Used by permission of Kent Shelton / Shelton Photography.
Please do not use without permission
Celebrating the life of:
Lauren Michelle Webb
Born: May 3, 1994 in
The David Webb family
(David, Melodie, Taylor, Sara, and Carlie)
Returned to her home in heaven:
She filled our life with love and laughter every day in between
Funeral: Saturday, January 2, 2010
Family Prayer: Taylor Webb
Pall Bearers:
Taylor Webb * Landon Marsh
Christopher Marsh * Jordan Marsh
Katie Marsh * Kami Marsh
Honorary Pall Bearers:
Grandpa Wilbur Webb
Grandpa Mearle Marsh Jr.
“Grandpa” Uncle Vergil Webb
(all deceased)
Adopted Grandpa Tom Dowling
(Branson , Missouri
Thayne, Deaun, Courtney Marsh
Scott, Mary, Spencer, and Elder Clayton Marsh
(Japan Nagoya Mission
Prelude: Karen Lesser
Conducting: Bishop Douglas Lowe
Music: Terry Hansen and Jane Mensel
Opening Prayer: Mary Marsh
Our dear, beloved Heavenly Father, we are so grateful to bow our heads before Thee on this beautiful winter day, to express our love unto Thee, Father, for Thy great Plan of Salvation and for the Gospel of Jesus Christ which unites here, Heavenly Father, to pay honor to one of Thy most beloved daughters, Lauren Michelle Webb. We are surrounded, Father in Heaven, by righteous Priesthood holders. We thank Thee for them. We thank Thee for the honor it is to be in the presence of a special witness of Thy Son, Jesus Christ. And we pray for them, father, and for Lauren’s family who will speak and offer their hearts to us today. That Thy Spirit will be here in great abundance and that their hearts and their minds will be open and that we will be able to receive, Father, those wonderful principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that fill our hearts with desire to be the best versions of ourselves. We are grateful Father, for this beautiful family. For a mother and father whose greatest hearts desire as they were sealed in the temple, was to welcome children into their home and share their love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them. Bless them, Father, for the sacrifice and suffering that they so lovingly and willingly endured in behalf of this beloved daughter. Bless her siblings, Father in Heaven, with comfort through the Atonement of Jesus Christ that will soften the sorrow of separation. We rejoice, Father in Heaven, for the beauty of life, and for the greatest of all the gifts of God which is eternal life. We pray Father in Heaven that our hearts and minds will be open and that we will feel inspired to try harder, that we will follow the example of Lauren and seek to draw near unto thee, and rejoice in thee and in Thy Son. We thank Thee so much for the honor that it was and is to have had Lauren in our midst for these 15 short years. We thank Thee so much for the example of her family, and we pray for comfort for her friends, for the ward that loved her and nurtured her, and for her relatives who loved and were delighted by her. Thank you, Father in Heaven, for all of these blessings. We say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Opening Song: #300
“Families Can Be Together Forever”
Tribute: Melodie Webb
Because of Lauren, our family will go on . . . loving more deeply. She was a privilege to bring into this world and a privilege to see out of this world. We love her with all of our hearts. . . . In the name of HER beloved Savior . . . Jesus Christ, Amen.
Our beautiful angel, Lauren Michelle Webb, was born May 3, 1994 to her anxious and adoring family in Fort Collins , Colorado Salt Lake City , Utah December 29, 2009 . After beating an unbeatable cancer 3 times, this champion fighter was given the ultimate and final victory in the hands of that God who gave her life. Our family is forever – and our love for her is too.
A gifted genius of imagination, creativity, ingenuity, and humor, Lauren filled our life with delight, laughter and joy. She befriended everyone and kept all around her entertained from her earliest days on earth. She had a quick wit and an enduring optimism. She lived this life to the fullest, and will no doubt live her eternal life in the same way. Lauren is a master of love, family, friendship, and being true. She profoundly expressed love in her words and her actions in ways that will continue to be felt forever.
She had a deep and profound faith which she readily shared. She faced her unfair burdens with a grace and quiet dignity, and endured her unusual trials with a striking trust in Jesus Christ. She rarely complained and always expressed gratitude – even in the most challenging circumstances. Lauren’s earthly life (and eternal life) is a great gift and will always be a profound example to all those who experienced her selfless, loving nature.
