The Lutheran Hour
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"The Name on the Front"
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Text: Romans 12:5-6
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“And the name on the front is a whole lot more important than the name of the back,” says the coach.
It’s a classic line from one of the greatest sports movies of all time—Miracle, with Kurt Russell portraying Coach Herb Brooks, the coach of the 1980 U.S. Hockey Team, the team that lived this “miracle on ice.” Twenty college-aged, amateur hockey players defeated the greatest hockey team in the world, the Soviet Union, and went on to win Olympic Gold that year in the winter games in Lake Placid. And this line—”The name on the front is a whole lot more important than the name on the back”— well sums up Coach Brook’s approach, because the name on the back stands for the individual; the name on the front stands for the team.
When I was in high school, I played on the football team, and our jerseys didn’t even have names on the back. And there were times I resented that. Usually it was when I did something I thought was applause-worthy, and I wanted people in the stands to rise up on their feet, and worship me, like a little, golden idol. But when I messed up, when I missed a tackle or got called for a false start or a penalty of some kind, I was all too happy to hide anonymously in the huddle.
But you know you can’t hide from your teammates or your coaches. They don’t need any identification on some jersey to call you out. And that’s part of the beauty of being on a team. It’s why the name on the front is more important than the one on the back. It’s not just for the good of the team, it’s also for the good of the individual. It’s what you need. It’s what I need. Life seems to go better, it goes better for me when I know that I am known, included, called out, and sent out to play— to prove myself, but to represent the name on the front.
Now, would you believe that, today, more people around the world say that life is going better for them? Would you believe it if someone said more people today report that they’re more hopeful about the future than they were before? In a recent survey conducted by the Gallup organization, they interviewed people in 142 nations.i The survey asked, “Do you feel like you’re thriving or struggling, or even worse, suffering?” And the results? The number of people who say they’re thriving has been steadily rising for over a decade, globally, anyway, in countries as diverse as Kazakhstan and Kosovo, Vietnam and Paraguay, which is good news, right?
But there was some bad news. In some countries, more people are feeling the opposite. Self-reported well-being has been steadily falling in North America, Australia, and Western Europe (that’s us!) But, why? Why are more people around the world feeling hopeful, but not us? Our material standard of living is still higher compared to most other countries— are we so gloomy?
A New York Times columnist offered this opinion, and I think he’s on to something. He suggested that our culture’s depressing downward spiral is related to our self-worshiping cultural values—”values that are more secular, more individualistic and more oriented around self-expression … values [that] worship individual choice …”ii In other words, life is depressing when you’re all about the name of the back.
The Bible has a phrase to describe this “me-first” mindset. The Bible calls it the pattern of “this [present] age” (Romans 12:2, Galatians 1:4). And the pattern isn’t limited to wealthy, post-modern, liberal democracies. It’s the default scheme in every human heart outside of Eden. But, some cultures (like ours, lately) tend to celebrate the “me-first” mindset, whereas others see it as a liability, a problem. And they try to stifle it. And often these cultures that cultivate a “team-first” mindset have better mental health, (that Gallup survey I mentioned may be evidence for it).
Of course, there’s a dark side to team-first thinking, also. History shows that eventually some me-first-thinking individual or elite group of individuals will put themselves in charge of the team, and make everyone else miserable, whether it’s corrupt bureaucrats or tyrannical dictators, or social media moguls or abusive parents, the result is the same. Well-being plummets. People revolt. Governments collapse. Businesses fail. Families implode. People start thinking they’d be better off isolated as individuals. But that doesn’t fix things either. The cycle repeats. Nothing changes, because this side of the Garden of Eden, we’re stuck in a me-first mindset.
To paraphrase Albert Einstein— can’t solve a problem with the same mindset that created it.iii So, the Bible gives us a new way of thinking. It’s the antidote to me-first thinking. And it’s summed up in the phrase, “the mercies of God.”
An early follower of Jesus named Paul used this phrase 2,000 years ago. It’s in a God-inspired letter written to small teams of Jesus-followers living in ancient Rome. Today we call it the book of Romans or the letter to the Romans. At a turning point in this letter, Paul invokes “the mercies of God,” which is shorthand for everything God has done to rescue us from the miseries of me-first thinking, to give us a new mindset through Jesus, His Son.
The mercies of God in Jesus, they turn the pattern of this present age right-side out. God’s mercies don’t erase me or you. God’s mercies put us in the right place, in the right order. God’s mercies assure us that we are known, included, called, and sent out for the good of others. Mercy is an others-focused attitude, because God is an others-first God. The Bible reveals that God isn’t a solo competitor. God is the eternal Team of Three: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Father, He puts the Son first. The Son puts the Father first. This is the Team Spirit between them. Teamwork goes to the heart of reality.
