Nothing in life can prepare us for the death of a loved one. With every death, there is loss, and with every loss, there is grief. Though we mourn, and are saddened by Matthew’s passing, I remember even at a young age he wanted his death not to be a time of sadness or remorse, but of celebration. It’s hard to imagine life without Matthew in it, but the legacy he left behind will forever have an impact in the lives he touched. Life is too short looking through the lens of eternity. Scripture compares our days to a breath; a passing shadow. At any given moment, our time on this planet could come to an end and Matthew carried this perspective with him to his very last day.
Matthew was such a quirky, fun loving guy to be around, and we loved him for it. He would be the first to admit his “dad jokes” were pretty bad, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve almost died laughing from the things he has said and done. He would dance, sing, say and do the most randomness things. These moments of laughter and joy are the memories we cherish and will always remember.
In everything Matthew did, he hoped to bring Jesus to the center of it. A year after marrying his wife, their shared passion for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu drove them to eventually opening an academy in Southern Asia as an outlet for ministry to share the love of Christ. That is where they spent much of their life and eventually adopted a baby girl. This was only the beginning of the long journey the Lord had in store for them.
Many said he was crazy, sometimes even radical, but he was a man who sought after the Lord in everything he did. Walking in obedience even when it seemed crazy or didn’t entirely make sense to himself. Obedience to God is a crazy thing… Matthew demonstrated this well. He would question, he would wonder, sometimes doubt, but carried a “yes” in his spirit and walked in obedience to the Lord. Because of his “yes”, God did amazing things with him and many people were reached because of it. This is an inspiration to each of us here today. He always told people not to be left with a “what if?”, thinking what could have happened if only you took that leap of faith.
Matthew didn’t fear death, he actually embraced the idea and looked forward to the day he would be in the physical presence of his savior, and in that we rejoice. Even in this he would want his death to bring glory to God, and that is who we celebrate today because we know because of God’s good grace, we will see Matthew again.
At this point, I hope you realize I haven’t gotten married, moved to Asia, adopted and died. The men of World Race Gap Year were given the task to write our own eulogy. This assignment is meant to help us think about what we would want said about us as if we lived a full life and passed on. Though life is short, so much can happen in a lifetime and go completely different than we had hoped or planned.
Proverbs 19:21 “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails”