She is survived by her parents: David and Melodie Webb, and a brother and two sisters (all older), Taylor, Sister Sara Webb (Bangkok , Thailand Reeds Spring , Missouri
Lauren is and always will be a hero. Although extremely uncomfortable with that title, and never wishing to have any undue attention, she merited it. She didn't see herself that way because she also had the gift of humility. But, it's impossible to blend in when by your very nature, you stand out.
No description of Lauren is without very positive words denoting a choice of character, an optimistic attitude, a strength of spirit, or a beautiful smile.
Describing Lauren and her influence in this world is literally beyond words. She gives a new definition to the words faith, and hope, and trust. Because of her, we will never look at the words "courage" and "be of good cheer" the same again. Because of Lauren, we have lived more simply, laughed more joyfully, thanked more profoundly, hoped more deeply, forgiven more quickly, and trusted more sincerely. She IS the very definition of all things bright and beautiful.
Talk: Taylor Webb
Brothers and Sisters,
I am grateful for the opportunity to share a little bit with you today. I have two very simple goals with this talk. I hope to do honor and pay a fitting tribute to my beautiful sister Lauren and I hope that you’ll know from me that I know what she knew, and that she knew that her Heavenly Father lives. And I hope that I will be able to give my own witness, that I will be able to convey my certainty that our Father in Heaven loves us, that He lives, and that His Plan of Salvation is real and that I will be able to stand as a witness that the Lord our God will visit His people in their afflictions. So I hope today I can do both those things.
To do it, I want to tell you a little bit about one of my favorite things about Lauren. She loved to give gifts. Many of you that are close to her know that she loved to make things, she loved to give things … it was one of the ways she expresses love. I came across a scripture in 2 Corinthians 9:7 that says that “The Lord loveth a cheerful giver.” And, that, brothers and sisters, was my sister Lauren. She was a cheerful giver. And so as I try to share with you what I know she knew and what I know, I’m going to share with you some of the gifts that she has given me through her life. Both things that she has actually given me physically, and other things that she has given me through experiences with her and through things that she has said.
The first present I ever remember getting from Lauren was a game of “Pick-up Sticks.” She didn’t buy it from the store – she took a little box and painted it and labeled it “Pick-up Sticks” and then she took those toothpicks like you use for shish kabobs, and she colored every one of them individually and put them in the box and wrapped it and put it under the tree. I don’t remember how old she was, but it’s just so representative of the way she gives. Some times the gifts are fun, some times they’re serious and sacred, but always there was immense thought, always there was a lot of effort that went into it. So to me, this gift represents some of the fun we have had because of Lauren. Carlie remembers on one birthday, that she got 12 presents from Lauren and they all had to do with elephants because Carlie loves elephants. She made a big poster that said “Have an ‘eleFUNt” birthday!” and Lauren painted her a big elephant.
Sara gave me this little bit of a letter that I want to read to you that she got from Lauren on her mission. Lauren was in chemistry – apparently, she was bored. And so she started writing to my sister . . . and apparently she was hungry too. She said she wanted “something chocolate like a cookie or a ding-dong, YUM !” “So, anyway, how are you!?” And, she goes on and says “OK, do you wish YOU had a cookie or a ding-dong!?” “OK, right now I am sending you a cookie AND a ding-dong through my mind. You can eat it in your mind when I say ‘now!’ OK, Ready? One, two, three, NOW ! Eat the cookie! Oops! I hope you didn’t eat the mind ding-dong, I told you to eat the cookie! So hopefully you read ahead before you ate the cookie so you knew to eat the cookie and not the ding-dong. OK, when I say ‘eat’ – you can ____ the ding-dong. Notice how I didn’t say the other word so you wouldn’t ____ the ding-dong. OK, ready, one, two, three … EAT !” And she goes on to give her more directions on how to eat the mind food that Lauren was sending her. And if I am not mistaken, the next package she sent to the MTC had real ding-dongs in it.
So Lauren brought a lot of cheer to our lives. Early on in this experience, a family scripture that we came to love in the Doctrine and Covenants is something that she has given new meaning to. It is found in D&C 123 and it’s a letter from the prophet Joseph Smith and it’s the last verse that I want to read. He said: “Therefore dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.” My little sister cheerfully did everything that was in her power. She fought, and she did it cheerfully, and she smiled and she loved, and she brought cheer to us and she helped us to be cheerful. Then she stood still with that utmost assurance.
