Funeral | Manny Coya

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.

The Lord is our shepherd. The Lord is Manny’s shepherd, and now on the other side of this life, Manny lacks nothing and wants for nothing.

He is contented in the arms of his Savior, who loves him and calls him his son.

He is at peace. He is without pain. He is reunited with those who have passed before him. And he is fully known and fully loved in a place without tears, as the Apostle John tells us in Revelation 21:4.

On this side of heaven, however, we still shed tears, and that’s ok. Your tears are welcomed here, and they are necessary, but the good news of our faith and of Manny’s faith proclaims that our tears won’t last forever.

During moments like these, your emotions may feel like a rocky path - full of ups and downs - sad and confused, yet also joyful and thankful.

However you may be feeling at this moment, the Lord promises to remain right by your side, guiding you along rocky paths and smooth paths, alike. His guidance never fails. Wherever we follow him, he places our feet on sure ground.

The Psalmist continues…

Even though I walk through the darkest valley [some translations say, ‘the shadow of death], I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

A shepherd’s rod would guard the sheep from predators. The rod of our Shepherd Lord guards us from evil; The hook draws the sheep close when they wander, and the Lord does the same with us. He draws us close when we lose our way or find ourselves lost in the valley of the shadow of death. The good shepherd finds us and comforts us.

The Lord is a good shepherd who leads us to his peace, and as our Good Shepherd, he protects us and holds us, and draws us close during times of pain and heartache.

The Psalmist continues…

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

The Lord provides in all circumstances and makes us victorious through the victory that He achieved on the cross.

The Psalmist continues…

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

The Lord blesses in abundance. He ours our his love on us with overwhelming generosity. His grace overflows. His mercy overflows. For all of those who place their trust in the Lord, God fills our lives with His Spirit all he way to the brim... and then some.

The Psalmist concludes, saying…

Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

For Manny, this is his reality now.

As a man who loved God, loved his family and friends, and prayed daily for his wife, Alicia, his children, Manny and Jenny, grandchildren, Manny Jr. and Emily, sister, Mercy, and brother-in law, Justo, and nephews, Willie and Justico, he’s surely experiencing the goodness and love of his Savior and dwelling in the house of his Lord now, forever.

These aren’t empty words. This is a promise, and Manny’s present reality will one day will be ours, too.

Jesus said in John 14:1-4 ““Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going.””

For Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life, and all of those who follow him will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

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At this time, I’d like to invite Manny to share a few words about his father.

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1 Corinthians 13:13 NLT

Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13 reminds us of what endures throughout this life into the life to come.

Faith, hope, and love.

Faith

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1

Our faith and trust in Jesus, especially in the midst of our sorrow, gives us the confidence to hope for life beyond this life and remind us that our life with Christ continues after death.

For Jesus followers, death doesn’t have the final word on our lives.

In Christ, life follows life!

Faith assures us that though we can’t see God, he sees us and gives us a pathway to know him in relationship through His Spirit alive in us and the grace of his Word, which tells us that where Manny is now, there will be no more sorrow, no more strife, no more pain, and no more death.

Rather, Jesus said, “Behold, I am making all things new,” (Rev 21:5) including new, everlasting bodies that aren’t overcome by age or illness.

Faith chooses to believe in this reality, though mysterious and at times, hard to understand, but no less real and true.

Faith sees beyond our senses to see forever with Jesus.

***

As many of you know, Manny loved sports. He knew every stat to every sport, but he especially loved keeping the pitch counts with Manny’s baseball teams. I think he loved those stats the most.

As a sports fan, whether you realize it or not, you quickly become a person of faith.

At the beginning of every season, Manny held a deep faith in the Canes, the Marlins, and even, the Dolphins.

I don’t think a person can be a Dolphins fan without being a person of faith. For every Dolphin fan, we long for a reality that we can’t yet see, right?!

Manny loved sports and shared his love for competition and camaraderie with those that he loved way more than sports: his son, Manny, his grandson, Manny Jr., his daughter-in-law, Jenny, and his wife, Alicia.

