An open letter
Churches, we have a strange idea.
And we think you're uniquely qualified to understand it.
At The Eulogy Now Co., we believe gratitude shouldn't wait for funerals.
Because every pastor has seen it.
The stories.
The tears.
The regrets.
The things people wish they had said.
The appreciation they assumed was understood.
And then, standing at a memorial service, people finally say the things that mattered most.
We simply have one question:
Why wait?
What if families gathered around the table while everyone was still healthy?
What if grandparents heard the stories their grandchildren would one day tell?
What if husbands and wives celebrated fifty years together before the obituary?
What if encouragement happened while it was still called Today?
“Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today.”
And Ecclesiastes 7:2 tells us:
“It is better to go to a house of mourning… for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.”
Not because Christians are obsessed with death.
Quite the opposite.
Christians are uniquely free to talk about it.
Because we know death doesn't get the final word.
And perhaps that's why we can even laugh about it.
Not because death isn't painful.
But because Jesus defeated it.
As believers, we don't ignore our mortality.
We redeem it.
We use it to remind ourselves what matters most.
- Faith.
- Family.
- Forgiveness.
- Gratitude.
- Stories.
And saying the things we mean before it's too late.
Which is why we believe eulogies are wasted on dead people.
Everyone gets one.
Not everyone gets to hear it.
And frankly, that seems like a shame.
The Eulogy Now Co.
A Not Dead Yet Production
Sample sermon
"Why Wait for the Funeral?"
Introduction
Let me ask you a strange question.
What do you hope people will say about you when you're gone?
Will they talk about your kindness?
Your faith?
Your generosity?
Will they remember that you pointed them toward Jesus?
Because the truth is, whether we realize it or not, we're writing our eulogy every day.
Not with words.
With our lives.
Scripture
“It is better to go to a house of mourning… for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.”
Solomon isn't telling us to become morbid.
He's reminding us that remembering our mortality helps us live intentionally.
One day, people will stand up and tell stories about your life.
And here's the irony.
You'll never hear them.
Which raises a question.
Why are we saving gratitude for funerals?
Why are we saving encouragement for memorial services?
Why are we saving our appreciation for later?
Hebrews 3:13 says:
“Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today.”
Today.
Not someday.
Today.
And perhaps Christians, of all people, can approach this with hope and even a little humor.
Because Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:55:
“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
Paul is taunting death.
He's mocking it.
Not because death isn't real.
But because Jesus is more real.
For those who belong to Christ, death isn't the end of the story.
It's not victory.
It's defeat.
So perhaps we should spend less time fearing death and more time celebrating life.
Perhaps we should stop assuming people know how much they matter.
Perhaps we should say it.
Perhaps we should write the letter.
Make the phone call.
Tell the story.
Give the flowers.
Because one day there will be a funeral.
But until then —
it's still called Today.
And that's where gratitude belongs.