Cynthia Ann Wildman Schultz Celebration of Life

e e e e e e e e e [Music] l [Music] con [Music] and to join in the singing of the hymn number 369 in the Methodist himn [Music] is this is my PR [Music] my [Music] all [Music] my may be seated let us pray oh God who gave us birth you are ever more ready to hear than we are to pray you know our needs before we ask give us now your grace that as we shrink before the mystery of death we may see the light of Eternity speak to us once more your solemn message of life and of death help us to live as those who are prepared to die and when our days here are accomplished enable us to die as those who go forth to live so that living or dying our life may be in you and that nothing in life or death will be able to separate us from your great love in Christ Jesus our lord amen please join me in the responsive reading that's printed in your bulletin the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want the Lord makes me pastures leads me beside Still Waters restores my life even though I walk through the darkest Valley I fear no evil you are with me you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life now repeat after me as in the affirmation of faith I believe in the God the Father Almighty maker of heaven and Earth in Jesus Christ Our only son our Lord he was consed by the Holy Spirit born under the Virgin Mary suffered under pontious pilate was crucified dead and buried the third day he rose from the dead he ascended into heaven and sit at the right hand of God the Father Almighty from this he should come to judge the quick and the dead I believe in the Holy Spirit the Holy Catholic Church communion of saints the Forgiveness of sins the resurrection of the body and life Everlasting amen singing hymn number 7001 when we all get to heaven [Music] all [Music] all [Music] to might [Music] all jus [Music] we'd like to thank everyone for coming here today and showing your love and support for Cynthia and her family it's obviously difficult when something like this happens but today should not be about sorrow but celebration I'd like to start with a stanza from a poem by Henry Scott Holland laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes that we enjoyed together play Smile think of me pray for me let my name be ever the household word that it always was let it be spoken without effort without the ghost of a shadow upon it why should I be out of mind though I am out of sight that poem's a reflection of time spent with Cynthia this summer before Cynthia passed Katie Beth and Susie were blessed with two weeks of uninterrupted family time time focused not on work or obligations but just a rare moment to just be together this gift was an opportunity to discuss and experience their favorites favorite foods like Calhoun's famous leis in our family spinach Maria and The Simple Pleasures of McDonald's Egg McMuffin for breakfast that led them to recall family favorite recipes that she taught them throughout the years and I I know I personally look forward to Autumn not just enjoying watching the balls with them but more importantly Cynthia's pepperoni bread not to be outdone by her mother Betty's famous sourdough bread she loved homemade popcorn which is a tradition that we carry on to this day and not a Christmas pass without her famous sausage balls and cheex mix a tradition we also still carry on to this day and during those two weeks it was a surprise to all of us how much she truly loved Dr Pepper oh man sacred ground did everything they could to keep those Dr Peppers in stock I mean who knew then the girls went on to remember their favorite movies and even got to watch many of them together just like they did when they were kids we laughed at Cynthia's many well time comments about her attraction to Robert Redford Harrison Ford and Harry conic Jr also during that time they spoke at Great length about a variety of wonderful family memories for instance Katie spoke of a story that Cynthia told about when she was young she went sledding with her cousins at The Farmhouse in l City some of you know this apparently there was an accident involving some outof control sled and a barb wire fence Cynthia said that everyone jumped off their makeshifts LED except for her and then she ran head first right into the fence and ripped her pants she really loved telling that story and it made us all laugh Susie's favorite story of Cynthia related to her short time and lost Vegas where she worked as a poker shill or prop player for the Golden Nugget Casino in 1971 for those of you who don't know a shill or prop player is defined at least in Cynthia's case is someone who's young attractive charismatic blonde who's paid to play poker by the house in an attempt to get others to come to the table and and play I still have personal deep regrets hearing about how one night the the Elvis Presley was performing just down the street and Cynthia had the opportunity to go and she said no I don't I don't need to no thanks we always gave her a hard time about that Beth got everybody laughing over memories of Norris Lake growing up peepa's boat mima's homemade ice cream and swimming with the kids remembering their first camcorder capturing this cam quarter capturing showed all the kids having a blast tubing and constantly falling off their water skis Cynthia Lo loved the beach and she shared that with John who made sure the girls saw the ocean as often as they possible could they recalled many vacations spent at Myrtle Beach that evolved into a yearly tradition and a family favorite destination besides enjoying family vacations Sports were also an important Pastime in the Schultz household Cynthia was an avid UT fan especially the lady balls you many of you know Cynthia and John enjoyed the Atlanta Braves and we certainly can't forget her fondness for the Cubs although she was an educator for 23 years she loved her family Above All Else always making things about others and never herself as most of you know she was never one to complain yes she battled Ms for the majority of her adult life and I can't even begin to imagine how difficult it was to live with this debilitating disease like Ms have a full-time job and raise a family nonetheless today and those precious 14 days should be and were filled with only happy memories and joyful times those two weeks her daughter spent with her that summer were such a special time only to be enriched by having her sister her brother her cousins her great nephew her grandchildren there to share in this Unforgettable experience with them not only did it strengthen the relationship between the sisters but it solidified the relationship with their mother bringing everyone that much closer so many memories and laughters that occurred during those two weeks in that bubble that they are eternally grateful for her compassion caring kindness and selflessness will never be forgotten thank you again all for coming out and giving us the opportunity to share with this for each and every one of you thank you so much in 1 Peter chapter 1 vers Verses 4 4 through 7 we find this blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ by his great Mercy we have been born a new to a Living Hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and to an inheritance which is imperishable undefiled and unfading kept in heaven for you who by God's power are guarded through faith for a Salvation ready to be re revealed in the last time in this you rejoice though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials so that that the genuiness of your faith more