Baseball fans know that there is something magical about the great broadcasting voices throughout the history of the sport. Legendary broadcasters like Harry Kalas (Phillies), Vin Scully (Dodgers), and Ernie Harwell (Tigers) are about as important a part of the sport’s rich lore as the players themselves. Therefore, as a big baseball fan, I was intrigued by an article discussing the faith of Tigers Hall-of-Fame broadcaster Ernie Harwell as he is dying of cancer. The article is entitled “Dying Well – Lessons from a Baseball Legend,” and it reminds me of John Piper’s article “Don’t Waste Your Cancer.” Here are a couple excerpts:
His confidence in God came during a frustrating time in his brilliant career. It was the early 90s and Harwell was being forced out by new leaders in the Tigers front office and an overzealous marketing director at the radio station for which he had labored for decades. But, due largely to the overwhelming outrage by the sports-viewing public in Detroit and across the country, Harwell was retained and many of those behind the attempted ouster were themselves shown the door. I'll never forget the godly Harwell's response when asked if his Christian faith had been tested by the events. "No, God is in charge of every sparrow that falls from the sky. If He wants me to continue on as announcer for the Tigers, I will. If He doesn't, I can't force my way back in. My life is completely in His hands and he always does what is right." Amen.
One of the founders of Baseball Chapel - a formal Lord's Day chapel service for baseball players - Harwell is known and respected across baseball as a humble, unashamed disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. And now he is dying like a humble, unashamed follower of Christ. Doctors expect Harwell to live about six months, but he is clearly dying well. When asked whether he was worried about dying, his answer was reminiscent of Paul's attitude in Philippians 1. "If you worry, that's like telling God that you don't think he can handle things. It's a slap in the face of God," said Harwell. "My confidence is in God. Long ago, I gave my life to him. My life is in his hands."
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