Do you believe in miracles?
You should if you’re clinging to hope. Because success doesn’t always boil down to skill or hard work. Victory often requires something intangible – a miraculous intervention when the odds are stacked against you.
The “miracle on ice” on February 22, 1980, was a classic David versus Goliath tale of victory. That year, Russia was expected to win the Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey. Their players were the best in the world. They’d won the gold medal in five of six previous Winter Games.
By contrast, the U.S. team was made up of college kids. They were good, but no one believed they stood a chance against the much bigger and faster Soviet team. In fact, just two weeks before, the Russians embarrassed the U.S. team in an exhibition game by a score of 10 to 3. The matchup was so lopsided, it could have been 20 to 3.
But then the miracle on ice happened. When they met in the Olympic medal round, the U.S. defeated the unbeatable Soviets by a score of 4 to 3.
What enabled the U.S. to skate to victory? Hard work? Skill? Determination? Yes. All of those things. But there was something else at work, something intangible that intervened and enabled a group of college kids to prevail against all odds.
Is something in your life that’s too big to handle? A wayward child? A marriage that seems beyond repair? A career change and an uncertain future?
The bigger question is, as legendary broadcaster Al Michaels asked in the final seconds of that historic hockey game, “Do you believe in miracles?”
