Thank you to Reverend Katherine Rood of Christ Lutheran Church in Glencoe, MN. First, thank you for acknowledging depression. Thank you for honoring Chuck. Thank you for giving us words of wisdom so that we can deal with grief and loss. Thank you for shining light on a disease that is often a private struggle. Thank you for letting us share your words.
Thank you to the Peterson family for letting us share this sermon. Please know that you are surrounded by a community who loved Chuck. Know that we are there for you and that we are keeping you in our prayers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Funeral Service for Tyler "Chuck" Peterson
Christ Lutheran Church - Glencoe, MN
Rev. Katherine Rood
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Reposted with permission. Originally posted at:
http://christluth.com/media/sermons
Introduction:
The
sermon
text
that
follows
was
delivered
by
Reverend
Katherine
Rood
at
the
Memorial
Service
of
Tyler
John
Peterson
on
Wednesday,
March
25th,
2015
at
Christ
Lutheran
Church
of
Glencoe,
MN.
Tyler
(Chuck)
was
a
gifted,
well-‐connected
and
much
loved
27
year
old
whose
life
was
lost
to
severe
debilitating
depression
on
March
20th.
His
parents
and
sister
requested
that
Tyler’s
whole
story
be
lifted
up
in
the
hope
that
others
who
struggle
might
benefit.
Please
rise.
Join
with
me
in
the
printed
verse
in
your
Worship
bulletin.
Together
we
proclaim:
If
we
have
died
with
Christ,
we
shall
also
live
with
Him.
If
we
are
faithful
to
the
end,
we
shall
reign
with
Him.
The
Holy
Gospel
according
to
St.
John
the
fourteenth
chapter
beginning
at
verse
one:
Jesus
said,
“Do
not
let
your
hearts
be
troubled.
Believe
in
God,
believe
also
in
me.
2
In
my
Father’s
house
there
are
many
dwelling
places.
If
it
were
not
so,
would
I
have
told
you
that
I
go
to
prepare
a
place
for
you?
3
And
if
I
go
and
prepare
a
place
for
you,
I
will
come
again
and
will
take
you
to
myself,
so
that
where
I
am,
there
you
may
be
also.
4
And
you
know
the
way
to
the
place
where
I
am
going.”
5
Thomas
said
to
him,
“Lord,
we
do
not
know
where
you
are
going.
How
can
we
know
the
way?”
6
Jesus
said
to
him,
“I
am
the
way,
and
the
truth,
and
the
life.
No
one
comes
to
the
Father
except
through
me.
The
Gospel
of
the
Lord
we
say
“Thanks
be
to
God.”
You
may
be
seated.
We
turn
now
to
a
formal
reading
of
Chuck’s
life
on
the
backside
of
your
folder:
Tyler
Chuck
John
Peterson…(Obituary
follows)
Blessed
be
Chuck’s
memory
and
to
God
alone
be
the
glory!
Amen.
Let
us
pray.
Almighty
God,
we
give
you
thanks
for
the
gift
of
life
you
have
granted
to
all
through
your
Son,
Jesus
the
Christ,
our
risen
Lord
and
Savior.
Bless
now
the
words
of
my
mouth
and
the
meditation
of
our
hearts
that
in
all
our
words
and
deeds,
O
God,
you
may
be
glorified.
Amen.
It
looks
like
a
sea
of
plaid
out
there!
(Laughter)
How
fitting,
how
wonderful!
How
awesome
that,
you,
the
dearest
family
and
friends
of
Chuck,
should
be
here
today
celebrating
his
life
and
the
gift
that
he
obviously
was
to
each
and
every
one
of
you!
It
is
a
celebration
of
lives
both
great
and
small,
lives
important
and
those
that
are
somewhat
more
challenging,
and
it
is
right
that
we
should
be
here
this
day
giving
thanks
and
praise
to
our
God
for
his
servant!
There
have
been
so
many
wonderful
stories
shared,
many
tears
shed,
a
lot
of
laughter,
sorrow,
and
indeed,
there
is
a
deep
hole
in
the
hearts
of
those
who
loved
Chuck
dearest
and
best.
There
is
no
doubt
about
that.
His
is
an
awesome
story!
But…those
are
things
about
Chuck
that
tell
only
a
part
of
the
story.
And
in
a
promise
made
to
family,
to
his
parents
and
sister,
this
day
must
also
be
about
telling
the
rest
of
the
story.
You
see
Chuck
suffered
from
depression,
serious
depression.
Sometimes
in
our
world
we
don’t
talk
about
that,
no…not
only
sometimes,
but
most
of
the
time.
In
truth,
there
is
no
life
lived
in
this
world
that
is
NOT
somehow
touched
by
the
reality
of
depression.
And
there
is
no
person
alive
who
at
some
point
in
his
or
her
journey
has
not
experienced
depression
personally.
YOU
know…
you
KNOW.
Sadly,
there
is
a
prevalent
mentality
that
if
we
could
just
buck
up,
do
SOMEthing,
get
busy,
or
just
get
OVER
ourselves,
then
somehow
we
could
get
UP
and
FLY
RIGHT!
And
while
that
may
be
true
in
many
and
various
stages
or
types
of
depression,
there
ARE
still
those
occasions
where
it
is
debilitating,
crippling.
For
those
who
suffer
from
a
debilitating
depression
all
the
“bucking
up”
in
the
world
will
not
change
it.
Our
minds
are
perplexed
by
the
stories
and
realities
of
a
person
like
Chuck’s
life.
