The Seasoned Joker
Friends, we are gathered here to honor the memory of our departed friend and family member, Gary Elzey. We have come not to mourn his death, but to celebrate his life. And indeed there are many things to celebrate.
There are many stories we could tell about Gary; he was a man who “could walk into a room with 20 strangers and given a couple of hours he would come away with their life stories,” he had a way of making it seem like he had known you for years. He was someone who always wore a smile, in fact his smile was the first thing he put on and the last thing he took off as natural as getting undressed at night.
To me, Gary was a joker, but I don’t need to tell any of you that. I don’t know how many times he would pull me aside and say, “Hey Sean, have you heard the one about…” and he would get about halfway through the joke and say to me, “Oh, I forgot who I was talking to.” Then I’d loosen my tie and tell him “I’m not a pastor anymore,” and he would laugh and we would talk for quite a while after. But I knew I was always in trouble when he’d start a joke saying, “A rabbi and the Pope went to Heaven.”
Gary was a man whose presence will be both deeply missed and richly celebrated, but one thing we can’t help but do is to praise God for the time we were given with him.
Let us pray:
O God, our Father, Creator of us all, giver and preserver of all life: We confess to you our slowness to accept death as part of your plan for life. We confess our reluctance to commit to you those whom we love. Restore our faith that we may come to trust in your care and providence; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Teddy Roosevelt once said that both life and death were part of the same Great Adventure and that the only ones fit for that adventure were those who did not run away from the joys of living. Gary was one of those that was fit for the Great Adventure, he knew the joy of living, and he passed it on to each and every one of us gathered here today.
I heard it said that time is a predator that stalks us all of our life, but I prefer to think of time as a companion who accompanies us on the journey, reminding us to cherish every moment, for they will never come again. Gary taught us to remember and cherish the moments we had. He always was there when someone needed him. He never neglected to put others before himself. And he has left us with an opportunity to spread some of the joy that he gave us.
Joy is a gift from God, that when given to us can be either positive or a negative, depending on where it is derived from. Joy can be positive when we hear the laughter of a friend or family member, joy can be positive when we see a baby born, and joy can be positive when we accomplish something great. Joy can be negative if we derive it from the weaknesses, shortcomings, or pain of others. Gary’s joy was very much positive and can be best summed up by the poem Afterglow.
I’d like the memory of me to be a happy one,
I’d like to leave an afterglow of smiles when life is done.
I’d like to leave an echo whispering softly down the ways,
Of happy times and laughing times and bright and sunny days.
I believe that Gary would want us to remember him for both the smiles he put on our faces, and for the smile that was forever imprinted on his. There are few words that I can offer you today as comfort. But I can tell you that God is a loving and caring God. This same loving and caring God wrote these words through his servant David in the 23rd psalm:
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Gary taught us joy. But there is a greater joy than that which Gary gave to us and that is the joy of knowing and following Jesus Christ. We are told in the book of Proverbs, that a cheerful heart is good like medicine. We also read that those following Jesus while he was yet on this Earth, were people filled with a great joy by being in the presence of the Holy one, the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
In the Bible, we read “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death is your sting?” Previously, I stated that time was like a predator that stalked us all of our lives. However after Jesus defeated death on the cross, the predator lost his teeth. He no longer stalks us. Jesus has given a chance for eternal life in him by his death. That is an opportunity that presents itself today, tomorrow, and through all of our lives all we have but do is ask. The predator has been defeated by Jesus’ death, and we no longer need fear his fangs and claws if we but trust in Jesus as our Savior. It’s as easy as ABC:
Adoration – Tell him that you thank him for dying for you.
Believe in Jesus – Believe in what the Bible teaches about Jesus and his sacrifice.
Confess your Sins to him – Recognize that you are a sinner and that Jesus died to set you free from your sin.
I would like to close with a poem entitled Miss Me, but let me go.
When I come to the end of the road
And the sun has set for me,
I want no rites in a gloom-filled room.
Why cry for a soul set free.
Miss me a little…but not too long
And not with your head bowed low.
Remember the love that we once shared.
Miss me…but let me go.
For this is a journey we all must take
And each must go alone.
It’s all a part of the Master’s plan,
A step on the road to home.
When you are lonely and sick of heart,
Go to the friends we know
And bury your sorrows in doing good deeds.
Miss me…but let me go.
That is a final message from Gary; he doesn’t want us to cry for him as we think about his passing, instead he would want us to give him a good chuckle as we think about all the jokes and stories he told through the years. Miss him but let him go.
We are now going to watch a tribute video that was put together to honor Gary. As you watch it, try and remember the good memories that we all have of Gary.
- Video -
- Read “Footprints” -
- Beyond the Sunset (music) -
- Prayer and Announcements -
- Motorcycle song (music) -
- END OF SERVICE -
