Elder Strong's funeral was held
today. Click here and here to read other blogs to learn more about
him. Elder Russel M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at
his funeral and said among other things: He "was dutifully and completely
on his errand from the Lord. He was a missionary in the loftiest sense of the
word....To get through this," he said, "we need to couple forgiveness
with faith … be faithful … live our religion … and one day you will see Trevor
as he is: a brother, a saint, and a son of the living God."
Elder Don R. Clarke of the Quorum of
the Seventy read a letter to the family from the First Presidency of the church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. "Our hearts go out to you in
sympathy and love ... Our missionaries are so loved by the entire church that
the loss of one affects us all deeply."
60 returned missionaries from his
mission sang "Called to Serve" at the funeral. His father read
a note from another missionary serving in his mission. This sister
missionary had been talking with him a few hours before his death at a
missionary meeting. She reported he had said to her, "I want to be a
missionary forever". His father also revealed that the last words in
his missionary journal were, "Boy, do I love being a missionary!"
The Deseret News article that reported on the
funeral also reported on Elder Strong's companion Elder Walker who also died in
the accident.
It seems such a strange world that
the only way out of is through death. Thank goodness for the explanation
of scriptures and prophets and the anticipation of a future together again that
is made possible through our Savior Jesus Christ. I Corinthians 15:55, 57, 58: "O death where is they sting? O grave
where is thy victory? But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren [and sisters too], be ye stedfast,
unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that
your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
 |
Elder
Strong's twin brother, Scott, who just returned from his mission in Arizona
leaning on the hearse that held his brother's body. |
That picture of his brother leaning against the hearse is pretty touching I think. Having experienced a loss recently it is interesting to think about the difference of how it might feel to lose someone who lived a full and long life vs. someone who it seemed still had much left to accomplish. Everyone affected can still feel the same amount of peace in either case though when looking with the gospel perspective :)
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