Whenever I do a funeral I often use the story of Stephen’s friends in deep mourning as they bury their friend in Acts 8:2. I like that the friends mourned deeply, even though they heard Stephen say he saw God and they knew that Stephen was going to join Jesus. They were grieving that they were going to miss Stephen for a little while as they completed their own work God had for them here on earth.
Our family is in the early mourning stages after losing Diane’s sister, Kathy. Anyone who knows our family knows that Diane was very close to her sister, as were our boys and me. And there is going to be a big void in our lives. I’d wager that every one of you reading this have suffered a similar loss in your own lives. Some of you may still be stinging from a recent loss. And sometimes there is an ache for the rest of our lives. But I also believe that in nearly every case you wouldn’t give up all the great memories just to rid yourself of the pain of the loss.
I believe it is right to give thanks to God for the hurt after the loss of a loved one. A deep hurt can only come about from a deep love. And a deep love makes the deep hurt that accompanies a loss worth it. And in thanking the Lord for the deep hurt, you are thanking the Lord for the deep love that existed. And the Lord will comfort you.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. ~ Matthew 5:4
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Scott Knowlton's Blog 
When my brother passed away, I did an eulogy at his funeral service. The one thing I remember very clearly and this has always brought me comfort is that there was someone in Heaven that I personally knew and they would be waiting for me. I felt like I owned a piece of Heaven now because I had a family member there waiting to welcome me. It gives me great comfort. Our prayers are with you and the family.