This was my message at Wednesday's funeral for Sally Dobrunz.
You may have missed it. Sally inserted a practical joke within her funeral service. Let me explain. A couple of months ago I asked Sally what she wanted for her funeral. She smirked and said, "I love the beach spring melody. I think it would be a kick if everyone sang a beach spring hymn in the beginning of the service and then again later. Everyone would think to themselves, 'Didn’t we just sing this?'" That was the joke! Sally got the last laugh though a very subtle one, kind of like putting a feather in your shoe. That is so Sally.
She had these specific songs she wanted but not Bible texts. She let me pick those. I chose three that remind me of Sally. The first is Philippians 1, which is where Paul says to his church, "I thank God in all of my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now." Paul’s letter to the Philippians is bursting with gratitude to God and his friends. One of the last times Sally could speak, I held her head and asked, "What would you like me to tell everyone at Glendale Lutheran?" She said two words, "Thank you. Thank you." This jibed with what Sally said when she decided to not treat her cancer. She said, "I’ve had a great life."
Sally cherished all that God had given her. She loved her friends, her family, her colleagues and her church. God filled her up with good relationships for decades. That helped her get through the last few months that were terrible and heart breaking. We saw Sally wither before our eyes. She had to move out of her home and give up her familiar surroundings. She couldn’t meet her new neighbors at Bethesda. She couldn’t go to church or Tuesday morning Bible study. Eventually she couldn’t read her precious books. Eventually, she couldn’t take care of herself. But dying couldn’t take away her friendships. God sent Verlane, Jeanne, and Jenny to Sally so she wouldn’t be alone. She was loved until the end. For that she was grateful.
Just last Sunday the epistle from 1 Thessalonians 4 read, "But we do not want you to be uninformed brothers and sisters about those who have passed on, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again even so through Jesus God will bring with him those who have passed on." Paul is speaking of the resurrection of the dead. Jesus conquered death so we can be resurrected as well.
Several times Sally said to me, "I just want to go home." I wasn’t sure if she wanted to go back to her condo or whether she wanted to be with the Lord. Either way she wanted restoration. She hoped either to be restored to how functional she used to be or she hoped that God would resurrect her body fully and completely on the last day. She didn’t get to go back to her condo, but she will rise from the dead. She will run and not grow weary. She will dance with us and the Lord.
For the last two months, when I prayed with her I would touch her head and whisper something like this, "Lord, thank you for Sally. She is loved by her friends, her family and her church. Bring her home to you. Surround her with your love. Let her feel your presence and bring her into your arms." And then I would say the Lord’s Prayer. And no matter how bad her condition got, she would mouth the words.
For those who got to love Sally these last days it was a gift. We got to tell her how much she meant to us. We could be bold in sharing the good news of Jesus. She, too, was free to tell us that she loved us. We all hated to see Sally suffer. That is why I prayed for God to bring her home, but God was working through her death. Her friends loved her more dearly. Her church prayed for her more fervently. Her family cherished her more openly.
She even had an effect on someone she never met. Because of Covid, every time I visited Bethesda I encountered a man named Michael who would take my temperature and ask me questions. His job was to protect the residents. He saw Jeanie and I regularly come in to help Sally. He’d ask how she was doing. Turns out his wife died four years ago in an accident. After Sally died and they brought her body down he saw her for the first time and he wept. She gave him a cry he needed.
Sally’s death was in complete contrast to her life. In death, she was stuck in a hospital bed in her apartment. In life, she explored the world, visiting every continent. It wasn’t until she as a librarian represented her school district on a trip to Russia that she got the travel bug. The other representative was a principal named Verlane. They became travel companions. You can see all of the places they went on a map in the other room.
My third Bible reading was from Acts 13, Paul says, "The Lord commanded us saying, 'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'" Jesus said go and make disciples of all nations. It was a bold command that his people should go and be a light to the ends of the earth. Sally brought the light of Christ to places the disciples couldn’t imagine. And she got to share it all with her sister in Christ, Verlane.
I kind of got the feeling that Sally didn’t think her funeral was going to be a big deal. Sally was an only child who never married. She loved Jenny and her family but who else would come. I assured her that she made a difference in people’s lives. Being a librarian for decades means something. Working in a bakery and bringing food and joy to people means something. Being a beloved member of our women’s Bible study for years means something. God used her to change the lives of me, Beth, Tracey, Mary Ann, Carol, Jeannie, Rosemary, Andrea, Phyllis and many others. Raise your hand if you’ve ever been given a book from Sally. If you want more, we’ve got more.
Today we mourn. Death has stolen our friend. We can’t laugh with her. We can’t see that giant extra-large Diet Coke from McDonald's. We can’t be with her like we want. We mourn not for Sally but for us who miss her. But we have the hope of the resurrection. She will be lifted up into the clouds with our Lord. She not only visited every continent but now she’s added the ultimate destination, the new heaven and the new earth. Like Sally, we are grateful.
