A Service of Death and Resurrection for Colette Allison Zink (February 12, 1959 - June 15, 2026)

Death gathers fear, pain, and honest questions into the room, but death does not get the last word. Colette’s death has changed the relationship between the living and the one who has died, and that change hurts. Yet Colette’s gift of finding good in everything shows even here, because her death has brought people together, especially her family.

Baptism gives the gathered church something holy to do. Baptism promises a community of love and forgiveness, and that promise means people support, carry, and lean upon one another. Today’s act of accompanying Colette from the place of death to the place of farewell becomes a lived-out baptismal calling.

Grief becomes a tangible sign of invisible love. Grief is not something to deny, rush past, or “overcome” by pretending. Healthy grief has to be lived with and processed one day at a time, because ungrieved pain will find unhealthy ways to speak later. Colette, the mother hen and gracious caretaker, would desire healing and what is best for others even in this loss.

Colette’s life reflected the care, joy, and comfort of God. Her care showed up when she cared for her mother, then helped care for her aunts, and became like a second mother to Pam’s children. Her joy showed up in cruises bought with the sale of a beloved Mustang, in jokes and rhymes and treasure hunts, in “floor it” and “bark your tires,” in silliness that pulled others into the dance. Jesus, the Lord of the dance, invites people into life and joy, and Colette joined that dance by inviting others into it too.

God’s comfort also shone through Colette. Derek called her Bink, his pacifier, because she brought calm, peace, stillness, and quiet. Sharon’s first call in grief went to Colette because Colette had become a source of comfort. Yet Christ has not left anyone orphaned. The vessel has been lost, but the companion, the comforter, remains.

Philippians calls God’s people to be glad in the Lord, to show gentleness to all people, and to receive the peace of God that keeps hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus. Colette becomes one to imitate, not as an end in herself, but because Christ was reflected in her. Good Friday pain is real, Holy Saturday waiting is real, and Sunday’s coming remains the hope. God will swallow up death, wipe away tears, and gather God’s people at the rich feast where joy will be forever.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. Grief is invisible love made tangible. [20:43] Grief is not treated as weakness or failure, but as love taking visible form after loss. The pain matters because the relationship mattered, and denying that pain would dishonor the depth of the bond. Healthy grieving becomes a holy discipline, allowing sorrow to speak truthfully before it leaks out in damaging ways. [20:43]
• 2. Baptism teaches holy accompaniment. [19:51] Baptism is not only a past event, but a promise embodied when believers carry one another through death and farewell. The church’s presence becomes more than sympathy; it becomes a way of keeping baptismal vows. Love, forgiveness, support, and shared burden-bearing become the shape of faith in the valley of grief. [19:51]
• 3. Joy flows from God’s own life. [25:41] Colette’s silliness, laughter, and delight are named as more than personality traits. That joy is traced back to the God who loves deeply and gives life freely. The “Lord of the dance” image refuses to let holiness become grim, because Christ’s life draws people into joy that is generous enough to invite others in. [25:41]
• 4. Comfort remains beyond the vessel. [28:24] Colette was a vessel through whom many experienced peace, calm, and care. Her death removes that beloved vessel, but not the God who was reflected through her. Christ remains the companion and comforter, so grief can tell the truth about loss without believing comfort has disappeared. [28:24]
• 5. Holy Saturday waits for Sunday. [30:27] The pain of death is named as Good Friday pain, real and heavy. The present moment is pictured as Holy Saturday, where loss is still felt and resurrection has not yet been seen in full. Hope does not erase grief, but waits within it, trusting that Sunday is coming because God raised Christ from the dead.
  
  ## [30:27]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [18:23] - Worship, Thanks, and Honest Grief
• [19:26] - Colette’s Gift of Bringing People Together
• [19:51] - Baptism as Loving Accompaniment
• [20:43] - Grief as Tangible Love
• [21:28] - The Mother Hen Caretaker
• [23:09] - The Life of the Party
• [25:41] - Joy Flowing from God
• [26:41] - Bink, Comfort, and Peace
• [28:04] - Look After Each Other
• [29:22] - Philippians and Imitating Christ
• [30:27] - Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Sunday
• [32:02] - The Feast Where Death Is Swallowed

Bible Reading

Philippians 4:4-7
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” [29:51]

Isaiah 25:6-8
“On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined. And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.” [32:02]

John 14:18
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” [28:47]

Observation questions

1. In Philippians 4:4-7, what are believers told to do, and what does God promise to do for their hearts and minds?
2. What pictures of God’s future hope stand out in Isaiah 25:6-8—especially the feast, the swallowing up of death, and the wiping away of tears? [32:02]
3. What does Jesus say in John 14:18, and how is that promise expressed in the language of not being left alone in grief? [28:47]
4. What were some of the specific ways Colette reflected care, joy, and comfort in the lives of others? [25:50]

Interpretation questions

1. Philippians says, “Rejoice in the Lord always.” How can that command be understood in a season when grief is real and heavy, and why is it important that the joy is “in the Lord” rather than in the circumstances? [30:27]
2. Grief can be understood as a tangible sign of invisible love. How does that way of seeing grief help people tell the truth about their sorrow instead of hiding it or rushing past it? [20:49]
3. Jesus says, “I will not leave you as orphans.” What does that promise suggest about Christ’s presence when a beloved source of comfort is gone? [29:03]
4. Isaiah’s picture of the great feast says that God will swallow up death forever. How does that future promise give hope without pretending that present pain is small or unreal? [31:01]

Application questions

1. Grief should be lived with honestly and processed one day at a time. What does that look like for each person in this group right now? What are some unhealthy ways grief can come out if it is ignored? [21:05]
2. Baptism calls God’s people to support, carry, and lean upon one another. Who in this season may need to be carried a little more carefully, and what might that support look like in a practical way this week? [20:19]
3. “Look after each other” is a simple but deep Christian calling. Who has been easy to notice lately, and who might be quietly hurting in a way that could be missed? [28:17]
4. God’s comfort remains even when a precious vessel of comfort has been lost. When life feels especially anxious or empty, where does a person tend to look first for peace, and how might Christ be meeting that person there? [28:57]
5. Colette’s joy drew other people into laughter, fun, and life. Who in this group naturally shares joy with others, and how could that kind of Christ-shaped joy become more intentional in everyday relationships? [26:18]
6. Philippians calls believers to let their gentleness be known to everyone. In a season of stress, fatigue, or sorrow, where is gentleness hardest to show—at home, at church, at work, or somewhere else? Why? [29:51]
7. Holy Saturday is the place of waiting between real loss and promised resurrection. Where does this group feel stuck in that kind of waiting, and what would it mean to hope for Sunday without pretending that Friday did not happen? [30:54]