H. L. Sheppard
Bulletin
April 2005
The following
excerpts were taken from the sermon given at the funeral of Audrey Martin
Wasson (Sis. Gail Payne’s youngest daughter). Audrey
passed this life on the first day of Spring,
1 Sam
Godly men, like
stones in a brook, become what they are by the friction of life’s trials and
tests, and the constant washing of God’s Holy Spirit over their own.
Why did David
choose 5 “Smooth” stones to use in his fight against Goliath? A smooth stone is
a small piece of a great mountain that has been fractured, broken. Because a
“Smooth” stone has been to the top of the mountain, it knows firsthand the
power that resides upon the lofty peaks of possibility. He chose a “Smooth”
stone because all stones start out jagged and rough, but in time they are
hurled down the mountain and into a cascading stream. The swirling water washes
over them and sends them tumbling along its rocky bed. Farther down the stone
gradually descends, bumping along on its way to the valley. A rushing stream of
water and the constant jostling of rock against rock eventually transforms a rough stone, into a smooth stone.
It
is the smooth weathered surface of the well-worn stone that gives testimony to
its difficult journey. The smoother the stone, the harder the trip it had to
make, the more washing it has experienced.
God
uses “Smooth” stones to slay giants. God uses men who have been pummeled by
incessant criticism, pounded by life’s traumatizing tragedies, hurled from the
high places of success and acceptation, joy and ecstasy, to the lowest places
of failure and rejection, sadness and sorrow. God uses men who have allowed the
constant flow of His Spirit to wash away the dirt and grime that might
otherwise accumulate on a stone endlessly battered by the austerity of life.
We can rarely
make sense of tragedy, and yet, our response to it defines us. Terrible tragedies,
heart-rending disappointment, those cataclysmic upheavals in our life are the
harsh realities that mold our character and shape our attitude. But, it is the
constant flow of God’s Spirit over our own that enables us to come out useful,
dependable, and smooth.
So, for the
young giant slayers who are looking for a rock with which to face their giant,
we are compelled to be patient with that bumpy, trouble-filled, mind-numbing
ride from the mountaintop to the valley below. Because, some bold young man,
some impressionable young lady is looking for a “Smooth” stone, in some
babbling brook, that will enable them to conquer the terrifying challenges &
arduous tests in their own life.
From dust we were created
To dust we shall return
But, in the middle
We plant a garden
(Nelson Eddy)
It is the
beautiful garden of a meaningful life that we all leave behind for the benefit of
those who love us, filled with the aromatic fragrance of precious memories,
from flowers that we’ve planted along the way.
Audrey has
planted many exquisite flowers that are unique to her garden alone.
She invites Mom, Dad, Sister, Daughter, Loved Ones Friends, to linger in that garden, and rest themselves in the beauty that is her life.
Divine
providence determined that the time had come for Audrey to be with Jesus. So,
on the first
day of Spring,
What a
wonderful Savior. From now on, whenever He sends the springtime, and the sweet
perfume of flower gardens is carried along on the morning breeze, be still and
catch the pleasant fragrance of Audrey’s life, and whisper, “God is Good.”
Pastor H. L. Sheppard