Most of the gifts that I got from Lauren had to do with a little game that we played together. I think it started maybe just a little before my mission or maybe while I was out, but I am pretty sure she started it. It was a competition about who loved the other one most. We would go back and forth – we called it ‘getting each other back.” I would do something to kind of prove I loved her most and she would do something bigger. And I want to share with you one of the things that I got back – this is one of the times that she got me back. She wrote me a book – It’s called “I love you most!” -- and I want to read it to you. “I love you most!” by Lauren Webb (Turn page) Dedicated to the poor loser: Taylor Webb.
“Once upon a time there was a family of five but soon to come was a small bundle of love to make them six.” (turn page – My mom is here saying “Yes, Taylor Taylor Taylor Taylor Taylor Taylor
‘By this shall all men know,’ brothers and sisters, ‘that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.’ My little sister has so much love. No one in my family doubts how much she loves us. We all were confident and secure in the immense amount of love she had for us and all of those around her. And because of that, I know that she was a disciple of Jesus Christ. I am eternally grateful to know that my little sister loves me and I love her dearly. And I know that she will continue to share that love where she is now.
The last gift I want to talk about and the last gift that she gave me is this unfinished drawing of the Newport Beach Temple
Brothers and Sisters, I want you to know that I know that God lives. I know that He loves His children. I don’t always understand the things that happen to us and I don’t claim to know all the reasons that our family has had to suffer this or that my little sister had to suffer as long as she did. As I was pondering this over the summer I was reading the book of Job and I want to share with you a scripture I came across there. It’s in Job 23. And Job is confused and he is trying to understand everything that is going on and he kind of has a “Oh, God Where Art Thou” moment here in verses 8 & 9. He knows God is there, but he says this: “I go forward and He is not there, backward and I cannot receive Him. On the left hand where He doth work (so he knows He is working there) but I cannot behold Him. He hideth Himself on the right hand that I cannot see Him.” Then even though Job felt the lack of this eternal presence in his life, he gives this beautiful expression of faith in verse 10 that to me has given me great perspective: “But He the Lord knoweth the way that I take, when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.” Brothers and Sisters, I don’t know all of the reasons but I know my Heavenly Father. God’s final answer to Job to me says “look at Who I am, Job, look at what I can do. Look at my power and my knowledge and my wisdom and trust me. And that’s what I have learned to do. It doesn’t mean that He has given me the answer. But it means that I know He knows the answer. His name is Jehovah and He knows the end from the beginning and I testify that His Hand has been over my family and for that, I am eternally grateful.
I just want to close with this last thought from Hebrews. This is Paul and I love the thought that today we are sad at the separation but we also rejoice and celebrate a life well-lived, and a race that’s been completed and a fight that’s been well-fought. And so because she has run her race and fought her fight, I want to leave this invitation with all of us that Paul left us in chapter 12 he says: “Wherefore seeing we also are encompassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses (and my family has been encompassed about by that cloud) “Let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despised the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Brothers and Sisters, I again testify that our Heavenly Father lives … that if we will run with patience that race … we look forward to that same joy that He has prepared for us. An eternal family -- as the D&C says, the same sociality that exists here will exist there, and I testify that is true, and I testify that I have an absolute certainty of that. I stand as witness that the Lord God doth visit his people in their afflictions because he has visited me and my family in mine, and visited my sweet little sister Lauren in hers. I testify that she lives on. I love her so very much. I thank you all for your support. I again testify that the Savior lives, his atonement is real, and God is the answer. I love Him. I say that humbly, with the side note that I still think I love her most… In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.Musical Number: Jessica Lesser
Words and Music by Michael McLean
Words and Music by Michael McLean
(This story has no ending
For she is in His fold.)
And every broken heart starts mending
When it finds shelter from the cold.
I heard a window always opens when the doors have all been closed
And though I know it’s true, I need your light to see me through
And Lord, I need you to Stay With Me
Just until my heart recovers
Stay with me … it’s a lonely thing to suffer.
Tell me how the heartache I feel now will go away … someday
Maybe we just might find the answers that will carry me
Like an awkward dancer on a crowded floor … I’ll learn to dance once more
Someday
If you’ll just stay.
No one ever can be certain what another day will bring
So dim the lights and raise the curtain – the cast is waiting in the wings
Love goes on and on forever.
Though deep down inside I know I’ll have her back again ….
But I’ll be lonely until then …
Lord I need you
To Stay With Me – just until my heart recovers
Stay With Me
It’s a lonely thing to suffer.
