George W. Bush Chokes Back Tears While Honoring His Father, America's 41st President

Our CBN News team in Washington provided LIVE coverage and commentary of the funeral on the CBN News Channel which is available in TV markets around the country over your antenna. CBN News has this recap of the day's events from Wednesday evening's telecast of Faith Nation.

WASHINGTON – A service full of laughter, tears, prayer, and praise took place today at the Washington National Cathedral, marking the official state funeral for former President George H.W. Bush.

Every living president came together on what's officially been declared a national day of mourning. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump took their seats next to former presidents and first ladies, Barack and Michelle Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton, and Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter.

WATCH Entire Funeral Service and CBN News Coverage of the Event BELOW:

Lauren Bush Lauren and Ashley Walker Bush began the service with a reading from Isaiah 60:1-20CloseIsaiah 60:1-20 "Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see.  For the glory of the LORD rises to shine on you. Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth,  but the glory of the LORD rises and appears over you. All nations will come to your light;  mighty kings will come to see your radiance. "Look and see, for everyone is coming home!  Your sons are coming from distant lands;  your little daughters will be carried home. Your eyes will shine,  and your heart will thrill with joy,for merchants from around the world will come to you.  They will bring you the wealth of many lands. Vast caravans of camels will converge on you,  the camels of Midian and Ephah.The people of Sheba will bring gold and frankincense  and will come worshiping the LORD. The flocks of Kedar will be given to you,  and the rams of Nebaioth will be brought for my altars.I will accept their offerings,  and I will make my Temple glorious. "And what do I see flying like clouds to Israel,  like doves to their nests? They are ships from the ends of the earth,  from lands that trust in me,  led by the great ships of Tarshish.They are bringing the people of Israel home from far away,  carrying their silver and gold.They will honor the LORD your God,  the Holy One of Israel,  for he has filled you with splendor. "Foreigners will come to rebuild your towns,  and their kings will serve you.For though I have destroyed you in my anger,  I will now have mercy on you through my grace. Your gates will stay open day and night  to receive the wealth of many lands.The kings of the world will be led as captives  in a victory procession. For the nations that refuse to serve you  will be destroyed. "The glory of Lebanon will be yours—  the forests of cypress, fir, and pine—to beautify my sanctuary.  My Temple will be glorious! The descendants of your tormentors  will come and bow before you.Those who despised you  will kiss your feet.They will call you the City of the LORD,  and Zion of the Holy One of Israel. "Though you were once despised and hated,  with no one traveling through you,I will make you beautiful forever,  a joy to all generations. Powerful kings and mighty nations  will satisfy your every need,as though you were a child  nursing at the breast of a queen.You will know at last that I, the LORD,  am your Savior and your Redeemer,  the Mighty One of Israel.* I will exchange your bronze for gold,  your iron for silver,your wood for bronze,  and your stones for iron.I will make peace your leader  and righteousness your ruler. Violence will disappear from your land;  the desolation and destruction of war will end.Salvation will surround you like city walls,  and praise will be on the lips of all who enter there. "No longer will you need the sun to shine by day,  nor the moon to give its light by night,for the LORD your God will be your everlasting light,  and your God will be your glory. Your sun will never set;  your moon will not go down.For the LORD will be your everlasting light.  Your days of mourning will come to an end. OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) , and Jenna Bush Hager read from Revelation 21:1-4CloseRevelation 21:1-4 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, "Look, God's home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.* He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever." OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) ; 23-25, part of which states:

"Then I saw 'a new heaven and a new earth,' for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 'He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death' or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

The 94-year-old served his country as president, vice president, CIA director and World War II veteran. As president, he guided the US through the first Gulf War and the break up of the Soviet Union. Presidential historian and author Jon Meacham gave a eulogy saying, "On his watch, a wall fell in Berlin, a dictators aggression did not stand." 
 
Canada's 18th Prime Minister Brian Mulroney also spoke of his legacy of leadership, saying, "No occupant of the Oval Office was more courageous, more honorable than George HW Bush." 

And former President George W. Bush delivered a eulogy for his father, saying he valued faith and family and giving back to your country.

"He looked for the good in each person, and he usually found it," Bush said. "To us, his was the brightest of a thousand points of light."

The 43rd president choked back tears as he called his father "a great and noble man, the best father a son or daughter could ever have."

The service was dominated by numerous powerful, traditional hymns, but there was also a more contemporary song as Christian recording artist Michael W. Smith, a longtime friend of the Bush family, sang "Friends are friends forever."

"It means something because I've been friends with him for 29 years, so the fact that he wanted me to sing at his funeral is just an honor beyond words," Smith told CBN News. "It's special to them. It's special to a lot of people. I just think it's incredible that he loved it and I get to sing it in this incredible cathedral."

Smith's friendship with the Bush family spans nearly three decades. It's during that time he traveled with them to Greece and even spent time with the first family at Camp David. He remembers the former president's "kindness" towards others and how he "considered others more highly than himself."

Smith also told CBN News about seeing President Bush for the last time, a mere three months before he passed away. 

"As we were leaving, we just gave him a hug and said, 'We love you. We love you, so good to see you," Smith told CBN News. "And about the time we leaving, he put his finger in the air and had that sparkle in his eyes and said: 'Friends are friends forever.' Deb and I walked out of there thinking this might be the last time that we see him."

Thousands of people streamed through the Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday to pay their respects to Bush, including former Sen. Bob Dole. In a touching moment, the 95-year-old was helped from his wheelchair so he could stand and salute his longtime colleague and fellow World War II veteran.

George H.W. Bush was married 73 years to Barbara Bush who died in April of this year. He will be laid to rest on the grounds of his presidential library and museum, alongside Barbara and the couple's daughter Robin, who died of leukemia in 1953 at age 3. 

Our CBN News team in Washington provided LIVE coverage and commentary of the funeral on the CBN News Channel which is available in TV markets around the country over your antenna or in the Norfolk, VA area on Verizon Fios channel 470. We'll have a recap of the ceremony on Faith Nation this evening.