweet little voices.

On the afternoon of May 14, Deloris heard those sweet little voices of those 36 little earth angels and knew that Jesus loved her.  That lovely little choir singing a prelude to the choir of Heavenly Angels that Deloris would hear only a few hours later... those Heavenly Angels that welcomed Deloris home... to the room prepared just for her... Praise be to God Indeed.

Special Music: Tracey Amano

Closing Prayer:
Immediately following the service, we will proceed directly to the Lake City Cemetery.  After the graveside service is complete, the family invites and implores you all to gather once again here in the Fellowship Hall at Woodlawn.  Fellowship Hall is just down the long hallway from the back of the Sanctuary.  There will be treats and beverages available and more importantly a time to share memories and to console one another. For those who don't wish to travel to the cemetery, you are welcome to wait here at the church for the family to return.  Once the family returns from the cemetery we will then bless the food and drink.  You are all welcome to remain, visit, and share memories for as long as you wish.

Let us please now pray:
God of life, and light, and hope... with Your whole Church in heaven... and on earth... we bring to You our thanks, we offer to You our praise... for all that You have done for humankind through Jesus who is the Christ.   You sent Him, Your Son... to live and die for us. You showed Your plan for the world and proved that Your love has no limit, and on that first Easter when You raised Jesus from the dead You promised that all humankind might share His resurrection life. For the hope of our faith, for the good news of Your Kingdom, and for all those whom You have welcomed into Your loving presence, we thank You, gracious God... But especially now, we thank You for the life of Deloris whom we loved. 

We thank You for all the ways in which Deloris became special and precious to each of us who knew her; for the values and standards she set by her example and her life; for her sense of what was good and right and decent; for her warmth and humor and sense of family; for every life that she enriched and all that she invested of herself in our lives; for the faith by which she lived and in which she died. 

We thank you for the glorious treasury of memories that are ours to keep, to hold on to and to enjoy – the moments that were deep, special and personal, the times that rang with laughter and fun, and for the ordinary days when affection and love, trust and respect, grew and were deepened. We thank you for the courage shown, and for a life fulfilled, and for all that Deloris reflected of Your goodness and love. And now though we mourn... we also are glad... for we celebrate today that Deloris has found peace and will neither suffer nor mourn again... she has laid her burden down before You and is with You... safe, happy, whole, and welcomed by those for whom she once mourned. Help us to hold on to what we should... and to let go of what we must. Help us not to cling to the past constantly brooding for what might have been, but rather to take forward what she gave us for the rest of our lives’ journey. Help us to trust and to know that Deloris will never be far from us till that day when we all stand together in Your presence. 

O God, our Strength, and our Redeemer, Giver of life, and Conqueror of death, we open our hearts to You just as we are.  We celebrate Your gift of life freely given but are grieved by a sense of loss in the face of death.  The love which binds us to one another leaves us aching as ties are broken.  Accept our tears as emblems of devotion, and transform them into waters of life to nourish us in the days ahead.

We trust You.  We love You.  We know in Christ that Your love is everlasting.  Nothing can separate any of us from Your abiding care.  With You is eternal life.

With confidence, we now entrust Deloris to Your unfailing love and overflowing goodness.  Through the power that raised Christ from the dead to live eternally with You, lift up this, Your servant, to life fulfilled beyond our imagining.  We give You but Your own, enfold her in Your everlasting arms, hold her for she is Your child.

Now strengthen us, through the gift of Your Spirit, to face into the future with confidence that You stand with us.  Grant that the changes of life may leave us stronger as we journey through life.

Reassured of Your abiding presence, help us to knit more firmly the ties that bind us one to another.  

Renewed by Your love, help us to love in ever larger circles so as to embrace Your people everywhere till at last we are all united eternally through Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Benediction:
May the Lord bless you and keep you and may His face shine down on you and grant you all His peace.  Amen.

Postlude:  


Committal Service:
Gathering:
We have gathered here to praise God and to witness to our faith as we celebrate the life of Deloris Krause.  We come together in grief, acknowledging our human loss. May God grant us grace, that in pain we may find comfort, in sorrow hope, in death resurrection.

O God, who gave us birth, you are ever more ready to hear than we are to pray. You know our needs before we ask, and our ignorance in asking. Give to us now your grace, that as we shrink before the mystery of death, we may see the light of eternity. Help us to live as those who are prepared to die. And when our days here are accomplished, enable us to die as those who go forth to live, so that living or dying, our life may be in you.  AMEN

PSALM 121
We lift our eyes up to the hills.
From where does our help come?
Our help comes from the Unseen One,
The Maker of the heavens and the earth,
Who will not cause our feet to stumble,
Our protector who never sleeps.
The Abundant One preserves us,
The Watchful One is our shelter and support.
The Vigilant One guards us from evil,
And keeps our Life-breath safe.
The Shepherd guards our going out
and our coming in from now unto eternity.

Please allow me to share with you the following poem by an unknown author:

The Broken Chain:
We little knew that morning,
that God was going to call your name.
In life we loved you dearly,
in death we do the same.
It broke our hearts to lose you,
you did not go alone;
for part of us went with you,
the day God called you home.
You left us peaceful memories,
your love is still our guide;
and though we cannot see you,
you are always at our side.
Our family chain is broken,
and nothing seems the same;
but as God calls us one by one,
the chain will link again.

Into your hands, O merciful God, we commend your servant Deloris.

Acknowledge, we humbly beseech you, a sheep of your own fold,
A lamb of your own flock, a sinner of your own redeeming.  Receive Deloris into the arms of your love and mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company of those that have gone before.  Amen

Following the Benediction, the family will perform a ceremonial releasing of doves.  The dove has long been a symbol of the Holy Spirit of God residing here with us on this earth.  By releasing these doves the family wishes to represent symbolically the carrying of Deloris' spirit to her home in Heaven.  These doves symbolize the loving Spirit of our God carrying Deloris to that room made ready just for her... Praise be to God.

Benediction:
May the all-abiding love of our all-gracious God... support you, guide you and uphold you in the days, and weeks and years ahead.  His peace be upon you today and all days.  Amen.


Release of the Doves: