February 10, 2002
Call to Worship
Jesus said, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Mt. 11:28)
We are gathered together here this afternoon to celebrate the life of Mr. Mon Yuen Chan who worked long and faithfully throughout his life to provide for his family. On behalf of Mr. Chan’s wife, Sue Chan for 53 years and his children, Laura Pang and her husband Paley, and their children Stacey, Marcia, and Lawrence and his son, John Chan and his wife, Ina, and their daughter, Stacey, we greet you and are grateful for your time and respect to be here. Surely when a servant like Mr. Chan has completed his work on earth, his yoke is now easy and his burden is now light. For the Lord God blesses us when we are faithful throughout our days.
Let us pray.
O God, your care is like that of a father who has compassion for his children and a mother who comforts her child. We cast our heavy burdens of grief on you. Be gracious with us in our sadness and sorrow. Grant us comfort of your rest. Assure us with confidence that your faithful servant, Mon Yuen Chan has been received into the arms of your mercy, in the blessed rest of your eternal care. May our lives hereafter bear witness to the hope that is ours in the crucified and risen Christ, who defeated death for our sake and now reigns victorious in your glory. Through his name we pray.
Scripture Reading
Ecclesiastes 3:1-15
The Lord’s Prayer (Mr. Chan remembered the Lord’s Prayer by heart and recited this prayer particular during the times when he was not well.)
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come, thy will be
done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our
debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us
from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.
Biography of Mr. Mon Yuen Chan
Sharing
George Lai
Marcia Pang
Gift of Talking
The Chinese who came to America before World War II made life-changing sacrifices for a better life for their families. Denying personal interests or neglecting God-given gifts, these forefathers and mothers thought first of their family and their descendants before themselves. Mr. Mon Yuen Chan was such a sacrificing man.
As a young man he worked in an assortment of jobs to make a living. He clerked at a drug store. He owned a Chinese gift shop. During the war, he worked at Lockheed to build plane parts. He owned his own business, Economy Market, a little grocery store in North Beach where Laura and John were free to eat all the candy and ice cream they wanted. Later in life he worked as a shipping clerk at Sharper Image. And even after retirement, he worked in cleaning jobs. Unlike our generation, Mr. Chan didn’t have the opportunity to choose courses of study based on his interest or God-given gifts. He worked quietly and hard to provide for his family.
What is amazing about God’s grace is that the God-given gifts that we are blessed with sometimes have a way of coming out and be used for a purpose. The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4,
“Each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
Therefore it is said, “When he ascended on high he made captivity itself
a captive; he gave gifts to his people.”
Paul said that “the gifts Christ gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.”
Mr. Chan was given the gift of sharing ideas, engaging in long conversations, and enjoying dabates. He liked to talk. Although Mr. Chan didn’t use his God-given gift of talking as a part of his jobs, he was still able to find ways to use this gift wherever he can. Devouring the daily English and Chinese newspapers and keeping up with the news, he was always ready to have a good conversation about the world around him. When customers came in, he would talk with them about current events. Nothing seemed to be beyond his reach of understanding—from Wall Street business to Washington politics. He had an opinion to share with you.
At home, his comprehensive understanding of issues and topics of the day gave him wisdom and insights to guide his children and grandchildren. He advised his son, John to learn technical abilities so that “an honest day’s work deserves an honest day’s pay.” He knew that women would have a more difficult time to survive in life so he expected Laura to have a college education. His grandchildren remember him saying to them, “Get A+ grades so that you can get an A+ job.” I like that pearl of wisdom. With limited opportunities for Mr. Chan to use his God-given gifts of conversing and talking at work, he was still able to do so outside of the workplace: in the neighborhood, at the senior center, and at home. And he did it well.
