Life is Messy

Today's podcast is shared in memory of Coach Ken Erny, who passed away on Sunday, June 4, 2023 after a three-year battle with ALS.

Life can be messy, which coach Ken Erny, a 1978 graduate of Cedarville University, knew firsthand. 

Ken first learned the messiness of life as a member of the men’s tennis team. He withstood snow, rain, and 70-mile-per-hour winds during a tennis match in Michigan. But, he persevered and finished his match. Or the time when he broke his wrist on his way to another match, which ended his opportunity to play at the NAIA national tournament.

Those earliest experiences prepared Ken for embracing fresh unknown challenges, starting two brand-new soccer programs at high schools in Michigan. By 2020, Ken was looking ahead to retirement as he prepared his successor.

But that does not mean that Ken, who was serving as athletic director in Fruitport, Michigan, was slowing down at all. Sixty-to-seventy-hour work weeks were still common. And then came COVID-19, which brought Ken, and the rest of the world, to a hard stop. 

During the quiet of the pandemic, Ken was able to pay attention to a foot and leg problem that had plagued him for a while, but he simply brushed it off as a "small issue" and continued with his busy lifestyle. To Ken, it may have just been a back problem or a minor health ailment. 

After medical tests, the doctors' diagnosis revealed a far more devastating health concern--he had contracted amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease, and there is no cure.  

Ken and his wife, Lori, who have trusted the Lord through the ups and downs of life for 44 years, embraced this struggle together. And, surrounded by the love of their supportive family and countless friends throughout the Fruitport, Michigan community, they persevered to the end.

Coach Ken Erny's battle ended on Sunday, June 4, 2023, but his inspiration through recorded messages to his wife, children, grandkids, and friends remains to this day. 

Today on this special Cedarville Stories Podcast, we go back into the archives to play the program with Ken that was recorded two years ago. It was an emotional program that included a cameo appearance by his college tennis coach, Dr. Murray Murdoch. 

And, in this program, you'll hear the courage from the coach and bits of wisdom that he is leaving with us today, including: “Life is messy, and yet we have a God who says He will come right alongside you. God promised to join you in the mess. He won’t leave you in spite of anything, and the future is so much better compared to what we’re going through now.”

So, in memory of coach Ken Erny, the Cedarville Stories Podcast team hopes you will enjoy this program. 

Well done, good and faithful servant!