FILIPINO MIRACLE AT SOCHI

AFP/www.interaksyon.com

A beautiful swan perfectly at home in his pond. 

That's 17-year old Michael Christian Martinez - skating so gracefully yet passionately on ice to prequalify for a medal in the current 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. 

Dubbed as a charismatic performer, Martinez "ranks 30th in the world and fifth in the 2013 World Junior Championships in Milan, Italy," reported GMA News. 

At this writing, Olympic commentators say he's a shoo-in for any of the medals in the Games' freestyle event for men. (Note: He landed 17th place at the end of the competition.)  

How could that be? Michael is Filipino. Isn't the Winter Olympics the natural domain of those living in countries with frigid temperatures like Canada or the United States?

Michael perfectly demonstrates God's amazing power at work in those who trust Him. The Manila Bulletin quoted Michael's Facebook entry prior to his performance: "Please pray for me. My event starts tonight." 

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness," God assured the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9. "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

Michael was an asthmatic child, per GMA News: "I literally grew up in the hospital... very sick. I couldn't take up any sport. I tried outdoor sports when I was younger, but I easily got asthma attacks, so I stopped," Michael recalled.

But he discovered the health benefits of skating. He didn't just learn the game however. He excelled in it, persevering through "training 15 hours during low seasons and 25 hours in high season." 

www.abs-cbnnews.com

Michael credits his mother for her support: "Better to spend the money on skating than in the hospital," GMA quoted her as saying. 

A famous actress once said, "The natural state of motherhood is unselfishness."

Don't these mothers' hearts reflect our heavenly Father's? 

Jesus is our Savior, Lord, Teacher and Encourager.  And He allows us to experience the good with the bad - to train and strengthen us. 

Michael's training must have been rigorous. You'd never guess the falls, bumps, injuries and frustrations he must have been through. 

But today, you watched him glide, bend, spin, triple axle and triple loop ever so smoothly on ice - the first Southeast Asian to compete in a setting totally alien to people in these parts. 

Paul says in Romans 5:3-5a: "... we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame..."  

The first Filipino miracle in Sochi has shown us how.

Originally published at: http://cbnasia.org/home/2014/02/filipino-miracle-at-sochi/