Torch, Fall 1993

Lord's leading in the placement of a particular baby girl with the Rayburns. So Marilyn Jane came into Marlin and Ethel's lives and blessed their hearts. Ethel and Marlin, her Aunt Lil, and Ethel's mother and father were very close, visiting frequently, vacationing together, and helping each other when a need arose. Marilyn can't remember having many babysitters. If Marlin and Ethel had to be away, her parents would drive from Pennsylvania to wherever the family was currently ministering to care for the little girl. When there was illness, Aunt Lil, a private duty nurse, would also come from Pennsylvania to take care of the patient and stay as long as she was needed. When Marilyn was quite small, she suffered a bout with pneumonia, and Aunt Lil stayed six weeks. Always, there was love, encouragement, and wise counsel from the older generation-and good relationships already established. Marilyn was four when Ethel's father went to be with the Lord. The family maintained their close ties, and Marlin invited Ethel's mother to live with them. A few years later, again it was Marlin who thought Aunt Lil shouldn't be alone and invited her to make her home with them. It seemed like a very natural thing to do. Ethel speaks of how Marlin had to wrestle with a temper in earlier days. "Then," she says, "the Holy Spirit brought about a marvelous change in his life, resulting in his exhibiting the fruit of meekness." Yet he maintained a quiet authority as leader of the household. Marilyn once told her mother, "I know what the.Lord Jesus is like, because I think my daddy must be just like Him." The extended family immediately realized many benefits of having the seniors in the home. There existed a wonderful spirit of cooperation and seeking to please one other. The newer arrivals contributed mightily to the activities of the household. Ethel's mother was the cook, and Lil, the housekeeper. Because of their helpful, kindly presence in the home, Ethel was able to fill needed ministries in the churches, in Christian schools, and later in the college library. And Marilyn was surrounded by loving role models. Torch 14 Aunt Lil and Ethel's mother were encouragers. They encouraged Marlin and Ethel in their relationship to each other and to their ministries. She recalls the day they were in her mother's apartment during her father's last illness. Marlin was leaving to candidate for a pastoral position in Indiana. Ethel had no desire to go with him that day, or to the new church, for that matter. Her father was ill. She loved their present church. She wanted Marlin to go by himself. Aunt Lil sat down with her and asked, "Aren't you praying about this? Don't you think the Lord is leading him? And if He is leading him, don't you think you should go with him?" So Aunt Lil and Ethel's mother stayed with Marilyn, and Ethel and Marlin left for the church in Indiana which became their next place of ministry. The ladies encouraged Marilyn in her prayer life and in learning the Scriptures. They all worked on verses for the week and recited them at the supper table. The ladies had come from a praying family and were, themselves, prayer warriors. Ethel says her mother taught her how to pray specifically and to expect answers. Her mother also established a relationship with a young homemaker next door. The two became a mighty prayer group in behalf of their church and the community. When special evangelistic meetings were held in their town, they saw the Lord save one of the people they had been praying for. The young neighbor says that through that relationship she learned to love and interact with older adults. And she saw how God answers specific prayers. Marilyn grew up in a home with open doors, especially to missionaries. The presence of the older women made it possible for Marlin and Ethel to feed and house visitors more easily. When the time came to add a much-needed room to the house, the ladies helped buy drywall with their social security checks, and the whole family contributed holiday gift money toward the project. The Lord provided a college student to help Marlin with the construction, and the family shared the completed accommodations with many who were passing through. An assortment of pets made their way through the Rayburn household. Ethel's mother taught Peppy the parakeet to recite his address- a feat he had to relearn when the city changed the house numbers. He squawked several phrases, including a caution to the family to "lock the trailer" when they left him to go camping. Then there was Jingles the cat, who pushed her newborn kittens into the house through the mail slot in the door one cold winter night. Aunt Lil professed to hate animals. But she had only kind words for Shadrach, Marilyn's border collie mix, and frequently recounted his acts of intelligence. When it was time for family devotions, Shadrach went to his rug and lay down, head on his paws. When he heard the "Amen," he got up and resumed his place in the family circle. Marilyn recalls her family having a lot of fun. "I wouldn't trade our family's experience for anything. My grandmother and my great-aunt were fun to be with– they had a great sense of humor, and they certainly weren't