Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1
Our football team is planning to have pizza and a movie together later this week. The parents will provide the food and drinks and my job for the evening is to choose the movie. Watching a movie together as a team is a very simple event but is an invaluable moment for young men to spend together as a team, away from football. It also gives them an opportunity to be with their coach and his family in a setting much less intense than the practice field. I have spent the last few days deciding between a few movies but finally settled on my all-time favorite sports movie, Miracle. This is the story of the 1980 Olympic Hockey Team who beat the Soviet Union for the first time in over twenty years on their way to winning the gold medal. At the time of the 1980 Olympics, I was twelve years old and my brothers and I were hockey fans. Our hometown had a hockey team and we had quickly grown to love the sport and our team. We were all excited to see the U.S. Hockey Team in the Olympics but few people expected what would eventually happen. The U.S. Team consisted of college players, or recent graduates, and the Soviet Union was the most feared hockey team in the world. Their players were much older, much more experienced, and had played together for over ten years. This was before the United States began using, “Dream Teams” in the Olympics but, as Herb Brooks, the coach of the 1980 Team said, “We began using dream teams, but we seldom get the dream”. I hope I am not spoiling the movie for anyone but, the U.S. went on to defeat the Soviet Union in the semifinals and defeated Finland in the finals to win the gold medal. The whole country, or at least the boys in my house, went crazy with excitement. I have probably watched the movie a dozen times but still get nervous in the final minutes of the game as the U.S. is fighting to hold onto a one point lead. Not until Mr. Al Michaels, the announcer for the game, says, “Do you believe in Miracles” does my heart rate go back to normal.
My favorite moment in the movie is at the end when all the players are celebrating at the gold medal ceremony. Coach Brooks is talking over the scene and says the best part of the Olympics was watching the young players celebrate. He says it was a group of young men, from different backgrounds, who were willing to sacrifice for an unknown. This week, as I have talked with my team each day before practice, I have asked them, “Are you willing to sacrifice for an unknown?” Are they willing to work hard at the day’s practice with the knowledge that the game’s outcome may not be what they had hoped? Are they willing to work hard through the long days of the upcoming off-season without the promise of a starting position? Are they willing to sacrifice for an unknown? I hope they are because I believe that, even if the end result is not what they had dreamed about, they will discover something valuable about themselves that will last a lifetime.
The quote from this movie reminds me of our faith as a follower of Christ. As we learn of His promises we must have faith in what we cannot see and an assurance of a future planned by Him. While the world is searching for evidence of His existence we, as believers, must be willing to trust in the unseen. Are we willing to sacrifice for an unknown? As Christians we must wake up every day, asked for His guidance in our words and actions, and strive to live a life that reflects Christ within our heart. Like Him, being a servant to others, and working toward and trusting in, the unknown. Are you, and am I, willing to sacrifice for an unknown?
Chad
