Funeral | Mei Tseng
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SERVICE OF FUNERAL
SERVICE OF FUNERAL
Prior to Service:
Enter Notes Below:
Funeral Service:
Prelude: “Kiss the Rain” by Yiruma - Melody Yu, Granddaughter
Opening remarks and Prayer - Pastor Ryan Reed
2 Samuel 22:2-3 “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. He is my refuge, my savior, the one who saves me from violence.”
Scripture Reading: Psalm 23 - Samuel Yu, Son-In-Law
Selection: “River Flows in You” by Yiruma - Melody Yu, Granddaughter
Eulogy 1 of 3 - Melissa Tseng, Daughter
Eulogy 2 of 3 - Steven Tseng, Son
Eulogy 3 of 3 - Mr. Tseng, Husband
Eulogy and Musical Tribute - Melody Yu, Granddaughter
"First Arabesque” by Debussy
"Nocturne in E minor, Op. 72, No. 1" by Chopin
Musical Tribute: "Teardrops at Night” by McLean - Sophie Yu, Granddaughter
Musical Tribute: “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" by Bastien -Leilani Yu, Granddaughter
Open Remarks (2-3 minutes per person, 10 min total) - Friends and Family
Message - Pastor Ryan
Hymn: "He Lives" - Lena Yu,
Dismissal: “O Holy Night” by Adams/Goldston - Melody Yu, Granddaughter
Graveside:
Scripture Reading and Opening Prayer - Pastor Ryan
Amazing Grace Introduction - Melissa
Amazing Grace - 5min
Family Speaker - 5min
Rose Farewell - 5min
Closing Prayer and Final Remarks - Pastor Ryan - 5min
John 11:25 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.”
---- Message
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father…
I’d like to share 2 passages from God’s Word that bring comfort and hope to our saddened hearts during moments like these.
The first from Psalm 23, as Samuel read earlier, and is printed on your program
and the other from 1 Corinthians 13.
The Psalmist, King David, wrote, Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
The good news of the opening verses tell us that Christ, our Lord, is our shepherd. He’s your shepherd. He’s Mei’s shepherd, and now on the other is content and safe in the arms of her Savior, who loves her and calls her his very own daughter.
For us navigating these difficult days, this Psalm shows us that God guides us along rocky paths to brings us to the calm waters of his peace, refreshing our souls with his grace.
His guidance never fails us. His presence is always with us.
In fact, in this season of advent, we are reminded that our Lord Jesus arrived to our world, as Immanuel, God with us, to show us the way home to our Heavenly Father.
We give thanks and praise today that Mei knew Christ as her Immanuel. She placed her trust in him for the forgiveness of her sins and placed her confident hope in his arms, healed and restored.
Wherever we follow our Lord in this life onward into eternity, he promises to place our feet on solid footing. No matter what circumstances might befall, no matter what situations might arise, even if the whole world gives way, Christ is the solid rock we stand, and all other ground is sinking sand.
The Psalmist continues…
Even though I walk through the darkest valley [some translations say, ‘the shadow of death], I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
A shepherd’s staff was comprised of two parts: a rod on the bottom and a hook on the top. The rod was used to guard the sheep from predators And the hook was used to draw sheep close when they wander. In the same way, our Shepherd Lord guards us from the evil one. He protects us from the enemy’s schemes, fighting battles seen and unseen on our behalf. He also draws us close when we wander and lose our way in fear.
Like a good shepherd, He doesn’t leave us or forsake us. Rather, in our grief and pain, he brings us close To lead us through the valley of death Into new life.
The Psalmist continues…
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
The Lord offers those who place their trust in him blessing upon blessing in abundance by the gift of his grace.
Anointing means the covering of God’s presence. As Christ followers, the Father’s anointing over the Son now covers you. You are protected. Mei is protected, so you need not fear nor worry in the wake of her passing, for she is alive in the presence of her Savior!
King David concluded the Psalm, writing…
Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Oh, what a hope! What a promise for those of us on this side of life and what a reality for Mei to experience right now with her Lord!
And he invites us to dwell with Him forever In his house of peace and righteousness.
