Preaching at my sister’s funeral

My sister’s funeral pamphlet.

My sister, Dorothy, who was 12 years older than I am, died in a motor car accident 2 Mondays ago on 15 August 2011, at approximately 18:15. The family asked me to preach at the funeral service which was held yesterday, 26 August 2011.

My plan from the beginning was to preach the gospel, just like I did 11 years ago at my father’s funeral. So, that is what I prepared. Most of my family are still unbelievers, and I believe that my sister was also an unbeliever. She never expressed any belief in Christ, and neither has any of her children. My hope is that in those last moments before she passed away she had an opportunity to cry out to God.

So, the preparation for the sermon went well, and my niece informed me where the funeral would be held at (NG Kerk, Geduld – Dutch Reformed Church in Geduld, Springs, South Africa). The church is on the corner of 3rd Str and First Ave in Geduld.

What was supposed to be a time of remembering my sister, turned out to be a harrowing experience for my family and me. As we drove into Geduld (which means patience-which I do not have a lot of), I swopped the Str and Ave around and ended getting us in the complete wrong area in Springs. And, for anyone who knows Springs, it is a horrible place when it comes to street names. Almost all streets are named 1st, 2nd, 3rd Street, Avenue, Road, and as a result you can be anywhere in that town, and think that you are in the right place, while you are actually totally lost without knowing it.