July 14, 2014, 4:00 PM
Chapel of the Oaks, Oak Hill Memorial Park, San Jose
Welcome and Opening Words
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth shall change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though the waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. The Lord of hosts is with us: the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God the Apostle Paul, Disciples Peter and John, the God of you, me and Tom Wong, is our refuge. (Psalm 46:1-3. 7)
We are here to celebrate the faithful life of Thomas Carl Wong, Jr. who was born on November 27, 1948 and returned to God, his Maker on June 30, 2014. All of us can say that we wish our lives could be calmer and less chaotic. We dream of endless sunny, summer days and wish that dark, stormy clouds never come. But when our lives are shaken and our hearts tremble, God stills us even in such troubling times. God is our refuge where we can find rest in the storm. Coming together as family and friends is one of the ways that God grants us a safe harbor. God provides his people with deep and loving friendships that quiet the roar of life, that still the changing earth so that we may find once again the strong bonds of love in our families and friends who make life worth living.
Let us pray.
O God, you are our rock and our salvation, a very present help in times of trouble. In our sadness and grief over Tom Wong’s death, we seek the comfort that only refuge in you can give. Help us not to fear the change that comes to our world because of Tom’s death, but to face it with courage and strength, confident in the hope of resurrection and life everlasting; through Jesus Christ, the Lord of Life. Amen.
I am sure that when Tom and Stan went fishing, there were times when the “waters roar and foam.” When that happened, they must have felt the power of God Almighty himself. This is the God of sea and sky, snow and rain, wind and flame but who became human in Jesus Christ just like us so that we would know the Lord and be sent to proclaim Good News in the world.
Hymn Here I Am, Lord
Everything Has Its Time
When we were all much younger than we are today, we go about life as if there would be no ending in sight. Playing baseball in the playground until one more at bat far later than when we should have been home for dinner. Driving along the freeways with our VW bugs or the gas-guzzling Suburban feeling like the road is endless and we are free at last. Fishing for that “big one that got away” believing that God in his marvelous creation has made both the birds of the air and the fish in the sea and people like us because God wanted to be in the company of his creation. We all travel this life with the hopeful prayer that life will go on and on until we come face to face with death.
Tom Wong wanted to live longer than the 66 years of life that he lived. He wanted to go fishing with his brother Stan many more times than he did. There was more fish out there, especially the one that got away. The philosopher in Ecclesiastes tells us that, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” There is a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together. While there is a time for everything that happens to us, we believe in Jesus Christ who has given us our purpose under heaven to live.
A good life is not defined by the number of home runs that we hit or the number of miles that we traveled or the number of bass that we caught. A good life is not even defined by the number of blessed years that we live. Rather, the good life is what we do with the life that we have. God has given each of us something to be busy with in life but as the philosopher in Ecclesiastes say, “God has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end” (3:11). The point is that when we do come to the end of life, we will all ask ourselves, “Have we lived a good life?” For Tom Wong, he surely did.
Tom loved fishing and would travel to faraway places to catch fish. He was not a casual fisherman but an expert fisherman. We would go to a tackle store and buy already made flies and weights to fish; Tom made his own fancy flies to lure that big one. While most of us might have a fishing story, Tom’s stories were never made up but as real as they can be. In the stories of Jesus, there are many about fishermen and fishing. In fact, Jesus called some fishermen to be disciples and told them that while they knew how to fish for fish, they will now be able to become fisher of men. If Tom was living at the Sea of Galilee, I wonder if Jesus might have called Tom while he was making his fancy flies to follow him. In March of 2005, Tom did just that—he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior as a believer in baptism.
One of the most familiar stories about fish in the Bible is the feeding of the five thousand when five thousand men and perhaps another 5000 wives and maybe another 5000 children were listening to Jesus’ teachings and it was dinner time and they had no food to feed the people. The disciples were being realistic and suggested to Jesus to send the people away to go into town and find something to eat. But Jesus told the disciples to feed the people. He told them to gather up what the people may have. Gathering up only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, Jesus told them to start distributing the food to the people. And lo and behold, all 5000 and more people who were gathered on that hillside were fed leaving baskets full of leftovers. This miracle tells us about the abundant love that God has for us. And in turn, how we are to share our abundant love for each other.
In 2009, Tom and Maureen came on a pilgrimage to the Holy Lands when we visited Israel and Jordan. One of the many churches that we visited was the Church of the Multiplication. It’s the church that commemorates the miracle of the Feeding of the 5000. One of the sights to see was the famous mosaic found under the communion table in the church. And here, the mosaic depicts 2 fish and only 4 loaves of bread. The story is that Jesus, the Bread of Life is the fifth loaf of bread. We are glad that Tom had this opportunity to meet Jesus, the Bread of Life.
