The service for Heather on Sunday August 29 was a little different from the "typical" funeral service most of us are accustomed to attending. While we were filled with sorrow, we were also filled with joy. Our joy came from the fact that we know our precious little girl was, after 22 months, not hurting anymore. No more medicine, no more needles, no more finger sticks, no more chemo, no more sleepless nights, no more tummy hurting, no more leg hurting, no more back hurting, no more head hurting, no more getting sick to her stomach, no more x-rays, no more CT scans, no more MIBG scans, no more bone scans, no more MRIs, no more radiation treatments, no more needle biopsies, no more bone marrow aspirations, no more antibiotics, no more hearing tests, no more ultra sounds, no more fever, no more surgery, no more blood transfusions, no more platelet transfusions, no more accessing her port, no more NG tube..... no more....
We wanted to celebrate the freedom she now enjoys in the presence of the Lord, so we played a variety of music as people entered the sanctuary. (Yes, Heather's Dad selected it & burned the cd.) However, none of the music was the "traditional" funeral service type of music. Instead, we had a mix of songs that reflected our desire. Here's what was played: 1. Pass Me Not-Fernando Ortega, 2. Through It All-Hillsong, 3. Jesus King of Angels-Fernando Ortega, 4. Holy-Donnie Mclurkin, 5. Blessed-Hillsong, 6. Grace Like Rain-Todd Agnew, 7.Again I Say Rejoice-Israel & New Breed. We had a friend sing "I can only imagine" during the service & it was great. And, we gave an invitation at the end of the service, offering anyone a chance to come to the Lord. When we did this, Heather's Dad played guitar in the praise band playing the song "Made Me Glad" by Hillsong as the invitation song. By the end of the song, the crowd of about 1,000 people was on it's feet, most with hands raised, giving praises to God, & worshipping Him. That is what we wanted. Since then, we've had a number of people who attended the service ask us for the music we used. I burn copies & gladly give them to those who request it. Please let me know if you'd like a copy.
The song "Jesus, King of Angels" was originally written as a lullaby even though it has a couple of choruses which makes it rather lengthy for a lullaby. I used to take all of verse 1, with the last part of the last verse, & sing that to Heather as we snuggled in her hospital bed or at home.

There are many songs that we will always associate with Heather. There are the songs that she used to sing. She loved her "song movies" as she called them, & she would learn by watching & singing along. "What A Mighty God We Serve" & "I'm In The Lord's Army" were two of her favorites. And, there were many WIGGLES songs that she sang. I loved to sing & dance right along with her. I can still hear her little voice singing "Dorothy, Dorothy, would you like to dance with me?" from THE WIGGLES MAGICAL ADVENTURE dvd. The songs we played at her funeral are very special to us, & they will never get old. Only God knows all of the memories associated with them. Some of those memories are very intimate & can never be shared. One song became my (Heather's Dad) testimony & it is the testimony of Heather's life. That song is MADE ME GLAD by Hillsong from their BLESSED cd & dvd. No song will ever mean what this song has meant to me. Here are the lyrics.
I will bless the Lord forever I will trust Him at all times He has delivered me from all fear He has set my feet upon a rock I will not be moved And I'll say of the Lord
You are my shield, my strength My portion, deliverer My shelter, strong tower My very present help in time of need
Whom have I in heaven but You There's none I desire beside YouYou have made me glad And I'll say of the Lord
You are my shield, my strength My portion, deliverer My shelter, strong tower My very present help in time of need