A Place Prepared in Love

Long Before Margie Arrived

11.4.2026

The family has chosen the following scripture readings and beloved hymns to celebrate Margie's life and to proclaim the hope we have in Christ's resurrection.

Scripture Readings

Funeral Service

• Psalm 23

• Isaiah 62:2-5

• Romans 8:32-39

• John 14:1-7

Committal Service (Graveside)

• Job 19:25-27

• Psalm 42:1-7

• 1 Corinthians 15:51-57

• Revelation 7:15-17

Hymns & Special Music

• Alleluia! Sing to Jesus

• I Will Change Your Name

• It Is Well with My Soul

• Leaning on the Everlasting Arms

• O Love That Will Not Let Me Go

• Beautiful Savior

• The Lord Bless You and Keep You

• How Great Thou Art

Dear beloved children of God,

In John 14, Jesus says,

"In my Father's house there are many dwelling places...

I go to prepare a place for you."

These are words of comfort, especially when our hearts are heavy with grief.

After hearing the story of Margie's life, I find myself returning to these words:

"I go to prepare a place for you."

When we hear Jesus say that, what part of this promise touches you the most?

Some might wonder:

What does that place look like?

Who will be there?

How are we be received when the time comes?

Jesus never tells us.

He never gives us a blueprint of heaven.

Instead, Jesus gives us something better. That’s his heart behind the preparation.

Whenever we prepare a room or a place for someone we deeply love,

we do not simply make space.

We prepare it with that particular person in mind.

The room or space says,

"I know you."

"I have been thinking about you."

"That’s how much I care about you."

Jesus does not describe the room because the point is not the room or that place.

The point is the One who prepares it with love.

Christ knows each of his children so completely that

the place prepared for them is shaped by that love.

As I reflect on Margie's life, I cannot help but wonder

what that prepared place might be like for her.

Margie's faith journey was marked by both challenges and grace.

Her early childhood began with uncertainty.

She knew what it meant to search for belonging,

to long for a place where she was known, welcomed, and cherished.

Perhaps that is one reason she opened her heart so freely

to others throughout her life.

The love and acceptance she longed for

became the love and acceptance she shared.

Through every season of joy and hardship,

God was quietly weaving a story of grace.

And perhaps that is one of the most beautiful things

we can say about Margie:

her life became a witness to God's faithful care.

In the place Jesus has prepared for her,

I imagine all the music that strengthened her faith now fills the air with joy.

The trust and hope she carried in her heart have become sight.

The faith she carried became faith shared through song.

The love she gave became love multiplied.

Margie witnessed enormous changes in the world throughout her lifetime.

Yet through it all, she raised a beautiful family,

nurtured deep friendships,

and planted seeds of faith in countless ways.

Today, her legacy is visible in the people gathered here.

It is visible in the stories we share,

the values she passed on,

and the love that continues to bind this family together.

The seeds she planted continue to bear fruit.

And perhaps that is why these scriptures fit together so beautifully.

Psalm 23 tells us that the Good Shepherd never abandons us.

Family matters to Margie.

Isaiah promises a God who delights in God's people.

Margie delights in her communities and her families.

Romans declares that nothing in all creation can separate us

from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

That is the same promise we all hold dear to our hearts,

Margie remains part of our lives and our story,

and nothing can separate her from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

And then Jesus says, "I go to prepare a place for you."

The Good News today is not simply that heaven exists.

The Good News is that Christ knows Margie.

The Good News is that Christ has been preparing for her arrival.

The Good News is that the love that held her throughout her life

has not released her in death.

Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

that love has carried her into God's eternal embrace.

And that same promise belongs to all who trust in the same Lord.

What we are celebrating today is not only

how much she loved, but how much she was loved.

And that love does not end here.

Jesus says, "I will come again and will take you to myself,

so that where I am, there you may be also."

Throughout this service, through the prayers, scriptures, memories, and songs, we are seeing the beautiful web of relationships that shaped Margie's life.

We are remembering the ways she blessed us.

We are giving thanks for the ways God worked through her.

And we are entrusting her to the Savior she trusted throughout her life.

Her life now rests in the hands of our beautiful savior.

She now sees face to face

the One who knew her story from beginning to end.

The One who never abandoned her.

The One who redeemed her.

The One who prepared a place for her long before she arrived.

The child who once longed for a place to belong

now rests forever in the place Christ prepared for her.

As people of faith, we know this is not goodbye forever.

For the One who prepared a place for Margie

is also preparing a place for all who belong to him.

And by God's grace,

in God's time, and

through God's promise,

we will meet again.

Amen.