Years ago before Tom became sick, he purchased two new pairs of trousers that were two big for him and asked if I could use them. I graciously accepted them, had them hemmed and they are a part of my wardrobe today. Tom was generous and gave abundantly to others. He believed that the more he gave away, the more he would also receive. When Tom caught fish abundantly, he gave them away to his friends so that they may eat that night too. And when he cared for others, he multiplied God’s love to others.
In Tom’s biography, it said that he liked to buy pots and pans for Maureen and it was a mystery of why he would do that. He wasn’t being realistic like the disciples were in trying to find enough food to feed the 5000 and more people. How many pots and pans does one family really need? I like to believe that Tom was imagining catching so many fish one day that Maureen would need many pots and pans to fry them. Tom believed not only in the miracle of abundance but the miracle of living a good life.
Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him?” (Matt. 7:7-11). We know that Tom loved his family, Maureen, his daughters, his in-laws and his grandsons. He was happy to be able to give them the security and safety of home and to gather his family together in the Bay Area. When Tom asked to live long enough to see his new grandson, God gave him enough time to do so. Tom Wong lived a good life.
There is a time for everything under heaven; for everything there is a season. There is a time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones together. When Tom and Stan were scattered after the death of their mother, God gathered them together when their father remarried and gave them a sister. When the South Bay church completed its ministry and the members scattered, God gathered them together and became a wonderful blessing at First Chinese Baptist in San Francisco. Tom in his never-ending love for his family that was scattered was able in the strength and power of God, gathered his family back together so that there would be love and support for each other.
In God’s grace, there is indeed a time for everything under heaven; there is a time to gather together in order to also scatter. Tom gathered small pills in small bottles at Rite Aid and distributed them to his patients so that they would be well again. Tom bought many pots and pans together perhaps more than he and Maureen may ever need and maybe it’s time to give those pots and pans away.
Everything does have its own time and how we all wish that Tom Wong could still have more time on earth with us. But God tells us that we may have a sense of the past, present and the future but only God knows what is to come. In the past three years, when Tom was still hoping that life could still go on and on, to have that one more fishing trip, he faced death in the face.
This is a time to weep, but God reminds us that there will be a time to laugh again. This is a time to mourn, but God reminds us that there will be a time to dance again. This a time to keep silence, but God reminds us that there will be a time to speak with joy of all the blessings that we have received. This is a time that tears at our family bonds, but God reminds us that there will be a time to sew our relationships together again.
For Tom Wong and I pray for all of us today that we would also believe that God has plans for us to live faithfully in Jesus Christ our Lord who is the only one who gives us purpose and reason to live faithfully and abundantly. We will always want more time to hit another home run, travel another mile or catch that big one that got away. But God in his majesty and grace has a time for everything under heaven.
Let us pray.
Creator and Provider God, at this time of all times, we thank you for the precious gift of life.
We thank you for health and for the skill and compassion of those who care for us when our health falters and fails.
We thank you for home: for the roof over our heads and the bed where we stretch out to renew our strength in sleep; and for the loved ones who make that roof and that bed and all the rest into a true home.
And we thank you for hope: hope for the pursuit of the next goal when one goal has been reached; hope for recovery and a fresh start when a goal has eluded us; hope at last, when all hope seems lost, except for the one shining hope set before us in your raising our Lord Jesus Christ from death. Amen.
Closing Remarks
Over the many months that Tom was fighting cancer, many people here provided constant care and support—encouraging Tom to be hopeful, reassuring Maureen that God abides, going through each day believing that God indeed has a time for everything under heaven. On behalf of Maureen, Jennifer, Stephanie and their families, we thank you for your presence today.
If you wish to make a donation, that can be made in memory of Tom to the family in care of Maureen Wong.
Following the service, you are invited to a Memorial Dinner at Ocean Delight Restaurant, one of Tom’s favorite places to eat, a very appropriate name for someone who found joy and happiness in the creatures that God made in the oceans. Directions are available and dinner is at 6:00 PM.
Benediction
I challenge you now, beloved in the Lord, to face bravely the journey that our friend, Tom Carl Wong, Jr., has completed, having arrived safely in God’s kingdom.
Journey on, without the fear of falling, without any pretense about your true state as one in need of God’s saving grace.
Journey on, with tender memories of Tom Wong and so many others who have gone before you, secure in the hope that, when your time comes, the love of God will be sufficient for you, thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ.
May the Lord of light make his brightness shine upon you, chasing away every shadow, and lighting your way as you follow him into his gracious good will.
The Lord bless you ands keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.