Lord, we are saying goodbye today.
The room is full of people who loved them. We are wearing our hardest clothes and our softest faces. Some of us are holding tissues. Some of us are holding back.
Be in the songs. Be in the eulogy. Be in the silence when no one knows what to say.
For the one we lost — receive them. They were Yours before they were ours. We are returning them, not surrendering them.
For us who stay — meet us in the empty chair. Meet us in the small things we will remember at strange hours. Meet us in the routines that no longer make sense without them.
You wept at the tomb. You know this. You did not lecture Mary. You stood with her.
Stand with us today.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.