December 17 – “Missing Marvin”

We went to the funeral yesterday of one of the truly nice guys the world has ever known.  Well, at least my world.  His name is Marvin Raney.  Yes, I said “is” because he was a believer and as such is alive and very well with Jesus right now.  That’s a much better state than the perennial fight with cancer that has been consuming his life for the past few years.

Marvin was Nathan’s first basketball coach, and eventually he became my assistant coach with the varsity.  By his own admission he didn’t know a whole lot about basketball, which made us quite the pair of coaches.  Neither did I, but we learned a thing or two together.  I could really count on him to be an encourager for the guys on the team.  And he was always into the game.  Except for that one time when he was kicked out of the gym.  That was when he was Nathan’s coach.  He always told me that was the defining moment of his coaching career.  It was when he knew that he was not cut out to be the head coach - that he was quite happy and fulfilled being the number two guy.  And I for one was happy he came to that conclusion.  Oh, and there was that one other time.  This one wasn’t his fault.  Someone in the stands (or rumor has it that it might have been from the scorers’ table) began riding the referee pretty hard.  I never heard what was said, but apparently the striped camel’s back couldn’t hold any more.  The ref scanned the bench, pointed right at Marvin and tossed him from the bench.  No one was more surprised that Marvin was.  See, the ref harassing really wasn’t helping matters in the game, so the whole time Marvin had been trying to get the crowd to calm down and stay off the ref’s case.  That’s Marvin.

Marvin came by the house a few years ago.  Once with his son Derek on their way to Moody Gardens and once with his son Cordy when they came to my 60^th birthday party.  One thing about Marvin … he lights up a room when he enters.  He has a great smile that rarely leaves his face (except maybe when the call is an especially bad one), and I’m quite sure that smile will be adorning his face for eternity.  And as was spotlighted at his funeral service, he has a ready quip for just about any matter of deep concern … “Well, I don’t know, but I do know God knows, so that’s good enough for me.”  Indeed he does, Marvin.  Indeed he does.  I’ll miss you, my friend.

1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

Father, welcome Marvin into your presence with the joy he brought to us while he was here.  Walk with his family as they process life without him for a while.  Amen.