This is the amazing story of my brother, his family, and how God has blessed us in a mighty way
I realize that many of you here today knew and loved a man known as Amazing Tom or Tom2Tall, but I knew him always and only as my big-ish brother. Today is not the day to tell you about the many ways that we annoyed each other as brothers and sisters will, rather let me tell you about what I think is amazing about Tom and our life together as a family.
What is truly amazing about Tom is the way that God blessed him and in turn blessed our family and many of you here today. Here is what I mean:
Tom was born in Montreal where there were medical schools, a Children's hospital, and specialists. He was going to need these things and in fact life for Tom and our family would have been much different had we lived in a remote town without medical expertise. God was in the details of where we lived. I like to think that Tom's extreme case of Rheumatoid Arthritis was a source of training for every healthcare practitioner who cared for him over the 49 years of his disease and that his case gave them insights into how to treat other patients better.
Long before there was such a thing as "patient centered care"or "patient advocates", Tom had parents who believed that he could overcome the challenges that Rheumatoid Arthritis would throw at him. They let him do things that the doctors might have discouraged or would have dismissed as impossible. In an era where doctors were in charge and patients did as they were told, our parents parked their fears and encouraged Tom to try anything and everything that he wanted to do. With their support, Tom played sports, he was a cub, he spent summers cottaging in Muskoka, winters at the ski hill, he joined church youth groups and theatre groups, learned to drive even though his feet didn't quite reach the pedals and he could barely see over the dashboard. He had so many adventures. Best of all, thanks to our parents, he learned not to let arthritis define him. God blessed Tom with exactly the right Mom and Dad.
God blessed Tom with 2 sisters who never thought of him as a "patient" or an "Arthritis sufferer". He was just our brother and we loved him and treated him like anyone would treat their brother. True, it was normal in our family to spend days, weekends, evenings, or holidays in hospital rooms with him. Often Sarah or I would be in his hospital bed with him sharing the headphones and watching his TV. It was normal for us (well Sarah mostly) to help him put on or take off his socks, we brought his schoolwork home, and we looked after his newspaper route when he couldn't. Just like it was normal for Tom to tease us, blame stuff he did on us, make us go out in the cold to take shots on him so he could practice his goalie skills, and eventually to buy us beer when we were underage and to be an awesome uncle to our kids. God blessed Sarah and I with a fantastic family life where it was normal to lend a hand, to look after one another, and where we learned through Tom that adversity can be overcome with persistence, tenacity and teamwork. We are better women and Moms because of our life with Tom.
Tom has been surrounded by a cloud of witnesses throughout his life. Angels are abundant in his life story. Neighbours who looked after us when he was in hospital. Coaches and teammates who welcomed him. Teachers who figured out how to help a kid who missed more days at school than he attended. Doctors who were willing to try many new therapies to find Tom some relief. Friends who didn't judge and who stuck up for their small buddy. Youth leaders and pastors who kept him on the path. And of course he was blessed by his wonderful wife for the past 10 years. God brought the right people at the right time into Tom's life.
Tom was blessed with a salesman's talent of connecting with everyone he met. He came by this talent honestly and it was nurtured by our salesman father and many of Dad's contemporaries who employed, trained, and mentored Tom over the years. Tom loved to hear your story and could often be found in a corner asking questions, listening. Tom was also gifted with the spiritual gift of encouragement. He took his interest for life stories and learned to tell his own. This became a passion that he turned into a profession. Many of you have heard him speak at seminars, at patient support groups, at church events or have read his books. His recent work with the Napoleon Hill Foundation allowed Tom's story to be told to many audiences internationally and he has had a profound impact on thousands of people. God blessed Tom with the talent to be an encouragement to others - His struggles and pain have been transformed into motivation for others.
Finally, God blessed Tom with faith as big and deep as he needed to live in a body that was regularly insulted with pain and suffering. He and God had a deal. Just this one thing God; Rheumatoid Arthritis and that's it. Tom bore many trials in body and in spirit over the years and yet his faith grew and grew. He had times when he and God were at odds with how things were going, but still he believed and prayed and professed his faith to anyone who asked and sometimes to those who didn't. Those of us who knew him as a Christian man must surely see and believe that God is ever present and that he provides for our every need.
Tom had the right family, he lived in the right country and cities, he made good friends who have helped him in so many ways, and he had 100% certainty that God was with him in life and that in death he had a room prepared for him in God's house. He trusted
that God would call him home and not leave him in a body that was worn out. And God is good.
I picture Tom in a place where pain doesn't exist and where his body moves freely without any stiffness. He's having a chat with Jesus, maybe interviewing him. And I'm pretty sure that he is tall.