Have you seen the movie, “Dodgeball?” The main character, Peter LeFleur, is trying to win a dodgeball tournament to save his athletic club. Toward the end of the movie, after the coach dies unexpectedly, Peter gives up and decides to go home. While sitting at a bar waiting to go home, he runs into Lance Armstrong! Lance proceeds to tell him that he’s a big fan and has been following Peter’s team…And then the question from Lance: “Aren’t you going to be late for the next game?”
Peter’s response is, “Well, I’ve decided to quit.”
Lance: “Quit? You know, once I was thinking about quitting when I was diagnosed with brain, lung and testicular cancer, all at the same time. But with the love and support of my friends and family, I got back on the bike and I won the Tour de France five times in a row. But I’m sure you have a good reason to quit. So what are you dying from that’s keeping you from the finals?”
Peter: “Right now it feels a little bit like… shame.”
Lance: “Well, I guess if a person never quit when the going got tough, they wouldn’t have anything to regret for the rest of their life. But good luck to you, Peter. I’m sure this decision won’t haunt you forever.”
If you’ve seen the movie, you know what Peter does.
A few weeks ago the multiple congregations of Second Baptist Church, Houston, Texas, were honored to hear the personal testimony of U.S. Army Sgt. Sammy L. Davis. This is a true American hero, a man who never gave up. You can read the words of the citation for his Medal of Honor, awarded by President Johnson, on Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sammy_L._Davis
Sgt. Davis joined the Army in 1965. In 1967, as a Private, First Class, he went with the 4th Artillery regiment to fight in Viet Nam. On that day, his unit fell under heavy mortar attack by the Viet Cong as around 1,500 VC swarmed the area. Upon detecting an enemy position, Davis manned a machine gun to give his comrades covering fire so they could fire artillery in response. Davis was seriously wounded, but ignored warnings to take cover, taking over the unit’s burning howitzer and firing several shells himself. He also disregarded his inability to swim (due to injuries; Davis knew how to swim), crossing a river on an air mattress to help rescue three wounded American soldiers. He ultimately found his way to another howitzer site to continue fighting the VC attack until they fled. He was subsequently promoted to sergeant and received the Medal of Honor the following year.Davis was forced to retire in 1984 due to his injuries. Footage of his Medal of Honor award ceremony was used in the 1994 film “Forrest Gump, with actor Tom Hanks’ head superimposed over that of Davis.
He is highly sought out as a motivational speaker today. His message is this: “You’re never beaten until you give up!” Sammy L. Davis makes me PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!
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So here are two different men: one who NEVER gave up, against all odds, and one who was easily discouraged and deserted his team. And here’s Lance Armstrong, reminding us that he faced and conquered difficulties we can’t imagine.
You know, anything can keep you from success, if you allow it. If you allow doubt and discouragement to creep into your mind, it’s all over. If you continue to fight on, the victory can be yours. So fight on. As Winston Churchill once said, “Never, never, never give up!”
And last, but not least, a little poetic inspiration:
It Couldn’t Be Done
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