Remembering Michael

Our nephew, 18 year old, Michael, died suddenly and unexpectantly two weeks ago. It seems so unfair for him to go so early. One week before he passed away, he went to see a pastor and made a confession of faith. Russell had to speak at Michael’s funeral this past week. I thought you all might like to read what he told them.

Thanks for praying for the whole family.



Good evening. For those of you who do not know me, my name is Russell and I am Michael’s Uncle. I don’t know how much you might know about me, but if you heard it from Michael, it might not be true. You see, I don’t know what stories his mother told him about me and our growing up together, but I do know that anytime she needed to threaten Michael with the worst punishment she could think of, she would tell him, “I’m going to send you to live with your Uncle Russell.” And apparently, that would do the trick. So if what you know about me comes from Michael, please get a second opinion.

Let me begin by telling you what Bishop Brent wrote,

A ship sails and I stand watching till she fades on the horizon and someone at my side says, “She is gone.”
Gone where? Gone from my sight, that is all. She is just as large now as when I last saw her. Her diminished size and total loss from my sight is in me, not in her.
And just at that moment, when someone at my side says, “she is gone”, there are others who are watching her coming over their horizon and other voices take up a glad shout – “There she comes!”
That is what dying is; a horizon and just the limit of our sight.
Lift us up O Lord, that we may see further.

And that is what I would like us to do this evening; see further.

Michael was a loyal, loving, hardworking young man. His Mama Joan often said that Michael was never afraid of hard work. His mother said he never failed to express to everyone his love. I know he was also a young man looking around saying. ”Life cannot be pointless. There has to be a meaning.” In fact, just a few weeks ago, he went to a church and met with Pastor Baxter and there accepted Jesus as His LORD and savior. To see further, sometimes we have to look back. So let’s look back to what lead Michael to believe.

Michael was an intelligent young man who was asking some hard questions. Questions like where did all this come from? Where did we come from? Why are we here?

Michael didn’t want to just listen to easy answers. He wanted to KNOW the truth. Over the past few months he would ask his mom, his dad, his Mama Joan and many others he trusted about God. What is the truth? Recently, the world has said that there is no truth and there is no God. Everything came from nothing so do what you want and live for yourself. Michael knew that wasn’t true and it’s nothing new. 2000 years ago, it was written in the bible,

“The time is coming when people won't listen to good teaching. Instead, they will look for teachers who will please them by telling them only what they are itching to hear. They will turn from the truth and eagerly listen to senseless stories.”

Michael didn’t listen to senseless stories. He kept searching.

He listened to the wisdom of Colossians 2:8 which says,

“Don't let anyone fool you by using senseless arguments. These arguments may sound wise, but they are only human teachings. They come from the powers of this world and not from Christ.”

Michael had a choice: to believe we came from nothing and that nothing created everything or to believe that we were created for a purpose by God. Michael had questions and he was thinking. So Michael met with Pastor Baxter to have his questions answered. He went to that church, his faith grew, and then He accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Michael chose to believe in God. Why? One reason is that Michael saw proof of God in nature. His mother, Jennifer, said. “Michael loved nature and saw beauty in all of God’s creations.” Michael saw God’s creation and knew we are not random accident. Michael knew our Earth was just a tiny planet in a vast Solar System. And our Solar System is just one member of a vast Milky Way galaxy. And our galaxy is just one member of a vast universe. Yes, Michael saw proof of God in nature.

In fact, Romans tells us,

“God's eternal power and character cannot be seen. But from the beginning of creation, God has shown what these are like by all he has made. That's why those people don't have any excuse.”

Michael knew God, but he also was wondering why was he here. Ephesians says that,

God planned for us to do good things and to live as God always wanted us to live. That is why he sent Christ to make us what we are.

Or, more personally, God planned for Michael to do good things and to live as God always wanted him to live. That is why he sent Christ to make Michael what he was.

From this we know that God created Michael and had a plan for his life, for him to do good things.

