Text Psalm 23; John 3:16; Romans 8:31-39 (esp. v. 37a)

Theme More than Conquerors

Subject The resurrection faith thru Jesus Christ

Occasion Funeral of Werner G. Dietrich – 4/14/08 – Gay & Ciha Funeral Home – Iowa City

Friends in Christ,

Grace and peace to you form our living Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Amen

I knew of Werner Dietrich for a little more than a day

I was able to spend about an hour with him at the University of Iowa’s Hospital

Surgical Intensive Care Unit – Bay 3, Bed 3

Hardly home but as we learned together

April 11, 2008 began Werner’s final journey home

Thank you Helen, Doug and Darcy and your families

for helping me to better know Werner

As I mentioned at the house,

You’re ones who know Werner

You’re the ones to tell his story

We’re gathered for this little while to remember Jesus and his promises

Especially for us as we face Werner’s death and the reality of our own

The comfort of scripture is clear and vivid

The Lord is our shepherd; we shall not want (Ps. 23:1)

If that’s so – then we have everything we need

We can believe that though we have much that we would want

As long as we’re together

We do have everything we need

Together we can make it through

I read the eternal promise from John 3:16

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

God’s own son

Not a failure but a complete success

Though by the world’s measure he seems anything but successful

Jesus transformed the finality of death into a gateway to eternity

The good news of Easter is still fresh in our ears

Now it is vividly before us to grasp and claim

I was captivated by the story of Werner in his apprenticeship during a bombing

As the building collapses this teenager finds refuge under a fallen locker in the basement of a building

Easy enough to image the horror of that

But then to imagine his finding his way out

A sort of harbinger of his own resurrection

We can imagine it

Even claim it

But especially I am taken by his being conscripted into the army so young

The relief of his Commander Officer’s surrender

His courage to move on with life

His search for passage to America

His finding work

Discovering Helen

Becoming a father

And grandfather

He kept immigrating to newness

Not just to a new land

But discovering himself as a new person in every relationship

St. Paul wrote to the Romans

in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us (8:37)

more than conquerors

Paul was pointing his finger at the Romans who were using Christians as torches to light the streets

There is more to life than conquering

More to life than being the victor

There’s something about being with one another in the midst of the worst of times

Something about watching children play

Watching the sun set in the west

Going swimming early in the morning

Walking to work

Something about living and dying for others

It’s the way of Christ

April 11 was the day Werner left home

Now we know it as they day Werner went home

Christ is risen! Alleluia! Alleluia!