Tell me how the heartache I feel now will go away someday
Maybe we just might find the answers that will carry me
Like and awkward dancer on a crowded floor
I’ll learn to dance once more … someday …
If you’ll just Stay.
Like and awkward dancer on a crowded floor, I’ll learn to dance once more
If you’ll just Stay. If you’ll just Stay.
Talk: David Webb
I have the most beautiful image of my daughter dancing across the crowded floor … crowded with people who love her and who care for her and who are enjoying the fact that her legs work again in beautiful ways. Brothers and Sisters, we are overwhelmed by the sweet support that you have shown to Lauren and our family. I can't believe as I look out on the people who have taken time to come and join with us.
AND to my children: In Psalms it says “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren (siblings) to dwell together in unity.
Our family has cried and grieved until we we’ve felt there were no more tears to cry. We’ve suffered with her; we’ve watched her suffer. But God has prepared us, and He has sustained us. And today we celebrate her. We celebrate her victory and we declare with surety that she lives and that her eternity is secure. We are grateful that you would share this sacred time with us.
Let me just start with a couple of thank you’s. As the bishop mentioned, there have been so many expressions of kindness spoken and unspoken, delivered and undelivered. We may not have thanked you properly individually, but please know that we are so grateful for all of the sincere outpouring of love we have received. We have been very private about this journey, Brothers and Sisters, and in fact sometimes, not completely truthful with those outside of our home. We needed this journey to be taken by our family. That’s the way Lauren wanted it – not because she didn’t want to share, but it was so important for her to not burden others and make them sad. She wanted people to be happy. There was so much to be happy about. And so we enjoyed those times together silently and privately as a family, but we knew that there were people outside of our home that worried about us, and cared for us and prayed for us. We appreciate that more than you’ll know. It is a road we had to take as a family, for Lauren’s sake. Since her passing, so many have done so much. We will cherish the letters, emails and sincere gestures. It helps us get through it. We appreciated the 50+ people who stood in our driveway with the newly fallen snow and sang to us. Her friends from the ward and school have sent literally hundreds of remembrances and sweet thoughts – e-mails, texts, and this Facebook thing is out of control … for which we are very grateful.
Grateful to extended family members for their support – especially aunt Mary and aunt Deaun (and their families) who spent countless hours in impromptu service to our family and whose grocery budget will now go down considerably.
Grateful to the medical community which I’ll speak about later.
I am so grateful for Taylor Taylor
In the fall when Lauren was doing well, Taylor
To my daughter Sara. She received a mission call under very trying circumstances back in March. In fact, her call came on the same day that we found out cancer was back for a third time. She had a difficult decision to make. After prayerful consideration, she simply said “I am through questioning God” and she accepted the call to serve in a far away place. It was one of the greatest acts of trust and faith I have witnessed. Like Ruth, in the OT, she left her family and went to a far away land. The Lord said this to Ruth which applies to Sara: “The Lord recompense thy work and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust” Sara has trusted (and continues to trust) in heroic ways. It has been our privilege to have Sara with us the past couple of weeks thanks to an understanding mission president (and others). She will be returning to Thailand
To my daughter Carlie who not only lost her sister, but her best friend. They are close in age. They were in the same seminary class. Carlie’s heart overflows with love for Lauren. Which means there are many tears yet to cry. (We call them ‘bubbles’ at our house, and Carlie gets lots of bubbles.) But like my other kids, she is my spiritual superior and firmly grounded in her own testimony:
Told volunteers at PCMC: It’s ok, God is my psychiatrist, thanks.
She has her own testimony. She stands on her own light.
She sang so beautifully and faithfully: “Do not despair, the Star is still there.”
I can testify that when times are the darkest, the compensating Spirit is the strongest.
And to Melodie… Words could never describe how I feel about my wife. She has carried a burden that only a mother carries. She has been by Lauren’s side these 3 ½ years and provided her with unspeakable comfort. She has cried in the private her closet, then smiled at Lauren’s bedside. She plead with God for her life and accepted her will when His plan was otherwise. She has taught and testified in the midst the darkest days. Her genuine, heart-felt, unconditional love extended Lauren’s life. It gave her the will to fight. In the end it was most difficult for her to leave because after all, who would want to be away from a mother like that? I pay tribute to you Melodie. Your pillow will be as soft as Lauren’s and the two of you will share a special eternity together.
