John Martin Wagner, July 25, 1937 - August 23, 2023

John McMann

Funeral • Sermon • Submitted 8 months ago • Presented 8 months ago

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Notes

Transcript

Order of Worship

Welcome & Gathering

Jesus said, I am the resurrection and I am life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, yet shall they live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.

Friends, we have gathered here to praise God and to witness to our faith as we celebrate the life of John Martin Wagner. We come together in grief, acknowledging our human loss. May God grant us grace, that in pain we may find comfort, in sorrow….hope, in death….resurrection.

Added encouragement and

prayer.

Hymn, On Eagles Wings

Old Testament Reading

Barbara James:

Isaiah 25:6–9 NIV

6 On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine— the best of meats and the finest of wines. 7 On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; 8 he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken. 9 In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”

Pastoral Prayer

O God, who gave us birth, you are ever more ready to hear than we are to pray. You know our needs before we ask, and our ignorance in asking. Give to 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 in death will be able to separate us from your great love in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Add prayer for

Sandy: Healing, peace and comfort

Kurt: Fill the places of emotions of loss and bring comfort

Susan, Gail, Barbara, Karen, Steve… For the unpleasant memory of loss, remind them of your closeness

Grandchildren and great-grandchildren, that even now might be a witness of life and joy

Amen.

Will you join me in the Lord’s prayer as you are able:

OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN, HALLOWED BE THY NAME. THY KINGDOM COME. THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD, AND FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES, AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US, AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL. FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM, AND THE POWER, AND THE GLORY, FOR EVER AMEN

Celebration of Life

Read Obit

John M. Wagner, 86, of Montgomery, TX, passed away August 23, 2023 after an extended illness. John was born July 25, 1937 in Upper Darby, PA, the son of Curtis Allen and Helen (Martin) Wagner. He married Dorothy Ann Williams in 1963. She passed away on October 29, 1972.

John married Sandra St. Phillip Garven on July 2, 1977. Sandra resides in Montgomery, Texas, where they lived for the past twenty-three years.

John received a degree in Biology from Millersville State University, in PA, where he competed in Varsity Football and Wrestling.

John taught Science and Coached Football/Wrestling at Lower Merion High School (PA) and then Mainland Regional High School (NJ). He then became a Sales Engineer for Gulf Oil and subsequently rose through the ranks of Gulf/Chevron retiring in 1997. John retained his passion for wrestling and served as a high school wrestling official for many years.

John served in the Army’s Chemical Corp. He was a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers and the American Petroleum Institute. He was also a member of First Methodist Conroe Church.

He is survived by his wife, Sandra, his son, Kurt (Nann) Wagner, of Normal, IL, and grandsons John Allen Wagner and Connor Wagner. Also surviving are Sandra’s children: Susan Garven, Gail (Scott) Schaeffer, Barbara (Louis) James, Karen (Bob) Phillips, Steve (Kit) Garven, eight grandchildren (Steve, Elizabeth, Eric, Jennifer, Carolyn, Scott, Paul, Grace), and eight great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by granddaughter Lauren Catherine James and great-granddaughter Emerson James Schaeffer.

John had a love for trains, which developed from his father’s employment with Baldwin Locomotive. He built numerous model railroads over the years. John also enjoyed photography, traveling, and decorating for Christmas, especially adorning the Christmas tree with gorgeous ornaments collected from his and Sandra’s many travels. John is most remembered for his love of fishing and enjoyed many hours on his boat, “The Reel Texan.” His son and grandsons have fond memories of many great catches with John. In later years, he found joy going down to the dock and feeding the fish in Lake Conroe.

John Allen Wagner

Kurt Wagner

Special Music, Ruth Ann, Amazing Grace

New Testament Reading, Karen Phillips

Karen Phillips

Romans 5:1–5 NIV

1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Pray.

Message

It has been an honor and joy to get to know John and to hear about who he was as a man, dad, granddad, and follower of Christ.

One of my favorite stories and apparently one that was his favorite stories to tell was the time he was elected to represent teachers before the school board and challenged them to treat young qualified teachers more fairly or lose them to other industries...

Are you a young qualified teacher?

Yes.

Well, why do you stay?

He quit on the spot. This was a launching point into a successful career, but perhaps an early window into his heart for education, advocacy, and caring for others.

Later he would build a program at CISD so that kids could build cars and learn about automobiles and race these model cars at the school.

I understand that John could be a bit of a gruff....a little “grumpy,” …that’s ok to say out loud, we are not here to pretend John was perfect (his salvation was never dependent on that), but underneath some of that was someone who was fiercely caring. For his kids, his family. For someone that lost a job or a loved one.

Often it is those that know loss and struggle that also bring the most intentional presence of love in the face of that for others.

I know that today is hard. Things have a new meaning from here on out. His love for Christmas and for the tree with the ornaments from around the world. His enthusiasm will not easily translate…it will take work in some ways. There will be good days and surprising days, but we know in our bones in gatherings like this that death is not right. It’s not how things were intended.

So I have the important job today to remind us the hope we have in Jesus Christ and the hope of resurrection.

Paul’s letter to their Romans is a masterpiece on the Christian faith. This is the height of the Christian proclamation as he hopes to strengthen the early church in their faith and lay out the good news of salvation.

In our text that Karen read, Paul proclaims a few important things:

First, peace with God:

Romans 5:1 NIV

1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Through Christ with have peace with God. There is a couple ways to read this. One interpretation is that without Christ, we are in trouble and at odds with God and with Christ, there is a cease-fire…He is no longer at odds with us....this is only a half-truth. Through faith in Christ there is healing and wholeness. The biblical witness of peace is not just about calming what was chaotic, but biblical peace is about restoring what was broken.

So in Christ, we know who we are and who we were created to be. In Christ, we are justified (made right), or rebuilt, restored. Like a broken down train locomotive that is made to work again .....I had to work in a train somewhere.

John experienced this wholeness and healing in many parts of his life and most of all, that fullness of healing and wholeness because he is not forever with the one who created him.

Second, suffering is not wasted:

Paul says something radical....

Romans 5:3 NIV

3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;

We glory in our sufferings? How can sufferings be a good thing?

Well he is not saying that sufferings are a “good” thing within themselves. God does not make us face the things of this life so that we can learn perseverance and character. The saying “everything happens for a reason” is often thrown around carelessly....God is not just trying to help our character. But we glory even in sufferings because God will not even waste the difficult seasons. And probably most importantly, it is in suffering that we are most intimately connected to Christ who took on all the suffering of this world.

Finally, hope is more than optimism

Romans 5:5 NIV

5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Paul is making sure we are clear that our hope is not wishful thinking.

Upon a fishing excursion, John might “hope” he would catch an 8 pounder.

That is different than the hope we have in the resurrection. Hope in our faith is certainty in what hasn’t happened yet, but will.

Today is difficult but we rejoice in certainty of John’s salvation and certainty for all of us in Christ that mourning will turn to joy, brokenness will find restoration, for all that call upon the name of Christ will find peace.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Hymn: Here I am, Lord

Benediction

The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. And the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

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