We
are
haunted
by
questions
and
thoughts
like,
“If
only
we
had
known!”,
“If
somehow
we
knew!”,
“If
he
would
have
reached
out,
we
would
have
been
there
in
a
heartbeat!”
We
ALL
would
have
done
WHATEVER
it
was
we
could
do…..
But
let
me
shine
some
light
-‐
not
from
a
medical
perspective
here,
but
from
a
faith
perspective
for
those
who
suffer
with
this
depression.
There
are
those
people
who
are
born
into
this
life
who
are
not
like
the
rest
of
us.
And…it
was
pretty
evident
that
Tyler
was
NOT
like
the
rest
of
us!
(Laughter)
For
these
people
there
is
a
haunting
from
early
on,
they
are
often
incredibly
tender
and
creative
and
sensitive
souls.
Filled
with
an
energy
and
a
dynamism
that
defies
logic.
The
truth
is
that
they
perceive
the
world
in
ways
that
most
of
us
never
will.
In
the
short
span
of
27
years,
through
his
almost
hologram-‐like
existence,
Chuck
absorbed
the
troubles
of
his
friends,
the
needs
of
others,
always
privy
to
just
when
that
joke
should
be
cracked.
And…you
know
it’s
true.
They
are
often
keepers
of
the
peace
at
all
cost
and
feel
deep
pain
for
the
world
and
things
that
they
cannot
comprehend……how
horrifically
human
beings
treat
one
another.
And
they
live
at
such
a
pace
trying
to
be
all
things
to
all
people
with
a
result
that
they
do
not
know
themselves.
It
does
NOT
surprise
me
he
was
an
incredible
actor!
He
could
take
on
ANY
role.
“Do
you
need
a
helping
hand?”
“Do
you
need
a
buddy
to
sit
up
with
you
all
night?”
“Do
you
need
a
word
of
encouragement?”
“Tell
me
what
you
need
for
me
to
be
for
you.”
To
the
best
of
his
ability
this
is
what
he
did.
And
all
the
while,
deep
in
his
heart
of
hearts,
feeling
(which
seems
to
boggle
the
mind!),
as
if
somehow,
he,
Chuck,
was
NEVER
enough!
Always
hoping
that
if
he
could
only
BE
Chuck,
that
there
might
be
less
pain
and
sorrow
and
suffering
in
the
world,
in
HIS
world.
But
then
a
greater
fear
that
he
would
be
found
out….that
he
would
NOT
be
enough,
NOT
measure
up
in
the
eyes
of
those
who
loved
him
dearest
and
best,
imprisoned
him.
Chuck
took
on
MANY
roles
-‐
always
trying
to
be
perfect,
trying
to
shine,
to
show
a
way
in
the
world
that
life
can
be
happy
and
joyful
and
full
of
many
good
things.
But
when
the
play
ended
–
he
was
still
“only”
Chuck.
You
know
what
I
am
saying
is
true.
But
you
ask,
“How
CAN
we
know?
How
can
we
KNOW?”
We
keep
thinking,
“If
ONLY
we
had
known!”,
“If
only
somehow
we
might
have
said
something
that
WOULD’VE
made
a
difference!”
You’re
thinking
about
who
he
was
for
YOU,
in
YOUR
life,
over
and
over
and
over
again
and
how
BLESSED
you
are.
And
we
know
this
truth,
you
couldn’t.
You
couldn’t,
because
if
there
were,
and
I
am
not
theater
prone,
a
Tony
award
or
an
Academy
award
or
whatever
the
best
award
for
best
actor
would
be
HE
was
it!
He
was
it.
More
than
anything
today,
Chuck
would
want
YOU
to
know,
YOU
ARE
ENOUGH
and
that
he
was
grateful
for
every
last
one
of
you
and
that
he
loved
you
in
a
way
that
most
people
are
incapable
of
loving.
His
is
a
legacy
of
being
FOR
others,
from
small
children
with
special
needs,
to
adults,
to
a
friend,
to
an
absolute
stranger,
here
is
his
legacy
-‐
“to
love
with
your
whole
being”!
Now,
I
said
last
night,
it’s
not
possible
for
any
human
being
to
love
to
that
depth
but
that
God
in
Christ
Jesus
has
loved
them
first.
That
we
love
at
all
is
a
miracle,
however
shabbily
we
might
do
it!
But
love
so
well
done
is
a
gift!
In
1
Corinthians
13:12,
the
love
chapter
no
less,
it
says,
“Now
we
see
dimly
as
in
a
mirror,
but
then
we
will
see
face
to
face.”
and
“We
will
know
even
as
we
have
been
fully
known.”
The
time
had
come
and
my
great
joy
is
that
Chuck
is
now
fully
known
and
that
he
has
discovered
he
was
ALWAYS
enough!
I
don’t
pretend
to
tell
you
that
Chuck
was
perfect
or
that
he
was
without
sin,
but
I
do
know
this
-‐
he
IS
God’s
own,
a
lamb
of
His
own
redeeming
and
he
is
safe
and
he
is
sure!
So
for
those
of
us
who
are
here,
we
have
work
to
do!
YOU
have
work
to
do,
to
see
with
the
eyes
and
ears
of
your
hearts
any
sister
or
brother
who
is
striving
so
hard
to
be
perfect.
To
love
them
and
to
let
them
know
that
they
are
ENOUGH
and
that
they
are
known
and
deeply
loved!
We
go
from
this
place
having
learned
a
very
hard
lesson
in
love
-‐
to
not
waste
a
minute
of
your
life
not
loving
well.
Into
the
arms
of
his
Redeemer
we
commend
our
brother
Chuck.
In
Jesus
name,
Amen.
