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"Found in the deepest core of our being...found in the very depths of our heart...is something unknown until the day we need it. That thing is called faith. But it’s not the faith that carries us to church on Sunday mornings, and it’s not the faith that bows our head in prayer. This faith, found so far inside us, is the kind that appears when the question "why" cannot be answered and time passes without your notice.

But that faith doesn’t just appear there; it doesn’t just show up one day unannounced. It must be grown. And here today, we celebrate a baby girl who helped to grow that kind of faith in us all.

Wasn’t it beautiful to watch her, in her innocence, accept each of us just exactly as we are...only looking for love in the touch of a hand or a funny noise that made her laugh. No questions about where we’ve been, or where we go...just a world-changing smile that came from no where but a joyful baby’s heart. Pure, unscathed by the world...so full of faith that all is well.

As we watched her, and saw her faith that we all were good and worthy of that gorgeous smile of hers, somewhere inside of us we found that we too began to look at the world differently. From down deep inside we too began to have faith that all could be well...because to Aubrey, all was well.

You began to realize that pure love did exist as you watched her mom cradle her or witnessed her dad just watching her every move. You saw in a proud family’s photograph something that could move all worldly beauty aside and make you adore only the joy that emanates from the three faces looking back at you. And you saw a family with their first grandchild remember innocence all over again.

And maybe, just maybe, you felt a twinge inside each time her hand reached for your face or your hair or to hold your little finger...and you knew that God had created something perfect in a world of imperfection. And you felt renewed each time her face lit up as she saw you walk into the room. Maybe because of this baby girl, you began to hope for more, pray with joy, love with more abandon.

As she grew, all of those feelings inside us grew. As she saw the world, we began to glimpse the reality that true goodness does exist. If you had lost faith in yourself, Aubrey’s faith in your goodness restored you. If you felt bad, Aubrey’s laugh renewed you. If you were bored, Aubrey’s playing entertained you. If you were sad, Aubrey’s face brightened you.

No matter how you look at it, we are all, in this room, different at the core of our being because of Aubrey Lynn. I want you to see today, that you have grown a new kind of faith because of her. Because of her time with us, you will forever be changed. You will forever love deeper. You will forever be better.

The bible tells us that we are called to the purpose of God. If we can believe that, then don’t we have to believe that the will of God is pure love, pure hope, and this faith I speak about, pure faith. Because Aubrey too had this purpose and has, in just the short time we had her, accomplished them all with perfection. If only we all could live in such a way in the time we have here.

From the corners of your heart, this day, you may feel pain and grief. But realize now, that though the corners are crying, deep inside this little girl has planted a seed that will overshadow the tears and hurt and will grant us grace to believe that all is well. I believe from the bottom of my heart that right now...outside grief...outside loss...Aubrey still with her beautiful smile, believes that all is well and good.

There is a hymn that was written by a man on the same day that he lost his wife and his two children in a tragedy at sea. It is called, "It is Well With My Soul." It reads:

Lord, haste the day when my faith it shall be sight
The clouds, they’re gonna roll back as a scroll
The trump, it’s gonna sound, and Jesus Christ, he’s gonna descend
Praise the lord, praise the lord, O my soul.

And although today, it may not be well with your heart, may it be well with your soul. Because someday, friends, this pure faith that grew with each day of Aubrey’s life with us and will continue to grow as we nurture it...this pure faith will be sight. And we will finally have the answers to the questions that spill over in our hearts. But for now, recognize the faith you have because you knew Aubrey Lynn and let it be as it has always been with the beautiful baby girl that we celebrate today...let it be well with your soul."

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