Nobody is gonna hit as hard as life

This song goes out to all the Darek Heims.

 "You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get it and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done! Now if you know what you're worth then go out and get what you're worth. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody! Cowards do that and that ain't you! You're better than that! I'm always gonna love you no matter what. No matter what happens." -Rocky Balboa

 Rocky Balboa faced the odds his whole life, he fought when he thought he couldn't, and he won. He never backed down, he never lost heart, even when he fought the most challenging fight of his life. In the Cold War, the Soviet Union had a champion named Ivan Drago, the strongest fighter in the world. He was a giant, a Goliath, and he fought and killed Rocky's best friend Apollo Creed. Rocky was afraid, he was sad, and he fought anyways.

 Rocky said to his wife Adrian "No maybe I can't win. Maybe the only thing I can do is just take everything he's got. But to beat me he's gonna have to kill me, and to kill me he's gotta have the guts to stand in front of me, and to do that he's gotta be willin' to die himself. I don't know if he's ready to do that. I don't know. I don't know."

 "Well might we look carefully into our own lives and judge our courage, our faith. Is there a Goliath in your life? Is there one in mine? Does he stand squarely between you and your desired happiness? Your Goliath may not carry a sword or hurl a verbal challenge of insult that all may hear and force you to decision. He may not be ten feet tall, but he likely will appear equally as formidable, and his silent challenge may shame and embarrass."-President Thomas S. Monson

 Everyone has a Goliath, everyone has an Ivan Drago, someone who's bigger or stronger. Your Ivan Drago doesn't have to be a person, maybe it's smoking, drinking, or depression, maybe it's an uncontrolled temper; But there's not a single person on this planet who isn't afraid of something. Being afraid doesn't make you a coward. Being afraid just means that you have something to overcome. It means that there is something in the way of your happiness.

 We don't have to face our Goliaths alone, "Deal courageously, and the Lord shall be with the good." (2 Chron. 19:11). Our Lord will always fight for us, if we rely on him. "Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s." ( 2 Chron. 20:15)

The scriptures give us many examples of courage: "And David said to Saul, Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine." (1 Sam. 17:32) "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (2 Tim. 1:7) "Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we also will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it." (Ezra 10:4)

"Like David of old, 'our cause is just.' We have been placed upon earth not to fail or fall victim to temptation’s snare, but rather to succeed. Our giant, our Goliath, must be conquered."-President Thomas S. Monson

And we can, like Rocky Balboa when he overcame, say "Yea, I love yous too. I just also wanna thank God. Except for my kid bein' born, this is the greatest night in the history of my life. I just wanna say one thing to my wife who's home: YO, ADRIAN! I DID IT!"



This Blog is dedicated to Darek "Plum Tea" Heim