Memorial Service Sermon for Henry T. Stokes
December 13, 1995 at Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
Dear Grandpa:Note: This sermon was given in the form of a letter
Congratulations! You're on an amazing journey that you've looked forward to for years. Your eyes saw so many things over these last 92 years. Grandpa, you had so many friends and were so loved by those who knew you and received blessings from your vibrant faith and zest for life. In the movie, "The Wizard of Oz", Dorothy tells the tin man that a heart is not judged by how much you love others but by how much others love you. Grandpa you had a heart of gold.
This took me by surprise, even though I had some warning. You use to say to me, "Everyone dies unexpectedly, nobody markes the day on their calendar." Your son Bob's death brought deep sorrow to you last March, and your surgery on your gall bladder really set your health back. I'm sorry that 1995, wasn't a very good year for you, but I'm sure that the joy you now have in heaven will make this the best year of your life.
I'm sure that you understand I'll have to cry about your absence. You'll be missed so much. There's an absence in this world without you. Others are going to have to be more involved to fill your shoes of love and compassion that were spread so freely. But I'm sure that you are enjoying yourself right now and would want us to celebrate your promotion to glory with joy. After 92 years, you deserve a rest. You deserve to be free from all pain. You deserve to enter that land where they never cry. And I'm sure you were ready to meet your Maker.
Grandpa, you and I both know all the people you want to meet in your new life (like your Mother, your Father, your wife of over 50 years Tippy, your son Bob, your young son Charles, your second wife Letha, and countless other friends). But still our Lord Jesus is the first person you'll want to see. This Christmas, your soul will personally get to say Happy Birthday to Jesus. I'd have to be honest, I'm a little jealous. Wish Jesus a Happy Birthday for me would you.
Grandpa, I thank God upon every remembrance of you. I thank God for the wonders He accomplished in your life. Jesus Christ gets all the glory.
You sure did have a full and active life. Up until your illness in April, you worked at Caremore twice a week, drove your own car, lived independently, cooked your own meals, attended church, kept up your hobby of stamp collecting, watered your plants, and visited friends, especially spending a lot of time with your lady friend Hazel Sperry.
You provided for your five children: Tom, Ducky, Bob, Dick, and Edith and worked hard to support them and look after them through the Great Depression and World Wars. You provided a home and allowed your children's mother to stay at home with them. I hope I will be able to support my family like you did.
You had a loving and faithful marriage of over 50 years to my Grandma Treva Stokes, who was called "Tippy". That kind of marriage commitment is rare in this day and age. I hope my marriage will be filled with the same loyal love and longevity as you had.
Grandpa, I remember that about 25 years ago, you were diagnosed with cancer and your doctor gave you just 6 months to live. But amazingly the cancer went away. I know this changed your life and you knew that God had spared you for a purpose.
A few years back a fire killed your brother TJ and his wife. You were visiting them the night of the fire and had been sleeping in the very same room the fire started in. You said the Holy Spirit warned you late at night to visit your other brother Paul across town and spend the night there. I wouldn't doubt that. I hope I can listen to the Holy Spirit like you did. Grandpa, you always spoke so fondly and with such respect about the Holy Spirit.
Grandpa, the most important thing I remember about you is you were a man of faith. You were a humble Christian. Oftentimes I heard you pray at night, "Father, if we have sinned in any way this day, please forgive us."
Probably the most memorable written record of your faith was your personal covenant with the Lord. I remember it was an idea you learned from your second wife Letha (you were always looking to learn new things from others), but you personalized it and adopted it wholeheartedly for yourself.
The subtitle is "What am I doing each day in preparation for eternity?" I believe "From Here to Eternity" was the theme of your life the last 20 years. Now you have entered your own experience of eternity. Congratualtions, again!
Here's what you said in your personal covenant with the Lord. "Lord, I give up my own purposes and plans. All of my own desires, hope, and ambitions (whether they be fleshly or soulish) and accept Thy Will for my life. I give myself, my life, my all--utterly to Thee to be Thine Forever. I hand over to Thy keeping all my friendships; all the people whom I love are to take second place in my heart. Work out Thy whole will in my life, at any cost,--Now and forever,--For me to live is Christ. Amen Lovingly, Prayerfully for the souls and edification of believers. Then you emphasized 4 passages of Scripture. These Scriptures encourage me now that you have departed from us.
1. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24. "May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it."
2. Philippians 1:21 . "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."
3. John 1:12 . "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."
4. John 5:24 "Verily, verily I say unto you, he that heareth My Word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life; and shall not come unto condemnation, but is passed from death to life."
Grandpa, your faith was not confined to a piece of paper, but your faith had feet and hands. When you got saved you went all out for souls. You had the gift of witnessing. I remember in 1988, you had the goal to reach 3 people to the Lord, and I'm sure that each year you had similar goals. Your dreams usually came true because they were so often God's dreams. You seemed to have a nack for reaching out to those who were drawing nearer to death but were not ready spiritually to die. God gave you the particularly difficult cases. When your time came you faced the difficulty of your own death with courage and peace.
You made such a difference in people's lives. You always thought that after you helped lead that last person to Christ that you were supposed to, then God would take you home. For this reason, you use to get nervous about dying immediately after leading one to Christ. Then you'd settle down when you found that next "Conversion" project. I wonder what the name of the very last person you led to Christ was. Maybe the last person to accept Christ through your testimony will come to faith through your death. That'd be fitting for your life, because you had a passion for souls in need.
You also had the gift of compassion. The Salvation Army, poor at The Saginaw Rescue Mission, and numerous residents of nursing homes, especially Westchester Village in Saginaw and most recently Caremore in Mt. Pleasant were the recepient of your Christian outreach and service.
Grandpa, I thank you because you shared your faith and encouraged me to listen to God's call and dedicate my life to being a minister. You made it clear that if you were 20 again, you yourself would want to be a minister of the Gospel.
I will always appreciate the Godly and honest advice that you offered me, and I know others will recall conversations you had with them about life. You sure were an honest and forthright man. My mind goes back to a letter I received from you dated April 11, 1988. At the close of the letter you said the following encouragement about a decision I was facing. These are your own words Grandpa.
"Regarding my honest findings; after much prayer. I will never attempt to rule anything or situation, when the real decision will be made by Almighty God, through the Holy Spirit--that is why I do not mourn my loved ones passing--I just mourn their absence. Therefore, I am praying that the Lord will guide you through the paths that will be best for your future and success in his kingdom. And if you do not have his complete blessings you have problems. So those are my prayers. Let God Make the Final Decisions. With Love, Grandpa."
You've left me and many others with a tremendous example. Grandma Tippy Stokes' poem, "Hold High the Torch" convicts us of the need for light in the world. In your absence it must come from those whose lives you touched.
Grandpa, I love you and I'm looking forward to the day we shall meet in eternity. I will always remember your favorite verse in the Holy Bible--"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself."
Thank you Grandpa, Thank You God. Your Love Lives On!
Alan Stokes
Grandpa wouldn't want us to mourn his passing, only his absence. Benediction
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