In Loving Memoryof

John Stowell22nd June 1947 ~ 26th June 2009

The funeral service conducted

on

Tuesday, 30th June 2009

at 12noon

ORDER OF SERVICE

MUSIC IN MEMORY OF JOHNBette Midler ~ Wind Beneath My Wings

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WELCOME

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OPENING PRAYER

We have come here today to remember before God our brother John. To give thanks for his life. To commend him to God our merciful redeemer and judge;

To commit his body to be cremated, and to comfort one another in our grief.

God of all consolation, your Son Jesus Christ was moved to tears at the grave of Lazarus his friend. Look with compassion on your children in their loss, give to

troubled hearts the light of hope and strengthen in us the gift of faith, in Jesus

Christ our Lord.

GOSPEL READINGJohn 5 Vs 24-27

I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.

READING FROM SCRIPTURE

Romans 8 Vs 38-39

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,

neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor

anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God

that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

HYMN

ABIDE WITH ME

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;

the darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide.

When other helpers fail and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, abide with me.

I fear no foe, with thee at hand to bless;

ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.

Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory?

I triumph still, if thou abide with me.

Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes;

shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.

Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;

in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

PRAYERS

All: Lord, we come into your presence to remember John and to seek

your comfort, for we know that nothing can separate us from your love and that you support us in our sorrow. We are sure that the

souls of the righteous are with you and that nothing can harm them.

Although they have died they are in peace. Give us your strength to rejoice that you have taken John to be with yourself where he shall

no more be in need. May we find life and peace and perfect joy with him in your presence; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

All: God of mercy, we acknowledge that we are all sinners. We turn

from the wrong that we have thought and said and done, and are mindful of all that we have failed to do. For the sake of Jesus, who

died for us, forgive us for all that is past, and help us to live each day in the light of Christ our Lord.

Amen.

READING FROM SCRIPTURE

Psalm 23The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in

green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I

walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou

art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil;

my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

POEM Canon Henry Scott-Holland, 1847-1918,

Canon of St Paul's Cathedral

Death is nothing at allI have only slipped away into the next room

I am I and you are youWhatever we were to each other

That we are stillCall me by my old familiar name

Speak to me in the easy way you always usedPut no difference into your tone

Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrowLaugh as we always laughed

At the little jokes we always enjoyed togetherPlay, smile, think of me, pray for me

Let my name be ever the household word that it always wasLet it be spoken without effort

Without the ghost of a shadow in itLife means all that it ever meant

It is the same as it ever wasThere is absolute unbroken continuity

What is death but a negligible accident?Why should I be out of mindBecause I am out of sight?

I am waiting for you for an intervalSomewhere very nearJust around the corner

All is well.Nothing is past; nothing is lost

One brief moment and all will be as it was beforeHow we shall laugh at the trouble of parting when we meet again!

A PERSONAL TRIBUTE & MUSIC IN MEMORY OFJOHNGerry and the Peacemakers ~ You'll Never Walk Alone

A PERSONAL TRIBUTE & MUSIC IN MEMORY OFJOHNGerry and the Peacemakers ~ You'll Never Walk Alone

POEMFootprints

One night I dreamed I was walking

along the beach with the Lord,

many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.

In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.

Sometimes there were two sets of footprints.

Other times there was only one.

This bothered me because I noticed

during the low periods of my life when I was

suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat,

I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord, you promised me,

Lord, that if I followed you,

you would walk with me always.

But I noticed during the most trying periods

of my life there has only been

one set of prints in the sand.

Why, when I needed you most,

have you not been there for me?

The Lord replied,

the times when you have seen only one set of footprints

it was then that I carried you.

THE LORDS PRAYER

All: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by 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, the

power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

COMMENDATION

Let us commend John to the mercy of God, Our maker and redeemer. God our

creator and redeemer, by your power Christ conquered death and entered into

glory. Confident of his victory and claiming his promises, we entrust John to your

mercy in the name of Jesus our Lord, who died and is alive and reigns with you,

now and forever.

Amen.

COMMITTAL

The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, slow to anger and of great goodness.

As a father is tender towards his children, so is the Lord tender to those that fear

him. For he knows of what we are made; he remembers that we are but dust. Our

days are like the grass; we flourish like a flower of the field; when the wind goes

over it, it is gone and its place will know it no more. But the merciful goodness of

the Lord endures for ever and ever towards those that fear him and his

righteousness upon their children's children.

We have entrusted our brother John to God’s mercy, and we now, commit his

body to be cremated: earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust: in the sure and

certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, who

will transform our frail bodies that they may be conformed to his glorious body,

who died, was buried, and rose again for us. To him be glory for ever.

Amen.

THE BLESSING

May God give you his comfort and his peace, his light and his joy, in this world

and the next; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the

Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always.

Amen.

EXIT MUSICRod Stewart ~ Sailing

Donations In John’s memorymay be given for

MABS

Service Sheets Designed & Printedby

The English Funeral Director, Tony Smith. Tel: 650 631 719