And to my baby girl Lauren… She would hate this attention. She would say “your staring at me” … your fussing too much, or “your talking about me – talk about something else.” She had eyes in the back of her head and could hear us even when we whispered softly … “I can hear you!” When Taylor
But I think she’s ok with the honor – she deserves the tribute.
Lauren is a medical marvel. Through miracles too sacred to discuss here, she was with us much longer than medical experts expected. She was given 3 months to live over 2 years ago. But God’s will and her faith in Christ brought us to this point. She beat this nasty cancer three times and to our knowledge and her doctor’s knowledge, she is the ONLY one to do that. During those remissions, we took advantage of every minute of every day and our memories are forever sealed in our hearts. Last March, when we knew it was back for the third time, things looked bleak. I prayed to God for more tender mercies because we were in a bad way. The next day at church, Elder Oaks was sitting on the stand in our ward sacrament meeting (which is a bit unusual). He met Lauren that day and reminded her how much she was loved by God. It isn’t often that your answer to prayer is delivered personally by an apostle of the Lord. New treatments that we started the next day provided us with 7 precious months that we’ll always cherish. In June of this year, we fulfilled a lifelong dream in taking Lauren to Peru
His hand is stretched out still
What he has purposed
He will perform
Men will not understand
His mercy often stings
Our house of cards
He knocks down
He prepares a mansion
His mercies abound
Along the way
He reminds us
He has not forgotten
He knows the course I travel
When I come forth
I'll be his gold
I'll know Him
In Omni, it says “come unto Christ and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him”. She did that in a very literal way… spirit and body. The Savior was so innocent yet he endured so much. 1 NE tells us that they scourge him and he suffereth it. They smite him and he suffers it, etc. Lauren was innocent…more chemotherapy, and she suffered it. More radiation, and she suffered it. More transfusions, she suffered it. Cancer back for the 4th time.. and she suffered it. And with little complaint, though the pain was often unbearable. And through it all, in some very small way, I came to know my Heavenly Father better because like Him with His Son (on a much smaller scale of course), I watched my innocent child, suffer through no fault of her own, and praise God while going through it. She was so meek and humble. We marveled at the way that every nurse and every caregiver received a quiet “thank you” no matter how unpleasant the just completed experience. And if she rarely did complain (and she had reason to), she always ended her day with “sorry I was grumpy”. And so pure.
I remember one day we had left her in the room watching a program while we went out of the room for a quick conversation. This particular night, we heard a funny sound coming from her room and we went back to see that her program had ended, and another nasty program that she wanted no part of had come on. The remote was not near her and she couldn’t move to turn it off, so she had her fingers in her ears and was saying ‘la, la, la, la, la, la’ because she wanted no part of it. She was so pure.
As most of you know, Lauren was a gifted artist. Her imagination was second to none. Let me share three of her paintings. She loved everything about nature and saw the world through artist’s eyes. And somehow, somewhere, someway, she fell deeply in love with… COWS! (put up the picture). Honestly. It started when she was little. She would name the cows she saw. When we went to Switzerland
Her caregivers and nurses at PCMC meant the world to her. Many of you are here today; how we love you! They became her dear friends. So much so that she painted each of them with her in the middle. We pay tribute to these incredible people, many of whom are here today. Dian, our home care nurse, literally became like a member of our family. Tiffany, a nurse at PCMC wrote the following about Lauren: I will never forget her sweet smile and laugh, which for anyone would be hard to do when going through what she did. I will remember her thoughtfulness and giving nature. I will remember that funny competition she had with her brother to try to prove who loved who the most. I loved watching her as she would tell me what she had planned next. Her face would light up and her eyes would sparkle. She truely did love her brother and sisters and parents. I am so much better for knowing your sweet angel.
And her most famous painting which most of you have seen. It speaks for itself. It was started before cancer (age 11) and completed during the fight. It is who she is at her core. This is her kneeling at the feet of her Savior. Melodie recently found a written copy of her baby blessing when she was born. Think of Lauren and this painting as you hear some of the words of that baby blessing:
“We bless her specifically Father, with a desire to come to know Thee, and a desire early in her life to know her Savior, and know of His sacrifice for her that opens up eternal possibilities that she has… help her to understand that… That she will have a desire to want to know the truth, and that most importantly, she will know who she is.. that she is a daughter of God and that, knowing that, she can conquer anything. We know that she will grow in a time when there ill be trials and difficulties around her. We pray that thou wilt bless her with spiritual self worth so that when those trials come, she will have the ability and stability to be able to withstand those trials, and learn to know the happiness and joy that comes from keeping thy commandments”
She knows the Source.
