My father and his father prayed for it often: “Please God, let the Chicago Cubs win the World Series…just this once!” But they never witnessed it in their lifetime. But I have. And so has my family.
And it was quite a spiritual experience!
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Is it wrong to pray for your favorite sports team to win? Is that a waste of God’s time or sacrilegious somehow?
I don’t think so.
Praying for the Cubs to win the World Series may not rank up there with the cure for cancer, world peace or a host of other things, but I believe our heavenly Dad loves us and loves hearing all of our prayers. And pray we did!
My wife Tina and I were in non-stop video, text and phone communication throughout Game 7 of the series with our kids and friends, and it was a thrill ride from beginning to end!
Team K will never forget this Cubs’ season and World Series win. It was some of the most fun we’ve had in years and I have to say that we are all very grateful to God for the joy this has brought us, and so many, at a time when this country really needs some fun and good news.
Let’s see if and why the World Series may have added up to being a “spiritual experience”.
Did we feel this game through and beyond our 5 natural senses? You bet we did! It was quite visceral and emotional; something that has yet to leave me. I could feel this in my guts! (and in my spirit?)
Did it connect the past and the future in a meaningful way? Again, most definitely. Generations of Team K, and others around the world, have remarked at the closeness and renewed bond they now feel with past generations and so many others around the world. More closeness is always a good thing.
Did the Cubs winning the World Series require faith? You betcha it did. It was certainly beyond mathematical probability and definitely required something beyond themselves for the win.
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. ~Hebrews 11:1
Do we now have a greater sense of possibility and hope for the future? I sure do. Seeing the “Billy Goat Curse” broken now opens up a future of possibilities only once imagined and long hoped for.
It’s not long until the 2017 season kicks off! [wpdevart_countdown text_for_day=”Days” text_for_hour=”Hours” text_for_minut=”Mins” text_for_second=”Secs” countdown_end_type=”time” end_date=”04-11-2016 23:59″ start_time=”1478302080″ end_time=”149,17,36″ action_end_time=”hide” content_position=”center” top_ditance=”10″ bottom_distance=”10″ ][/wpdevart_countdown]
This is two of my kids, Caesar 4 and Justine, who made it to Wrigley for Game 4 of this historical and spiritual experience.
But There’s More To Be Learned (now to the practical)
Spiritual experiences usually teach us something too. There were some great and practical leadership lessons learned from the game. One of my favorite bloggers, Michael Hyatt, breaks it down well in his post: 3 Leadership Lessons From The Cubs’ Historic World Series Win.
“I’m sure there are a million reasons, [why the Cubs won] but three stood out for me as I watched the postgame interviews and reflected on what brought them this far. Each of these are powerful lessons for any leader.
- Play to the possibility. The first thing I thought about was how close they already came to losing. By game four, the Indians were just one win from claiming the series.The curse narrative was strong. It would have been easy for the Cubs to lose heart and play to the story. Instead, they stayed in the game by playing to the possibility of victory. Beliefs and expectations shape our experience for good or ill. The Cubs put it to work on their side.
- Remember who you are. In the first few post-game interviews I heard Cubs players talk about how their teammate Jason Heyward encouraged them during the rain-delay between the ninth and tenth innings. Here’s how catcher David Ross remembered it:[Heyward] just said, “We’re the best team in baseball for a reason. Continue to play our game, support one another. These are your brothers here, fight for your brothers, lift them up, continue to stay positive. We’ve been doing this all year so continue to be us.”Notice the references to identity? We’re the best. We’re a team. We win as a team.”
They not only played to the possibility, they could see themselves winning because they saw themselves as winners. - Stay focused on the work. The crowd was loud, even before the victory celebrations. In one interview, pitcher Jon Lester said it was hard to screen out the noise and stay focused on pitching. But he did it play after play. They all did. If they had let the distraction of the crowd take their minds off the work at hand, they wouldn’t have been unable to pull out the win.
Whatever the game, it usually takes more than skill to prevail. Those three lessons hold true for any environment: Believe it’s possible, believe you are uniquely equipped to succeed, and stay focused on bringing home the win.”
Wow! Spiritual and practical… Sometimes it works that way.
Thanks again Cubbies!
Question: Did you watch the World Series and how was this experience for you? Can you relate to me on this?!!
