| Spiritual Non-Fiction posted October 19, 2021 |
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My eulogy upon the death of a close friend
Welcome Home, My Friend
by John Cranford
I'm truly honored to have been given the
opportunity to stand here in this place to
pay tribute to my good friend. In times like
this, we all share a great sense of loss, but
Tom wouldn't want us to dwell on that.
He would prefer we focus on his life and
how he lived. Even then, he wouldn't
want to take credit for all the good things
he accomplished; and there were many.
I recently read a book and as I was
reading, I came upon a passage that just
leapt off the page and pretty much
summed up Tom's life in my mind.
The passage read: "Everyone should
have a helm to grasp; a course
to steer; a port to seek."
I've never known ANYONE who
grasped life's helm more firmly; or
with more enthusiasm and compassion;
or with greater strength of conviction than
Tom. I've never known anyone to chart
and steer a straighter or steadier course in
life; with more love and devotion for his God,
his family, and all those he touched
along the way.
In just sixty-three short years,Tom has completed his journey. He's reached the port he was seeking. He's found
that safe harbor where the winds are still and the sea is calm. He's at rest. I'm sure God has already whispered
in his ear, well done good and faithful servant. Tom's home. And heaven's a far richer place for it.
WELCOME HOME, MY FRIEND!
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I'm truly honored to have been given the opportunity to stand here in this place to pay tribute to my good friend. In times like this, we all share a great sense of loss, but Tom wouldn't want us to dwell on that. He would prefer we focus on his life and how he lived. Even then, he wouldn't want to take credit for all the good things he accomplished; and there were many. I recently read a book and as I was reading, I came upon a passage that just leapt off the page and pretty much summed up Tom's life in my mind. The passage read: "Everyone should have a helm to grasp; a course to steer; a port to seek." I've never known ANYONE who grasped life's helm more firmly; or with more enthusiasm and compassion; or with greater strength of conviction than Tom. I've never known anyone to chart and steer a straighter or steadier course in life; with more love and devotion for his God, his family, and all those he touched along the way. In just sixty-three short years,Tom has completed his journey. He's reached the port he was seeking. He's found that safe harbor where the winds are still and the sea is calm. He's at rest. I'm sure God has already whispered in his ear, well done good and faithful servant. Tom's home. And heaven's a far richer place for it. WELCOME HOME, MY FRIEND!
 Recognized |
Several years ago I was asked to speak at the funeral of my closest friend Tom - something I'd never done before. Thinking what Tom would have done had the situation been reversed, I hesitantly agreed. To compound my stress, I was given two minutes to speak. How can you condense a 37-year friendship into two minutes? I couldn't; but God could. He directed me to a passage in a book and promised that He would give me the rest. He did...and my tribute took exactly two minutes. After the service, someone asked how long it took me to come up with my eulogy. I told them it took twenty minutes to write and thirty seven years to compose.
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