Believe

I just finished watching "Miracle", which is the story of the US Olympic hockey team defeating the Soviet Union in the 1980 Winter Olympics. It is deemed one of the greatest upsets of all time. The average age of the US team was 21. The Soviets were seasoned veterans. The US team had been together for 7 months. The Soviets had skated together up to 15 years. The Soviets had won gold in the 4 prior Winter Olympics. The US wasn't even expected to contend for a medal.

So why did the US win? They gave everything they had. The trained relentlessly to be the best conditioned team so they could skate with the Soviets for an entire game. I don't think they won on the ice that night. I think they won during the countless hours of practice and drills.

I see a lot of people, including myself at times, unwilling to give everything they have. For the most part, it's not that they are lazy or unmotivated. It's that they are scared. They are scared of the possibility that they will invest themselves fully in a cause only to fail. If you don't give all of yourself to something and it doesn't work out than you have a built in excuse. You didn't really put yourself on the line so you don't take the loss as hard. You didn't fully pursue with your heart so you aren't left devastated. At least that is their line of thinking.

However, I think that misses the point completely. Was it Sun Tzu who said that a battle is won before it is ever fought? Life is not found in the outcome. Life is found in the pursuit. By not giving yourself fully - to God, your relationships, your work, your health - you have already failed. People tend to be very results oriented and place way too much emphasis on their definition of success and failure. Success is putting your heart, body and soul on the line. Don't be afraid if your desired result doesn't come to fruition. Be afraid of a life lived half-heartedly and with regret.

What if the US team had lost 30 years ago? Their heads may have hung in disappointment for a bit. But I guarantee that when they looked back on that game many years later they wouldn't have had one regret. They gave everything they had. They held nothing back. They found excellence in their pursuit. They gained the respect and admiration of each other and of a country. They believed in their team and in their quest.

They had already won.