As a young man, he attended English classes at our church, the First Chinese Baptist Church where he met Christian workers like Debbie Allen and Astrid Peterson. After returning to San Francisco from Los Angeles, he searched out the church again to make sure his own children would receive the same kind of hospitality and instruction that he received. No one is sure how Mr. Chan got the name, “Lincohn.” It may very well be that when Debbie Allen first met Mr. Chan, she saw in him the honest character of an Abraham Lincohn. Like President Lincohn, he came from humble beginnings and made a better life for his family. Like President Lincohn, he believed in honest work and saving for the future. Like the time when Abraham Lincohn debated Stephen Douglas over politics in 1858, Mr. Lincohn Chan enjoyed debating about important issues of his day.
Although the only subject that he had little interests in was sports, he discovered while working at Sharper Image, a passion for playing ping pong. He played competitively like the way he debated sharply with whoever wants a good conversation. Maybe that’s the reason why ping pong became a passion for him. It’s like the “give and take,” “the back and forth,” the each player taking turns to share opinions and ideas in search of greater truth.
His granddaughter, Stacey Pang shared with me one of her grandfather’s favorite Chinese characters. It’s the word for “through” or “understand.” I was told that the character has a person standing on top of something that looks like a locked gate. Mr. Chan shared with Stacey that this symbolizes how someone facing an obstacle can use his/her mind to discover creative solutions to get pass to the other side. What a beautiful image to describe Lincohn Chan’s life! Faced with limited opportunities, Mr. Chan still developed his God-given gifts of talking and long conversations and made a life for himself and his family that is filled with wisdom, love, and grace.
The Apostle Paul was speaking to the Corinthians about the unique spiritual gifts the Holy Spirit gives us. He said,
“To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to
another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to
another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one
Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to
another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues,
to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and
the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit
chooses.” (1 Cor. 12:4-11)
God has indeed through the Holy Spirit gave Mr. Mon Yuen Lincohn Chan the give of the utterance of wisdom and knowledge so that his customers, his neighbors, his co-workers, his family and friends may know about God’s plan and blessings for our lives. We give thanks to God for blessing our lives with the life of Mr. Mon Yuen Lincohn Chan who uttered daily wisdom all the days of his life.
Let us pray. O gracious God, how we thank you for the gift of life. We know the Scripture is true that teaches us that in you we live, and move, and have our being. But even as we give thanks for life, we acknowledge, O Lord, that death is part of life. Even though death always feel like an intruder, we know it is really part of the path we all must walk. We are grateful for those whose lives encourage us on the path of life. This loved one, Mr. Mon Yuen Chan, whose life we celebrate today, has been faithful in life and now in death. May we learn from his intelligence and wisdom how to embrace the totality of the gift you have given us, and accept by grace the hope of eternal life. In the name of Christ our Lord, whose life, death, and resurrection are the first fruits of eternal life. Amen.
Announcements
In the memory of Mr. Mon Yuen Chan, donations can be made to the First Chinese Baptist Church of San Francisco where he attended English night school classes. After you have given your respects and expressed your condolences to the family, we will process to the Golden Hill Cemetery in Colma. Following the interment service, you are warmly invited by the family to attend the memorial dinner at Canton Restaurant at 655 Folsom Street in San Francisco.
Again, we are thankful for your presence and may this day be a blessing to you and your household because of your love for the Lord.
Mr. Mon Yuen Lincohn Chan
Interment Service
Our Lord, Jesus Christ said,
“I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11:25-26)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that whosoever believe in him will never die, but will have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
Committal
In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; crucified and risen, we commend to God’s merciful care our brother, Mon Yuen Lincohn Chan; and we commit his body to its final resting place; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.
“Blessed are the dead who…die in the Lord…they will rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.” (Rev. 14:13)
Let us pray.
God of grace and mercy, comfort and assure us with the knowledge that Mr. Mon Yuen Chan is with you, at peace in your eternal love and care. As we go forth from this place, grant us faith in your goodness, faith in guiding wisdom, and faith in your everlasting promise, through your Son, Jesus our Lord. Amen.
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.
This concludes our services here today. Go in peace and may God bless you.