| Tom Forster is not one to be convinced easily. When he coaches his students toward national- or international-level competition, they know they must stick their landings to receive the high scores. In gymnastics there can't be a partial commitment. And Forster's gymnasts know there's no room for doubt.
Forster may sound like a no-nonsense, driven man, but he isn't. His students thrive under his direction. Their successes bear witness to his personality and supportive teaching approach in a sport where a half step off the mark can be the difference between a medal and watching the event on TV.
Tom Forster is committed to excellence in himself and his students, and more importantly, he is faithfully committed to Jesus Christ. But that wasn't always the case.
As a youngster, Forster showed promise as an athlete. Although he did well in several sports, gymnastics was his first love, and it showed through outstanding performances. By the time he reached his mid-teens, he said he had no need for religion or faith, saying, "I don't buy it."
His eyes were on a different sort of prize: Olympic gold.
But what Forster did not count on was a rare hipbone cyst that nearly put an end to his dreams. Nor did he count on meeting another young man assigned to his same hospital ward whose calm, quite demeanor stood out to the anxious teenager.
"My diagnosis was not good," he remembers. "My hipbone was nearly gone; it looked like Swiss cheese. Before the cyst was discovered, everyone thought I had bone cancer. Treatment would be experimental, at best.
"Needless to say, I was very frightened. But then through a church sermon I attended, I heard about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I wasn't sure what this meant. When I returned to the hospital to begin treatment, I met another patient who was facing his health crisis with a sense of peace and comfort. I wanted what he had."
With nothing more than the knowledge of Jesus' love for him and an example of the kind of peace He offers, Tom Forster made a decision to follow Christ. His family did too.
During the weeks and months he spent in recovery, Forster learned how Scripture draws one nearer to God, thanks to his father. "While I lay for weeks in a body cast with all of my friends back in school, talking about football games and going to dances, it was easy to get depressed.
"But there was my dad, a new Christian himself, encouraging me and reading the Bible aloud to me each day. I believe it was during those tough times when I came to realize how Scripture addresses pain, adversity, disappointment and success."
Doctors were amazed at the positive turn in Forster's health and attitude. Following treatment and months of recovery, he not only survived but went on to compete for Penn State University's gymnastics team.
Today, he and his wife, Lori, both former schoolteachers, own a nationally acclaimed gymnastics club in Colorado. The club has grown from 30 students in 1983 when they took it over to 1,300 students today—including several who compete in Olympic-level and national trials each year.
Besides flips and vaults, what else does Tom Forster teach his students? "We are not a Christian gymnastics club per se," he explains.
"We're a gym where Christian values are expressed and taught through personal interaction with staff and students. I make it a point to teach students that even when God gives you everything to achieve greatness, it won't always happen. He does not care about the things we consider success. He's more concerned about how we handle our successes and defeats, and the way we treat one another."
Should Christian athletes strive for top medals and championship titles? According to Forster, yes, and he often uses Christ's parables when teaching gymnastics. One of his favorites is Matthew's account of the three servants and the three talents. He reminds his students to be faithful to the talent God has given them and not allow themselves to settle for mediocrity.
Athletes are very visible to the public, so there's a certain amount of responsibility to their celebrity, he continues. "I often wonder why God puts Christians in sports. To play at an elite level requires tons of time and energy-often to the point of it controlling one's life." But, as Forster points out, there is also a great opportunity through sports to witness who God is within the context of competition.
"Every day I have to lay what I do before God," he continues, "asking Him to show me where my actions and motives are not honoring to Him. And where they aren't, I must be willing to walk away.
"As athletes, we must be aware others are watching us. What are we communicating in our attitude and behavior. The questions for me is, 'Am I who I claim to be?'"
Now years later, Scripture has become a sustaining factor in the faith Forster walks each day. Despite the many demands on his time, he makes it a practice to memorize complete books of Scripture.
Tom Forster, husband, father of two grown children, coach and an important influence to hundreds of youngsters, says sports provide a mirror on life. Through years of teaching and coaching, he has seen how sports have helped young athletes overcome fear, exercise faith and deal with challenge.
But that's not the most important lesson Forster has learned from his lifetime commitment to excellence. Like his aspiring gymnasts who must possess absolute confidence to complete a routine to their utmost ability, he has learned his confidence must be grounded first in Christ.
In sports, as well as in all endeavors of life, Forster knows one must commit his or her best but leave the results to God.
In this, he has no doubt
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