God’s Son became human, part of Team Human. He took the Name Jesus, to give us this mindset. His others-first way of life culminated in His sacrifice for us on the cross. And He rose from the dead to put this Name—, Son, and Holy Spirit— front. These are the mercies of God.
Listen to how it goes in the 12th chapter in the letter to the Romans:
I urge you, therefore, brothers [and sisters], by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. This is your reasonable worship. And do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and discern what God’s will is— is good, pleasing, and perfect. You see, I am saying to you, by the grace of God given to me, I say to each one of you—’t think of yourselves more highly than you ought to think, but think with a right mindset, according to the standard of faith, of trusting in Jesus, which God has marked out for each of you, because, as in one body, we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so also, we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually, we are members of one another.
And since we have differing gifts according to God’s grace given to each of us, [let’s use them.] If prophecy (if proclaiming God’s will), then according to the pattern of faith, if service, then in our serving, in the one who teaches, in his teaching, in the one who encourages, by offering encouragement, in the one who contributes, in generosity, in the one who leads, with eagerness, the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
Let love be genuine, without hypocrisy— what is evil, hold fast to what is good, in brotherly affection, love one another as sisters and brothers, in honor, outdo one another in showing it, in eagerness, don’t be lazy, but full of energy in the Spirit, in the Lord, serving as slaves, in hope, rejoicing, in trials, enduring, in prayer, unceasing, in the needs of the saints, sharing as a family, in the love of the stranger, showing hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you, bless them, do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep, have this mindset among yourselves. Don’t think high-mindedly, but associate with the lowly. Don’t be wise in your own eyes. Don’t return evil for evil, but give thought to do what is good in the sight of all people. If possible, as far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people. And don’t avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, as it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. But if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. Doing so, you’ll be heaping burning coals on his head. Don’t be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.”
Paul, inspired by God’s Team Spirit, His Holy Spirit, Paul speaks to his fellow Christians in ancient Rome and he speaks to us today. He speaks like a coach. And like a good coach, he wants us to win, to win the battle. The battle with evil is not against any individual or group or nation or team. The battle is against the source of evil. The battle is against a way of thinking that says, “me first.” God’s wrath, God’s eternal opposition, is directed against this opponent, this mindset, this life wasted on the wrong name. The mission of Jesus was to defeat this evil at its source. And He did it. He said, “I have conquered— have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And we share in this victory when we trust Him, trust not in ourselves but in Jesus. And so the Bible says, “This is the victory that has overcome the world— faith” (1 John 5:4).
And even this faith in Jesus is a gift (Ephesians 2:8). It’s not earned by a tryout but freely given when you hear God’s Word, God’s promise for you. So, trust Him. Depend on Him. You don’t have anything to prove, but you do have a part to play. So by grace, “put on” (Ephesians 6:11) His jersey and play for the Name on the front.
People who knew Herb Brooks, the coach of that 1980 gold medal hockey team they made the movie about, people who knew him well said he lived that mindset, that the name of the front is always more important than the one on the back.iv And having read more about him, I think it’s best illustrated, not in the Disney-worthy “miracle” of 1980, but in the lesser-known story of the 2002 Winter Games, when Brooks went back to the Olympics and failed to win the gold. Brooks was 64 years old at the time. He had nothing to prove. At that stage in his life he saw hockey in a different light, and he was mainly just thrilled with the gift of being grandpa.
Earlier in his life, following that old pattern we know so well, maybe he did have something to prove. As a player, he had made the 1960 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team, which went on to win the gold. But just before the games started, Herb was cut from the team. He had been in the team photo, but they literally cut with scissors and pasted with glue his replacement’s face over his own. The team went on to win it all that year, beating Canada for the gold.
Herb was back in Minnesota when it happened, in his parents’ living room, watching the game on TV. When it was over, Herb’s dad turns to him, looks right at him, and says, “Looks like [the] coach cut the right guy.”v Herb was 22 years old. And at 42, in 1980, he seems to still be trying to prove himself. Winning gold in the Olympics had driven him for two decades.
But 2002 was different. During the Olympic opening ceremonies in Salt Lake City that year, there was a big to-do about celebrating the 1980 “Miracle on Ice.” The U.S. hadn’t even medaled in hockey since 1980, and a lot of folks where hoping for another “miracle.” The old players from 1980 were flown in— of them, invited into the spotlight, up on the pedestal to light the Olympic cauldron, with a billion people watching. And Coach Brooks, where was he?
Herb was back in Minnesota, at the local VFW in North St. Paul, associating with the lowly. There was a supper that same night for a local guy retiring from his blue-collar job, and Herb had promised he’d be there to honor his friend. So he let his team have the spotlight.
Team USA went on to beat the Russians in the semi-finals that year, advancing to the gold-medal round. But this time, they took silver. They lost 5-2 to the Canadians, which if you’re going to take silver against anyone in hockey, it had better be Canada, eh?
