Good morning 🌞
Only 3 more sleeps until Resurrection Day!!! May our hearts and minds be ever grateful for Christ’s ultimate sacrifice at Calvary. Praying you have a terrific Thursday ❤️
The LORD Is My Shepherd
Psalms 23
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 for ever.
Lord, You give me hope when I’m feeling down. You have provided me with direction and counsel when I feel lost. You stand by my side when I’m alone. You fill my heart with joy when my heart hurts from sadness. Thank You, Lord, for Your unconditional love, support, kindness, and healing.
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This devotional is extra special to me today as my husband, and I just finished planning and preparing for a funeral earlier this week. It was going to be hard because we’ve been friends with the family for about 20 years.
While I’ve been to multiple funerals over the years, I had never been on the planning side of one. To say I was anxious and nervous would be an understatement. I wanted to make sure everything was going to go well so the family could focus on saying their goodbyes and comfort each other.
Then I was informed that I’d have to create the funeral bulletin. What? I thought the funeral homes took care of this? I didn’t know what goes in a funeral program let alone how to create one, especially with only a few days to prepare.
My oldest son, tried to encourage me by reminding me that I prepare the bulletin for church every week so I should be able to handle this. I told him I knew this but this would be different. I have no clue how to write an obituary nor what goes into the program.
My husband kept gently reminding me that “God’s got this.” I didn’t want to hear that. I needed instructions and the know how on what to do. I even reached out to a few ministry friends for help.
Several of them said the funeral homes usually take care of all that. Regardless, I was still being asked to do it. I did some research online to find templates and learn what might need to be included in the program, but also how to plan.
To top it all off, my PC tower at church is in the process of crashing (hard drive failing). I asked God to keep it working long enough to be able to use my print shop program to make the funeral program, which He did. I even received compliments on it. Thank You, Jesus 🙌
I was able to find a guest book at Hobby Lobby. It was 40% off which allowed me to buy a “kindly sign” sign to put with the book, which was also 40% off. Praise the Lord 🙌
The funeral went well. The Gospel was preached.
Our church was packed out! 90% of our church members came to show their support (the ones that didn’t were sick) and help out with with cleaning, comforting, and helping with the dinner afterwards. I’m proud of our church family. 😊
We ended up serving over 60 people for the meal. I’m glad I listened to the Holy Spirit and made sure we prepared for 60+. A bunch of the family members expressed their appreciation for all that we did. Some even said they’d keep us in mind for attending church in the future.
God is always good!
I practically collapsed shortly after getting home after 7:30 that night, but God gave me the strength to endure. 🙌
P.S. I’m including links below to sites that I used to help in planning so that it may help others in the future. Just in case you find yourself in the same predicament. Besides, it’s also good information to have to help the whole family be better prepared for whatever the future may hold.
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A few things to know in planning for a funeral . . .
1. Funeral Costs
2. Know Your Rights
3. Funeral Checklist
Make sure your preferences are noted – start a file on your computer or in a notebook and keep it in a safe place.
* Style of Service
* Location
* Type of Burial
* Embalming
* Obituary
https://www.obituare.com/
* Cost
* Finding methods
* Funeral home
* Casket vs Coffin
* Valt
* Final Resting Place
* Mindset
https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/a42557507/how-to-plan-a-funeral/
https://www.funeralbasics.org/funeral-planning-checklist/
https://everloved.com/funeral-planning/
https://www.joincake.com/blog/military-funeral-program/
Put a beneficiary on all financial accounts…
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/L1zFDAoYR52cSjEm/?mibextid=oFDknk