As Christ followers, today, we mourn and we also celebrate. Today, we are tasting the bitter reality of death and we are experiencing the sweet life of Jesus’ promise. We are missing Mei, and we are celebrating her heavenly vision becoming realized!
Only God can make honey from the rock hard moments in our life like this one.
Oh my, death breaks God’s heart. It has no place in his good redeemed creation.
In Revelation 21:3-4, the Apostle John wrote: “I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
Which means for us now that one day your sorrow and tears will be wiped clean by your good Shepherd and Lord, never again to roll down your cheek.
Psalm 23 is a song for moments like this when we grieve the pain of death and need the presence of our Lord to assure us of his steadfast, unwavering faithfulness and forever love.
Now, speaking of love, 1 Corinthians 13 reminds us of what truly matters in this life.
When the tidal waves of sorrow and pain feel overwhelming, 1 Corinthians 13 lifts us above the waves so that we might fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith.
The Apostle Paul wrote, And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
When all is said and done, Paul says, there are only 3 key ingredients to life that endure to the very end: faith, hope, and love.
Faith
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1
Though we can neither see God nor Heaven, our hearts long for eternity. Faith is the confident hope that one day we will be made new and united with our Heavenly Father to experience new life beyond this life filled with no more tears, no more sorrow, no more strife and division, and no more death.
Jesus said, “Behold, I am making all things new,” (Rev 21:5) and for those who place their faith in Jesus, we are made new.
Faith chooses to believe in this truth. Faith sees beyond what we can perceive with our eyes and touch with our hands.
Dare I say, faith sees more than what our eyes can see. It sees beyond the boundaries of this life to see forever with Jesus.
--- story from Mei’s life
Romans 10:9 says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Mei didn’t life a perfect life, but Jesus isn’t asking for perfection. He’s asking for your trust.
John 12:44-46 - Jesus shouted to the crowds, “If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me. For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.”
Mei lived a good life, full of faith, trusting in Christ as her Lord and Savior and believing in a reality that extends beyond this life into eternity.
His light shined bright on her in this life to guide her way into life everlasting.
His light is shining now, and for those with the eyes of faith to see, he will guide your way into life everlasting also.
This is our Hope.
These bodies break down, and they will eventually pass away. Nothing holds breath forever, and yet, when death happens, our hearts fill with such sadness because God never intended for death to exist in this world. Death resulted from sin. Yet, for those who place their faith and hope in the one who forgives us from the stain of sin, then his anointed covering frees us from the pain of death!
‘Absent in the body, present with the Lord.’ 2 Corinthians 5:8, KJV, Paul wrote.
The hope of the Christian faith says ‘o, death where is your victory. O death, where is your sting?’ 1 Corinthians 15:55. It is not found in the life of a believer, that’s for sure! Death has been defeated on the cross, and now every person who places their trust in Jesus rises with him in victory.
In many ways, this is a profound mystery, but as we stand here before Mei, this is precisely the hope that leads us onward to the reality that she now knows!
Amen?!
Love
Finally, love.
Of faith, hope, and love that remain until the very end, the greatest of these is love.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
Love is what moved God from heaven to earth to save us. Love is what sent Jesus to the cross. Love is why Jesus died.
Love is what holds all things together.
John wrote, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.” So that we might live forever with him.
In my conversations with Steven and Melissa, I quickly learned that of the three things that remained for Mei at the end of her life were faith, hope, and love.
Love endured for Mei to the very end, her smile proved it.
For us standing here now, faith, hope, and love are what remain, but the greatest of these is love.
One of the ways that we can honor Mei’s legacy is to honor Christ Jesus who saved her live by the fruits of Christ’s Spirit that nore in Mei’s life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.
These fruits harvest all year round, everyday, all the time, and they all point to a life to come, which John wrote:
And this is what he promised us—eternal life. 1 John 2:25
This verse is our faith, it is our hope, and this promise is rooted in the resurrection of Christ’s eternal love.
Don’t wait. Jesus is here, and by the power of his Spirit made alive in you when you believe, he gives you the inheritance of eternal life and the promise of freedom from sin.
Let’s pray together…
Thank you, Lord, for Mei’s sweet and precious life. Thank you for the legacy that continues in her family. And thank you for the gift of your son, Jesus Christ, who made this promise available to us…