precious than gold which so per per perishable is tested by fire you may abound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ at this moment it may take us some effort to remember that the gospel is good news that the keynote of the Gospel is Joy the gospel begins on a note of joy and it ends on a note of Joy the curtain opens on the midnight scene in which the wise men Rejoice at The Guiding star that led them to the manger Mary Praises God and angels Proclaim Good Tidings of great joy and the curtain never Falls from that point on true there is a blackout scene a time of darkness and Gloom a time of re remorse a time of Sorrow a time of despair but the curtain stays up and there's suddenly a dazzling flash of light that fills the stage and the blinded disciples hear the angel's voice he is not here he is risen are we making light of Good Friday no Jesus himself talked more about Joy his Joy the closer he drew through the cross he tried to impress on the disciples the ne the necessity of of suffering and to share with them at least a fraction of his courage and when he prayed for them on the eve of his death he prayed that they may have my joy made complete in themselves and the disciples didn't forget that soon Paul was urging his friends in Philippi from his prison cell rejoice in the lord always soon Peter was broadcasting to all who would listen to his experience of joy unspeakable and before the end of the aposto era Jude commended his persecuted fellow Christians to him who is able to keep you from falling and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory and rejoicing how did Jesus attain and sustain This Joy Living in the midst of the death of friends in the in the face of his own Agony Laden death not by playing it safe but by trying to stay out of or trying to stay out of Harm's Way or avoiding trouble nor by pursuing happiness self-consciously know the source of Jesus Joy was his surrender to God lived out of daily lived out daily in his self-giving to others when he said seek first the kingdom of God and God's righteousness and all these things shall be added to you he was describing his own lifestyle and all these things included Joy God gave him joy in the midst of fatigue and frustration and discouragement and suffering and sorrow and while he went on feeding the hungry and Healing The Sick and seeking and saving the Lost did Jesus knowing Gethsemane that his Agony and his death would be followed by Victory he believed it but he didn't have any Assurance he believed with all his heart that God's purpose for him included Vindication and victory but this Faith did not Dull The Sting of the Lash nor blunt the point of the Thorns nor shorten the horror of those n all just parching thirsty moments the only thing Jesus knew with absolute certainty was that if he did not go through with the crucifixion he would not receive the resurrection Jesus did go through it and he did do so giving giving to us what Paul the Apostle calls a Living Hope a hope which points beyond the trials of our lifetime to an inheritance that is imperishable undefiled unfading and this hope is power power to live here and now with Mastery of of the self power to find Life by losing it and to find Joy by giving love and this was a secret of our Lord's Joy he was so deeply identified with others that he had no fear for himself he enjoyed living because he was able to see the nonsense of humanity and the perfect sense of God now we know that the hour of death has come in our lives as we come to face in the face of death we know that it has not come as a thief but almost as a friend death has brought peace and rest but we are filled with grief at its coming for we cannot easily give up or Surrender someone that we love we grieve for the loss of Cynthia whom we have lost and we grieve for ourselves and for her love because we loved her so death seems strange to us at this hour while our fear of it seems unfounded and we dread its coming it has brought peace and rest and we don't want to flee from that we are confused by the mingling of our fears and our feelings we we find ourselves exclaiming oh God what has happened how can we contemplate what death means yet we hardly have expressed our anguish when we find ourselves s saying a simply thanks be to God for his mercy and it's the latter confession of faith and in in time fully will color the meaning of this hour of course the giving up of sympathy Cynthia will never be easy and there are tears and the and the pain will stay for a while but it soon will be gone and there as as the immediatey of this death passes we will see it more and more as comfort and rest and peace Christ's life was a perfect Joy because it was a life of perfect love and this love kept his joy undisturbed and made him the pioneer of that living hope that we have through his resurrection Cynthia now enjoys that hope she lived a good life loving caring helping others and we H we must remember the whole of her life in the midst of her own physical difficulty and stress we want to remember her as the woman that she was not just as she was in her latter days we want to remember her in the fullness of her life that once she was young she was loved and she loved we recall that she hoped hopes and dreamed dreams and plan plans we want to remember her in these days days of her joy and her happiness and laughing her laughs in days of sorrow and grief and shedding tears with each other a young woman working with Vitality for life and for living she and John were married for 48 years she loved her family her friends her students her co-workers and those who worked with her to help her with the struggles that would be brought on by the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis it was not an easy life from that point on but she didn't complain she expressed a gratitude to family and friends who comforted her as well as those who assisted her on a daily basis at the University of Tennessee hospital hospice Shannondale hospice sacred ground Hospice Care Cynthia took it upon herself what I think of as the Wildman family origin family of origin code of life and that is love and companionship and faith and caring for others I thought Susan's post on fabook covered it pretty well my sister sweet sister Cynthia gained her angel wings on Thursday she was the sweetest person and never complained she is free from Pain and I miss her so much in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit amen let us pray God of love we thank you for all with which you have blessed us even to this day and for the gift of joy in the days of health and strength and for the gifts of your abiding presence and promise in days of pain and grief we pray for you praise you for home and friends and for our baptism and our place in your church with all who have Faithfully lived and died and above all else we thank you for Jesus who knew our griefs who died our death and who Rose for our sake and who lives and prays for us in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit amen will you stand now and join in singing hymn number 377 [Music] [Music] my your [Music] [Music] with my soul [Music] my my [Music] for my soul [Music] my soul [Music] my glor [Music] [Applause] [Music] praise the praise the [Music] my [Music] my [Music] my [Music] God passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds love God and of his son Jesus Christ Our Lord bless of God Almighty Father Son and Holy Spirit you always amen [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] h for [Music] [Music] so [Music] h [Music] I