[[[look at Manny Jr. and Emily]]]

To Manny Jr. and Emily, though your Abuelo is no longer with you in person to watch your games and recitals, his love and memory will always be with you.

Though he loved sports, he loved so much more watching you play sports and dance in recitals, and the fact that he always showed up for you showed how much he loved you.

Always remember that when you think about your Abuelo. He loved you and all of his family and friends so very much. No man is perfect, but that shined through in everything he did.

***

One of the ways he showed his love for his family and friends was by praying with a FAITH that trusted and believed in the Lord!

Romans 10:9 says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

This is our Hope.

The Apostle Paul wrote, Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. Philippians 3:20-21.

These bodies break down and eventually pass away. Nothing in this life holds breath forever, and when we breathe our last here, we breathe our first with God.

The Apostle Paul wrote, ‘absent in the body, present with the Lord.’ 2 Corinthians 5:8, KJV.

The hope of the Christian faith says ‘o, death where is your victory. O death, where is your sting?’ 1 Corinthians 15:55. It sure isn’t found in the life of a believer! Death has been defeated on the cross, and now every person who places their faith in Jesus rises with him in victory, so in death, we have nothing to fear but everything to gain!

This is precisely the hope that leads us to feel surprised by joy in times like these!

And gives us reason and courage to love.

Love

Of faith, hope, and love that remain until the very end, the greatest of these is love.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Love is what moved God from heaven to earth to save us. Love is what sent Jesus to the cross to die for the forgiveness of our sins.

Love is what holds all things together.

The Apostle John wrote, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.” So that we might live forever with him. 1 John 3:16

***

Manny loved his family and friends with a deep, caring, and kind love. He faithfully loved his wife for 47 years, plus a few more years while they dated… more than 50 years… and they served one another in love all the way to very end.

That kind of love - 47 years of marriage - takes courage… resilience… commitment… and trust.

It takes a lot of faith and a lot of hope to love for 47 years and to grow a family.

For Manny, these three things remained for him all the way until his last breath on earth and first breath with the Lord.

***

For us standing here now, faith, hope, and love are what remain, but the greatest of these is love.

***

Many of you know that Big Manny shared a birthday with his son, Manny, on May 12th, and as Big Manny’s only child, this made for great fun between father and son.

On the memorial website, some of you may have seen the picture that Manny posted of him and his father on their last birthday together a few weeks ago.

Big turned 70 and Manny turned 42.

It’s a beautiful picture of father and son [[[look at Manny]]], and one that I know you’ll cherish.

In that picture, did you notice gigantic brownie with vanilla ice cream?

I thought: where did you go for dinner? :) I want to make sure I order that brownie! :)

As I reflected on that picture of the two of you and thought about your’s and your father’s faith, your shared hope, and the love that both of you deeply felt for one another, I thought about how that sweet and delicious brownie illustrates this moment now.

What 3 key ingredients make a great fudge brownie? chocolate (lots of chocolate!), sugar, and milk!

What 3 key ingredients make a great life? Faith, hope, and love (lots of love!)!

Whenever you look at that picture and remember Manny and Manny sharing that brownie on their birthday… or Big telling a fun, quirky joke… or how he always showed up for his family and friends… or how he loved his wife for 47 years… or how he cheered on his hometown teams… remember the great life that Manny lived comprised of those three key ingredients: faith, hope, and love.

1 John 2:25 says, this is what [Jesus] promised us—eternal life. 1 John 2:25

This is the heart of our faith, the direction of our hope, and this is the promise of love… Eternal life.

Don’t miss it.

Jesus loves you, and he offered his life for you, and by the power of his Spirit made alive in you when you believe, he gives you the inheritance of eternal life and the promise of freedom from sin.

Will you pray with me?

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of Manny’s life. Thank you for how he touched our lives. Thank you for the legacy that continues through his family. And thank you for the gift of your son, Jesus Christ, who made this promise available to us through his life, sacrifice, and resurrection from the grave. Jesus, thank you for offering your life for ours. Lord,

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