Dateline March 22, 2007; PANERA Bread, Rochester Michigan
Yesterday I learned of the passing of a friend.
In spite of its certainty the arrival of death in one’s circle is jarring. Particularly when that death occurred almost two years ago and it was only today that I discovered it.
And so it was, standing at a terminal at the local public library, looking up the name of an old friend so that I might seek his advice. Instead of advice I discovered that my old friend, one Tom McRae, had passed almost two years ago.
I read with a heavy heart the words of his wife Sandi as she memorialized Tom . As I read her words I remembered him along with her. In her memorial, Sandi asked for stories about Tom. Although its late, my story of Tom, like so many of his stories, had and continues to have eternal consequences.
I first met Tom McRae in the early eighties. At that time I was the Marketing Manager for Buick Motorsports and Buick was one of the sponsors of the Great American Race. Tom was the executive director of the Great American Race. Over the years Tom and I got to know each other as businessmen and we became friends. As you all know, Tom was bigger than life. He was full of energy, perpetual motion, passion about everything he pursued, including a deep passion for the Lord and His Great Commission.
At that time, I had been recently married. My bride Sandy and I were making our life together in Michigan. We certainly believed in God, but in spite of being married in a church by an ordained minister we weren’t walking hand-in-hand with God and we weren’t paying attention to his Son Jesus.
And so it was, I believe in 1992, that I found myself in Huntington Beach representing Buick at the start of the Great Race. As I recall, The race started on a Pier and the first over-night was in Las Vegas with a stop in Barstow in between. I recall the start quite vividly. Any of you who have been to a Great Race start know about the energy, the noise, the anticipation, the frenetic running back and forth checking last minute details.. is the band ready, are the contestants cued in the correct order, are all the sponsors properly cared for and so on. One after another, horns blaring, streamers flying and the band playing the cars started off. Through all of this commotion, in his signature white jumpsuit, neckerchief, hat and beard, Tom McRae strode toward me. Smiling, confident and at home. With the race started Tom motioned me toward the chase truck. Off we headed toward Barstow about two hours away.
I don’t remember too much about the ride to Barstow other than it was a hot and noisy. We rode with the windows down and arrived in Barstow ahead of the contestants. We helped set-up the signage and other things necessary for the lunch stop. We grabbed a sandwich and soft drinks for lunch ourseves and got ready to hit the road again.
I should stop a moment here, to let you know what I was thinking. I had come down to start the race thinking that I wanted to talk to Tom about working for the Great Race. I was searching for something and wasn’t really happy doing what I was doing in spite of the great job I had. Tom had other plans.
We climbed back into the truck to leave Barstow and I thought, well here’s a good time to talk to Tom about what I was looking for in life. Tom on the other hand, was thinking well here’s a good time to talk to Jim about what’s real and what’s not real.
For the for the next several hours we crossed the desert, it was still hot and it was still noisy. Tom witnessed to me for the entire trip. He told me the good news and how much he was concerned about my eternal well being. How important it was that I understand the real questions in life. I had heard most of all he told me in pieces and parts through out my life before. As always, I was quick to respond, quick to say that I knew all about God. After all, I had been raised a catholic, I had been baptized, been an altar boy and choir boy, I knew about heaven and hell, I knew about sin…And on I went. I don’t remember what Tom said exactly in response to all of those comments, but I do remember this one thing.
He said, Jim, if you knew somebody was in a burning building and they didn’t know it was on fire, wouldn’t you do everything possible to get that person’s attention. To let them know their building was on fire and that they were going to have to get out? Wouldn’t you want to do your part to rescue them? Wouldn’t you want to do even more if you knew that person personally, and you loved that person and they were a friend? I said, well who wouldn’t Tom?
He said well Jim, I’m so glad you inderstand because your building is on fire and I’m here to tell you that with out Jesus Christ as your savior you are going to burn up.
Tom went on to prove his point with several scriptural references which I don’t remember specifcally now. I do remember Tom, I remember his passion, his certainty, his love and I remember thinking that I knew that he was telling the truth. For the last bit of the drive, as we drove into Las Vegas,
we were kind of quiet
It was hot that evening, over one hundred degrees. The sun was low in the sky.as the cars arrived one-by-one. I was standing on the pavement in the parking lot of the Sands hotel and casino. Tom had given me a tract and I was reading that tract. And all of a sudden as I stood there in the desert sun, by myself in front of God, I knew what I had to do. I said the sinners’ prayer and for the first time as an adult, I said Jesus you are my savior, Jesus I want you in my life and I came back to Christ.
That was 15 years ago. My life has changed incredibly. All because Tom took time to witness as we crossed the desert. I came to find out later that my mother had been praying for me as were a whole lot of other people at the time. Tom was God’s answer to those prayers. Since then I’ve had many occasions where God’s hand in my life was expressed through the kindness and help of others. I have come to count on it, look for it, be thankful for it.
So let me take this opportunity, to remember Tom, to say thank you Tom. To say that I am saddened by his absence here, but over-joyed at his presence in heaven. I hope that I am as ready as Tom was for the tasks God has for me. As ready to put my life in the path of His providence as Tom put his.
I look back now and remember him, how much he loved life. How proud he was of his daughter, how much he loved his wife Sandi. Thank you Sandi, for writing about Tom as you did. Thank you Sam for giving him a grandchild. Thank you Sister and thank you Mac for being a great family and treating me as such.
God Bless you all.
Jim Markwalder