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THE FUNERAL SERVICE
for Dale A. Henry
May 14, 1933 - November 12, 2002
Grace United Methodist Church, Samaria, Michigan Wayne Hawley, Officiating
Pastor
Organ Prelude ................................Dione S. Oerther
*Call to Worship
UMH Hymnal p. 871
Jesus said, I am the resurrection and I am life.
Those who believe in me, even though they die,
yet shall they live,
and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end,
the first and the last.
I died, and behold I am alive for evermore,
and I hold the keys of hell and death.
Because I live, you shall live also.
Friends, we have gathered here to praise God
and to witness to our faith
as we celebrate the life of Dale A. Henry.
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.
*Hymn, No. 133 "Leaning on the everlasting "
1. What a fellowship, what a joy divine, leaning on the everlasting
arms; what a blessedness, what a peace is mine, leaning on the everlasting
arms.
Refrain: Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms; leaning,
leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.
2. O how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way, leaning on the everlasting
arms; O how bright the path grows from day to day, leaning on the everlasting
arms.(Refrain)
3. What have I to dread, what have I to fear, leaning on the everlasting
arms? I have blessed peace with my Lord so near, leaning on the everlasting
arms. (Refrain)
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Old Testament Lesson ...................Isaiah 40:28-31,
Hast thou not known?
hast thou not heard,
that the everlasting God,
the Lord,
the Creator of the ends of the earth,
fainteth not, neither is weary?
there is no searching of his understanding.
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth
strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
and the young men shall utterly fall:
But they that wait upon the Lord
shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
they shall run, and not be weary;
and they shall walk, and not faint.
TWENTY-THIRD PSALM (Let us say this together)
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.
Amen.
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New Testament Lesson:........... John 14:1-6, 25-27;
Let not your heart be troubled:
ye believe in God, believe also in me.
In my Father's house are many mansions:
if it were not so, I would have told you.
I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again,
and receive you unto myself;
that where I am, there ye may be also.
And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
Thomas saith unto him, Lord,
we know not whither thou goest;
and how can we know the way?
Jesus saith unto him,
I am the way, the truth, and the life:
no man cometh unto the Father, but by me…
These things have I spoken unto you,
being yet present with you.
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost,
whom the Father will send in my name,
he shall teach you all things,
and bring all things to your remembrance,
whatsoever I have said unto you.
Peace I leave with you,
my peace I give unto you:
not as the world giveth,
give I unto you.
Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid.
Prayer and Meditation ....The Rev. Mr. Keith Smith
The Epistle ....................Romans 8:18-23, 31-39,
I consider that the sufferings
of this of this present time,
are not worth comparing with the glory,
that is to be revealed to us,
If God is for us, who is against us?
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?
For I am sure that neither death nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities,
nor things present, nor things to come,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us,
from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Solo: We've come this far by faith
CHORUS
We've come this far by faith Leaning on the Lord Trusting in His Holy
Word, He's never failed me yet Oh, Can't turn around, We've come this
far by faith
1. Don't be discouraged with trouble in your life He'll bear
your burdens And move all misery and strife; That's why we've….CHORUS
2. Just the other day I heard a man say he didn't believe
in God's Word I can say God has made a way. He's never failed me yet.
Thank God, We've…CHORUS
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The Message
He kept the faith
He kept the faith.
The words which seem approprate today
are those of a Christian Veteran who said,
as he came to the close of life,
" I have fought the good fight,"
He had been involved in the struggle
against the enemies of mankind;
" I have finished my course"
he had made the most of life,
leaving the world richer because of his living;
"I have kept the faith."
The veteran, the Apostle Paul, had kept something
even as he moved hither and yon
throughout the Mediterranean world.
People today are on the move.
They are moving geographically here and there.
People change physically,
with every cell in one's body changing every seven years. Socially and
spiritually one does not stand still.
In this constant change,
one vital question should be faced,
"What are you keeping?"
Not too long ago Dale A. Henry was telling me
about one of the most devastating times of his life.
His first wife had left him.
He had a lot of her medical bills to pay.
He might lose the custody of his children.
Then Dale's eyes lit up and he said,
"They could take everything away from me,
but they could not take away my faith"
Like the apostle Paul, Dale,
the one in whose memory we are met,
kept the faith,
and his faith kept him.
He kept faith with his family.
Just sitting and talking with him,
I was utterly amazed at how many relatives he knew up the generations
removed, especially in this county.
He felt connected with all of them, especially his two brothers and sister.
He knew their stories. He knew their strengths and weakness. And, he shared
all their illnesses.
Family members drove for miles
just to be with him in this last year.
He tried to do the best he could
to take care of his special brother
and his mother and dad in their late age.
He kept faith with his friends.
Right along with his extended family were his friends.
He was a very devoted and dependable employee
of the Mason School district
where he worked as a bus driver,
outside maintenance, pool maintenace and janitor.
During that time he was on call so much that he had to sleep in another
bed so he wouldn't wake up Idell.
Even though he looked so robust, even wore a beard once, he was suffering
from diabetes and had to sleep with his head and feet elevated.
But he was always willing to help a friend.
He could help out with farm work too.
He drove all the way to Wisconsin to help Jeff
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