You see, Michael understood this even before he prayed to know Jesus. His mother wrote, “Michael had a heart as big as all outdoors and he never failed to express to everyone the depth of his love. Over the years of his beautiful life, he brought more stray animals and people into our home than we could count, and he loved and protected them each unconditionally. Michael’s goal was to fix the world. Although he couldn’t fix everything, he certainly made a huge change in our lives.”

Michael understood that what we do matters to others. He lived what’s called the Butterfly effect. In case you aren’t familiar with the butterfly effect, let me explain. It states that a butterfly could flap its wings on one side of the world and set molecules of air in motion that moved other molecules of air such that somewhere along the line it could change weather patterns on the other side of the planet. Sounds crazy, but it turns out its true. Michael seemed to come into the world understanding the butterfly effect. He knew he could make a difference to the neighbors that he cut wood for, for the stray animals he saved, for the meals he cooked as a service to others, just to make them happy. He made a difference.

We can’t know all the things Michael set in motion. This will be something we shall see over time and through eternity. You see, the butterfly effect is not a theory, but a law. Just like the law of gravity. And not just butterflies. It applies to people too. Michael, even in his young 18 years, knew this in his heart. I can’t look 200 years into the future to see what impact his life will have on the world, but to show it is true, let’s look at just one man.

One cold January night almost 200 years ago, Moses and Susan Carver traded their last horse with some Raiders for what the Raiders had in a burlap sack. It turned out to be an almost dead baby. They named him George Washington Carver, nursed him to health, and raised him as their own. Because of what his parents did, George Washington Carver took a six-year old boy named Henry Wallace on botanical expeditions, taught him about plants, what they could do for humanity, and what God had for his life. Because of what George Washington Carver did, Henry Wallace grew up to become secretary of agriculture, and create a station in Mexico whose sole purpose was to create corn and wheat for dry climates. Because of what Henry Wallace did, a young man named Norman Borlaug was appointed to run the station. Because of what Norman Borlaug did, an estimated two billion people did not die from famine. Now, we could go further back in history, but how far back do we go to show whose move at what time really was the move that ultimately saved two billion people from famine? That’s the butterfly effect in people.

Now, we can’t yet look ahead to see how many lives Michael has touched, but I promise that it is more than you or I can imagine.

So what would Michael want me to say to you now? I think he would want me to remind you that God has a plan for you and what you do will change everything. There are generations yet unborn whose very lives will be shifted and shaped by what we do tonight, what we do tomorrow and the next day and the next because everything we do matters.

He would also want you to know that this is not good-bye, but see you later. You see, Jesus said,

“Everything and everyone that the Father has given me will come to me, and I won't turn any of them away.

I didn't come from heaven to do what I want! I came to do what the Father wants me to do. He sent me, and he wants to make certain that none of the ones he has given me will be lost. Instead, he wants me to raise them to life on the last day. My Father wants everyone who sees the Son to have faith in him and to have eternal life. Then I will raise them to life on the last day.”

Even though Michael’s time on earth is not nearly as long as we would like it to be, it was exactly as long as God meant it to be. David wrote in the Psalms,

“You are the one who put me together inside my mother's body, and I praise you because of the wonderful way you created me.

Everything you do is marvelous! Of this I have no doubt.

Nothing about me is hidden from you!

I was secretly woven together deep in the earth below, but with your own eyes you saw my body being formed.

Even before I was born, you had written in your book everything I would do.”

So how did your time with Michael affect you? Maybe his love of music gave you a greater appreciation for art. Maybe he helped you through a difficult time. Maybe he cooked a meal for you to lift you spirits. Maybe he worked beside you just because he was your friend. Or maybe the love he showed you encouraged you to be loving to someone else. Share those stories with his family over the months ahead. Tell Jennifer and Mike how he helped you. Share with his brother Mitchell how he affected you. Write a note to his Paw-Paw and Mama Joan about how he made a difference in your life. Encourage each other this way. And I hope you can look a little further and see Michael’s butterfly effect.

So what is Michael doing now? I imagine that he is sitting down, pushing his hair to side, strumming a guitar and saying, Uncle Russell, you’re not so scary after all.

Thank you.