Recently I was driving home from the hospital (which we did a couple hundred times) and I passed three churches with different messages on their marquis: #1: God still speaks. I testify that is true. #2 “God is a thief” -- I have no idea what that sermon was going to be about, but in our case there’s some thing to think about there too too. But #3 was most meaningful outside the United Methodist church: SIMPLY HOPE.
Hope is the message I want to leave today. It can be read two ways: -- Hope as a verb, “simply hope” or hope as a noun, “Quite simply, hope
What is hope? In Ether 12:4 we read that whoso believeth in God might with SURETY hope for a better world, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men. Hope is born of faith and it’s what anchors our souls – but it’s not hope in the way we use it in our everyday language (I hope I get an A on the test, I hope we win, etc). It’s hope born of SURETY as Moroni ARE TRUE , not that we HOPE are true. To me hope may be the most beautiful word in our language… less complicated than faith…a sure knowledge of future joy to come.
How do we get hope? Moroni 8:26 ): It is the Holy Ghost that fills us with hope. Paul said to the Romans “Abound in Hope through the power of the Holy Ghost” I testify that the Holy Ghost is real and that he is my friend. It has been my experience for the most part, that when times have been the darkest, His compensating spirit has been the strongest. I believe that is a principle on which He operates if we seek it.
And what do we hope for? Again, Moroni
And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him, according to the promise”
Brothers and sisters, today I am most grateful for THE PROMISE. The promise that I will be with my baby girl again. Truly the grave has no victory and death itself has lost its sting. But life without her does sting and between now and then I will ache to be with her and I will miss everything about her. But I look forward, as we all do, with SURE HOPE, for HIS PROMISE to be fulfilled.
Christmas was Lauren’s favorite time of year. She is a giver. She loves the lights, she loves the snow, she loves being with family. Most importantly, she loves the baby Jesus. We were so blessed to have this “one more” Christmas together. The “things” under the tree meant very little to us. Our sealed family, love that was palpable, and eternal hope were what mattered. As a family, we testify that all we celebrate at Christmas is real. It will forever be even a more joyous time in the future as we are reminded again and again the because of Him, we will be together again. It will be a joyous time as we consider the blessed state of those who know that God is real. God be praised for the restoration of the Gospel and for sealing keys that have bound my little family together and will lead us to life eternal. I know these things to be true.
And I say to Lauren as I’ve said to her many times before, “Lauren, I love you, more than any daddy ever loved his baby girl”… in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. 
Musical Number:
Carlie Webb, Sister Sara Webb (
Arranged and accompanied by: Uncle Mearle Marsh
"Where love is, there God is also."
Remarks: Bishop Douglas Lowe
Alma Alma 11:45 ). Blessings were given and miracles -- even healings -- did occur on Lauren’s journey. We must not think of these miracles as being of “small means” just because the final outcome was not what we wanted. Alma Alma
It is significant that the Book of Momon begins with an account of a journey and that this is the part of the book that we read most frequently. At the beginning of this journey Lehi was given a “round ball” that functioned as a “compass” or “ director”. They called it Liahona. We don’t know a lot about it but there are many, many lessons to be learned from the Liahona.
- We do know that it “pointed the way (they) should go”, and
- That it “led (them) in the more fertile parts of the wilderness” -- probably meaning it directed them to water – which is critical to life in the
- The “pointers…in the ball” worked on three conditions:
· The “exercise of their “faith”
· Their “diligence”, or consistency,
· And the “heed” -- or practical application -- they gave to the directions they were given.
We also know that during their journey they suffered uncessarily when they were not faithful and “forgot” to give heed to the directions of the ball. We may wonder why they would ever NOT follow the directions of the compass; but I can imagine times when the Liahona directed them over high mountain ranges when before them was what appeared to be a perfectly good, and far easier way around, or through the mountains. Lauren faced many mountains in her short journey, and she always held to her course and made the climb. Jesus promised, “whoso…climbeth up by me shall…come forth with songs of everlasting joy” (Moses 7:53 ). Can’t you just imagine Lauren singing “songs of everlasting joy” with her Savior?
At one point Lehi’s family “rejoiced exceedingly” when they came to a land they named Bountiful
1. They “did not progress in their journey” (37:41)
2. They “tarried in the wilderness” longer than they needed to (37:42)
3. They “did not travel a direct course” (37:42) and so were unnecessarily “afflicted with hunger and thirst ” (37:42)
I testify that the Lord wants us to travel a “direct course” back to Him. He doesn’t want us to “tarry” in this “vale of sorrow” any longer than we need to accomplish His purposes for us. HE WANTS US HOME.
