Today I officiated a Memorial Service for a patient I had known both through ministry at the Hospital and through Home Hospice.  There was an interesting coincidence because this service fell on what would have been my father’s 87th birthday.  He died at the age of 61.

In preparation for the service I talked with the family and listened to the ways the deceased man made contributions to the members of his family through the role of fatherhood.  His actions as a father made him a hero in his children’s eyes when they were young.  As adults the children gained excellent examples on how to be effective parents to their own children.  That is part of the legacy of his life that we celebrated in the service.

I found myself thinking a lot about my own father as I was planning the service.  I had to be intentional during the service to stay focussd on the person who had died and not my own father.  It was a moment of self-awareness that served me well.  I did spend time later that thinking about my father and that was helpful to me.  I will admit it was an unusual and unexpected way to remember my father on the anniversary of his birthday.

This shows us that current ministry acts can trigger memories of our own life-story and we must be in touch with how our life-story affects the ministry we provide in the present.