Funeral Address

Lindy Kaesler, Friday May 25th, 2012, St Petri

Lindy Kaesler dies at the age of 105. her birthday was on April 25th. her birthday was a normal day when she was born – not ANZAC Day as it is now. The Titanic sailed 5 years AFTER she ws born. What a long life. What a long life in God’s presence and peace.

 

Psalm 74;23-25

23 Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.
24 You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

I am told that Lindy would often express great doubt about God’s purpose for her life, not just in the sense of not being sure why the Lord had her stay so long to outlive so many in her 105 years, but way back when she was a mum living in the day-to-day goings on of her large family. Apparently, she would often say something like “I don’t know what I am here for”, showing a sense of insecurity about what God’s plan was for her life and what her contribution as a baptised daughter of God was.

She would not be alone in voicing this kind of insecurity about life. We don’t know the future and we often struggle to understand what is going on in the present.

With this inability to know and see and understand much about our lives can come moments of great doubt about our purpose, God’s purposes for us, our goals and directions and our place in the world.

Often we might think that who we are and what we have been given to do for now is not important, not part of God’s plan for us or worth much to him or anyone else.

It is not that hard to give up on all this rather daunting kind of questioning and this sense of being all alone in the world and of no use to anyone and God and just go it alone in our own strength with our own views and on our own terms.

We need to remember today when we get like this. We can remember a person named Lindy Kaesler. We can remember that as far as God is concerned Lindy was his dearly loved daughter from the day she was baptised on May 20, 1907 at tabor in Tanunda by Pastor Hassfelt until 4.00am last Friday morning when she was guided home to glory with the One who first brought her into being.

As a dearly loved person of God, who often seemed to question her worth and her place in God’s mission to love the world, Lindy actually lived out her calling in such a way that she has left a great legacy of faith in Jesus to many.

God blessed her with 9 children24 grand children, 42 great grand children and even 3 great, great grandchildren. Many of them will tell a story of faith when they speak of Lindy.

Many people in the Barossa Valley will tell the same story.

Many people at St Petri will tell the story of faith too.

In the end, Lindy was clear about things. Her favourite psalm word from her Saviour Jesus and Heavenly Father was this:

 23 you (Lord), hold me by my right hand.
24 You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

Friend, follow Lindy’s lead. Let the things of your life that worry you, trouble you and make you believe that you are alone and of no value to God go because like Lindy and her long and fruitful life your life counts and you count to God—

Just see Jesus and all he is and all he has done and is doing for you.

Just look at what he did in your baptism. Your baptism lasts at least 105 years!

 

Let Jesus Christ guide you with his counsel and take you to glimpses of his glory and grace day by day

and let him make your life count for his purposes, as Lindy’s life has counted for his purposes.

 

As Lindy received this word in her confirmation from John 15, may you receive them today…

 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Thanks be to God for his remaining with us for the long haul.      Amen.