I testify that Jesus Christ is who He said He was: “the way, the truth, and the life and that no man cometh unto the Father but by (Him)” (John 14:6) In a moment we will hear from one of His witnesses; but in my own small way I bear witness of the living reality of Christ. He is all He said He was and so very much more than words can possibly express. I can only hope that the Spirit of the Lord has confirmed the truthfulness of these things to our hearts and minds. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Talk: Elder Dallin H. Oaks - Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
My dear brothers and sisters … I know that I speak for each one of you when I express appreciation for the privilege of being here and hearing and feeling what we have heard and felt. We have heard beautiful and well deserved tributes; we have heard expressions of love; and we have heard profound and true statements of doctrine and testimony. As I have reflected on the significance of this in the particular circumstances of Lauren Webb, a faithful and exemplary young woman of the church, I was grateful for the presence of Elaine Dalton, General President of the Young Women of the Church. I think I know her well enough to know that she has been profoundly influenced by what she has heard here, and what we saw here as we drove up in the banners of the Young Women -- those colors standing for something, standing for things that Lauren Webb was a beautiful example of. I think President Dalton has felt some satisfaction in the prayers that I know she and her counselors and their board have offered and the guidance they have sought in putting forward ideals and now in seeing such a wonderful example in the living of those ideals.
Someone said once that a funeral is a time to speak of the mighty realities of eternity. Those mighty realities have been spoken of here. The mission of the Lord Jesus Christ, his atonement, the assurance we have of his resurrection, the assurance we have of the eternal that is forever and Godly. Relationships in the family when sealed by the power of the Priesthood and honored in the covenants made in connection with that sealing. All of this has been testified to and I add my testimony to it.
At the same time, our mortal experience causes us to live with some mysteries. One meaning of a mystery is a simple truth of the gospel which can only be understood by revelation. Our ability to be forgiven of our sins and the atonement of the Lord as a payment for those sins is an example of that mystery. Another meaning of mystery is things we just can’t understand, and have to live with according to the trust that we have in God, which has been spoken of and testified to so appropriately here. Some of the mysteries of life include the fact that some die early. My father died before I was eight years old, and so I grew up wondering why a man as good as my father died in his 38th year, a doctor, devoted to relieving suffering, and honored greatly by those whom he attended to. Why? Why would such a man die? Why would my mother have the burden of raising her three children of whom I was the oldest, suffering loneliness and disadvantage in that circumstance. As a young boy, I wondered about those things. I wondered about why some seem to have unusual burdens. Some don’t marry. They long for an eternal companion. Some long for children and aren’t blessed with that. Why some have unusual physical burdens of physical natures. These are some of the mysteries of life. Some seem to have an incredible difficulty in graduating from mortality. I have a cousin whose son was mentally destroyed in a motorcycle accident, and for 11 years she cared for him in a coma at home. There’s a mystery of life. Why that? Billions are born without the influence, or the knowledge, or the freedoms that we take for granted. Sara is laboring as a missionary in a nation which is the capital of the world religion of Buddhism, and that is surely an example of that. Why some born there, and some born here?
Brothers and Sisters, Lauren’s ‘untimely death’ as we would term it in mortal wisdom is only one of numberless mysteries of mortal life. The only answer to these mysteries is the answer spoken of by those who have preceded me … it’s trust in the Lord; trust in his superior knowledge; trust in his goodness; trust in his love. And, trust is the synonym of faith … the first principle of the gospel … faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
There is a truth that has helped me understand some of these mysteries to which I have made reference; and it is that we come to this mortal life, not only for ourselves, but for what we can do for others. My mother taught me that principle when she said once (and I know she said this many times to others): “If your father hadn’t died, I would never have been compelled to develop my talents and to serve in the way the Lord wanted me to serve.” She didn’t say, but she meant that she would have been the wife of a wealthy doctor, had all kinds of privileges and relatively few challenges. I’ve taken that teaching from my childhood as a shaft of light to illuminate some dark corners and helped me understand some things like that cousin I spoke of who cared for her son in a coma for 11 years. I saw her sanctified by that experience.