Back in 1980, at the Olympics in Lake Placid, after the Soviet team lost and took silver, the Soviet coach was seen jabbing his finger in the faces of his players. Instead of shouldering responsibility himself, he succumbed to that default mindset and blamed them: “This is your loss!” He shouted, “This is your loss!” On the flight home, it was reported that one of the Soviet players grabbed the coach around the neck and tried to strangle him to death before being pulled away.
Meanwhile, back at the Olympic Village in Lake Placid, in the vacated Soviet housing units, stashed above the drop-ceiling panels, the clean-up crew found 121 empty bottles of vodka. Years later, a journalist interviewed one of those Soviet players. He asked him if he still had his silver medal. “I don’t,” he said. “I think it is in garbage in Lake Placid …”vi
Years later, one of Brook’s players, a guy named Steve Christoff, was interviewed. Steve had been on the U.S. Team in 1980. And he remembered something coach had said to him at a practice. Steve wasn’t having his best day, that day. He was being a bit of a puck-hog. And Brooks called him out. But, he didn’t just come out and say, “Hey Steve, you should pass more.” He said, “[Steve,] the puck is not your God.”vii
Flash forward back to 2002. Just before the games began, someone asked Coach Brooks why, why, after winning gold in 1980, would he risk losing, and risk losing his credibility, his reputation? Brooks explained that it wasn’t about winning for him, but preparing to win.viii And a win for him meant sharing the game, sharing it with more people— get more kids into hockey and other sports, onto teams and troupes of every kind, to help develop a mindset that finds joy in being a small part of something bigger than yourself. His purpose in going back to the Olympics wasn’t to win a gold medal. Sure, he wanted to see his team win. And he did everything in his power to prepare them to show up, ready to win. He was a fierce competitor till the day he died. But in 2002, he wasn’t trying to prove himself.
The puck was not his God.
Someone once asked Brooks if he felt resentful about not having a gold medal of his own. See, in the Olympics, only the players got medals, not the coaches. But Brooks answered, “I did get one.”
During the 1980 medal presentation, one of the Olympic officials had passed him one when no one was looking. “I had an extra,” he told him. It was a gift. And a fine gift it was— thought Brooks ought to be buried with it.ix But when that day came, at his funeral mass, when they laid Herb’s body to rest in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, he was covered with brightly colored cards and drawings from his grandchildren, with the sound of “Amazing Grace” filling the church.x He had nothing to prove. It was all a gift.
So also, for you. Jesus, He has all the victory you’ll ever need, with extra to spare. He won you in the draft, He covered your losses, intercepted your blame, shut out death for good, and He will not cut you from His team. He lives to give you a new way of thinking. So, huddle up with your local church, the body of Christ, this week. Show up, ready to win. Play for the Name on the front. Amen? In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
i Benedict Vigers, “More People Globally Living Better Lives,” Gallup News, July 28, 2025. Accessed Sept 2, 2025 at https://news.gallup.com/poll/692816/people-globally-living-better-lives.aspx.
ii David Brooks, “Why More People in the World Are Feeling Hopeful (Except Us),” New York Times, August 7, 2025. Accessed Sept 2, 2025 at https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/07/opinion/happiness-community-wealth.html
iii Interview with Albert Einstein, “The Real Problem Is in the Hearts of Men,” New York Times, June 23, 1946. Accessed Sept 3, 2025 at https://www.nytimes.com/1946/06/23/archives/the-real-problem-is-in-the-hearts-of-men-professor-einstein-says-a.html
iv Ross Bernstein, Remembering Herbie: Celebrating the Life and Times of Hockey Legend, Herb Brooks. Bernstein Book, 2011 (e-reader version), loc. 4107.
v Ibid., loc. 631.
vi Dave Anderson, “The Other Side of the Miracle on Ice,” New York Times, Feb 22, 2005. Accessed Sept 3, 2025 at https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/22/sports/hockey/the-other-side-of-the-miracle-on-ice.html
vii Bernstein, Remembering Herbie, loc. 5313.
viii Ibid., 2354.
ix Dave Anderson, “The Unparalleled Coach of a Remarkable Team,” New York Times, Aug 12, 2003. Accessed Sept 3, 2025 at https://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/12/sports/sports-of-the-times-the-unparalleled-coach-of-a-remarkable-team.html
x Ibid., loc. 2609.
Reflections for November 16, 2025
Title: The Name on the FrontNo Q&A segment this week.
Music Selections for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arr. Peter Prochnow. Used by permission.
“Crucifer” by Sydney H. Nicholson, arr. Peter Prochnow. Used by permission.
“Forth in Your Name, O Lord, I Go” by Charles Wesley & Barry L. Bobb. (music © 1982 Barry L. Bobb) Used by permission.
“Your Hand, O Lord, in Days of Old” arr. Henry Gerike. Used by permission.
“Your Hand, O Lord, in Days of Old” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House) Used by permission.