I was, as has been mentioned, led to the know the Webb family by miraculous circumstance last March when I left home not knowing where I would go, but determined to find one of hundreds of wards in this valley where I might drop in by surprise and learn what I could about the church that most people experience and I wouldn’t if I only went to Stake Conferences. I was led, literally, to the ward where the Webb family were worshipping and where I met them and where I was privileged to meet Lauren. I won’t say more of that, but only mention that much to say that I came to know this wonderful, strong family in a way that I am sure the Lord was directing.
Last spring, the Young Women of this stake and adjoining stakes in this area were asked to sing in a choir for the church wide Young Women meeting in the Conference Center
From what we have heard about Lauren, I feel sure that … that kind of spiritual influence came to rest on all who knew her. Her immediate family members, her extended family members, and her friends and their parents …. beyond that, her influence radiated out to many more, including Brother and Sister Oaks who have been blessed to learn of her and to learn from her. As was written in the beautiful obituary of her life: “Lauren’s earthly life and eternal life is a great gift and will always be a profound example to all those who experienced her selfless loving nature.” (End of quote.)
Brothers and Sisters, a life well-lived, be it short or long, is not only a reward to the individual, it is a gift of that individual and a gift of God to all around them. No one could say that her life ended untimely. Indeed, in her short span of life, she fulfilled the measure of her existence more completely, more influentially than many of us who live many, many, many years. We sometimes have our departure postponed so that we can finish in our allotted time the work that she was able to finish in hers.
I testify of Jesus Christ whom she loved, and we love ... Our savior, the light and life of the world. I testify of his plan which gives us the assurances of which we have spoken. I say all of this with gratitude and in love, and with the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Closing Song: I Feel My Savior’s Love
Closing Prayer: Uncle Scott Marsh
Dear Heavenly Father We’re so honored to have been here today. We have felt such a deep sense of Thy Spirit. We’ve felt a purpose of what the eternities are about. We’ve had the blessing of sharing these moments with dear and trusted friends who established and helped us to feel Thy Spirit also. We are so grateful, Heavenly Father that we have had at times like this, the opportunity to consider carefully the mysteries that make our lives a challenge, but to also consider the mysteries that make our life such a great blessing, because we often ask us “why me?” when indeed it is a blessing that overwhelms us and helps us to know of the sense of love and sense of purpose that the Savior has for each of us. We are so grateful for those blessings this day, Heavenly Father, and with that same spirit, we pray that thou may be with the young people that have come and participated in this meeting also, that they can feel a sense that the Plan of Salvation and the blessing of the Gospel is indeed a critical part of our worship; it’s a critical part of the joy that we have; it’s a part of the experience of life. We are so sensitive to those who may have experienced a passing like this for the first time in their life of someone that they love dearly. It has been a deep sense upon our hearts to know that each of them can feel today a sense of purpose and a hope that can come in the silent witness within their hearts that the Savior loves them dearly; that this is indeed a part of our lives, it’s a part of those things that we don’t understand perfectly, but perhaps in the midst of our failure to understand, that we come together as one, (which we know is our Savior’s greatest hope) – that we, as one with He, can worship the blessings and significance of the most eternal and important things our Heavenly Father has blessed us with. Might we today, each of us, have a renewed sense or purpose that we love one another more closely, that we understand a little better the sense of the Savior’s Spirit, but that most of all that we know that through his resurrection, through his atonement, through his love for each of us – that this will be an event we will all look back on with an eternal perspective, and recognize with that perspective the reason why our Heavenly Father does what He does and provides us with the Spirit and blessings that He has. We are so grateful for all that we have, Heavenly Father, and we pray that we will never forget this day. We will always, with a sense of who Lauren was, appreciate again the love of life, the fullness of our Savior’s blessings, and the hope that this life provides us that indeed; our Heavenly Father loves us dearly. We pray now that throughout the rest of this day as there are other events, that we might be blessed to go there in peace and safety, that we will remember who we are, that we will remember why we are going, but that we will remember most today the sweet comfort that has come as an apostle of God provided us the very reassuring sense through his witness, through his testimony, and through his very special sense of the Savior, that we are indeed loved, that we are children of God, and that for whatever time we have been given on this earth, we are here to experience joy and to know again of Thy Spirit. We are so grateful for this witness, so grateful for this day, for this wonderful family, so grateful for sister Lauren and all that she has meant to us. Most of all, we are grateful for the Savior and we say this, in his name, Jesus Christ, Amen.
Dedication of the Grave:
David Webb
