10/17/2025 .

This essay is designed as a John Wayne / Army General-style motivational speech. It is supposed to be direct and blunt. If you don’t have the grit to take it, then skip it!

And, as always, my primary audience is myself.

Introduction

Life is not a fairy tale. No cavalry is riding over the hill to rescue you. No politician, preacher, or benevolent stranger is going to swoop in and make everything better. You are responsible for your own life, your own duties, and your own survival. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you’ll stop waiting around for miracles that may never come and start doing the hard work that life actually demands.

Noah and his sons building the ark.

Don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying there’s no God in heaven or that miracles don’t happen. There is, and they do. But don’t depend on God doing what you want Him to, especially when you have not done many of the things He’s asked you to do.

What I am talking about today is the need we all have to become more realistic, more responsible, and less dependent on the unlikely event that others will rescue you or that luck will save you. My intent is to say what needs to be said for you to man up, get stronger, and get tougher by doing what real men do.

The world is indifferent. It does not care if your heart is pure, if your motives are noble, or if you “meant well.” Reality is cold, blunt, and merciless to the unprepared. People who are careless, lazy, distracted, or irresponsible pay the price. They stumble and fall, and life doesn’t stop to help them up. The truth doesn’t care about your feelings, your excuses, or your fragile pride. It only respects performance.

The Apostle Paul warned bluntly: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”[1] In other words, don’t fool yourself. Life delivers exactly what your actions earn. And too often, the actions of evil and conspiring men will rob you of that, too. So, be ready.

The Weight of Responsibility

Responsibility is not optional. It is the iron law of existence.

You must pay your dues. You must be alert and attentive. You must be discerning and calculating. You must be disciplined enough to keep up with the demands of your work, your family, your finances, and your own health. Every man and woman who has ever earned respect, whether on the battlefield or in civilian life, did so by bearing their burdens with grit and determination.

Jesus taught that we cannot pass off responsibility to others: “Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”[2] Talk is cheap. Faith without works is dead.[3]

King Benjamin in the Book of Mormon commanded his people to work diligently: “And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked… but ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another.”[4] Responsibility for one’s family, one’s work, and one’s own life is a sacred duty—not a suggestion.

The Army has a saying: “No excuses.” The scriptures say it too: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father… the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him.”[5] At the end of the day, you answer for your own choices.

Hard Work and Vigilance

To succeed in life, you must be willing to do what others refuse to do. Work harder, work smarter, stay longer, learn more, and pay closer attention. You must be smart enough to anticipate problems before they hit you and disciplined enough to push through fatigue when others quit.

Paul wrote to the Thessalonians: “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.”[6] That’s not cruel—it’s reality. Laziness leads to hunger, debt, and ruin.

The Book of Mormon gives the same warning: “Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land; but inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence.”[7] Prosperity requires obedience, diligence, and hard work.

A farmer who doesn’t plow his fields in season goes hungry. A soldier who doesn’t clean his rifle risks his life and the lives of his comrades. A man who neglects his responsibilities will soon find himself buried under debts, failures, and regrets.

The Call to Toughness

Life is not fair, and it is not kind. But life rewards those who meet it head-on with courage, self-discipline, and endurance. If you want to survive and thrive, you must cultivate toughness—not the shallow bluster of arrogance, but the inner steel that endures hardship without complaint.

Jesus warned His disciples: “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Trouble is guaranteed. But Christ calls His followers not to collapse under pressure, but to endure and overcome by following Him, and by following His example.

The prophet Alma declared: “By small and simple things are great things brought to pass.”[8] Consistent discipline, steady action, and careful discernment build strength and results that excuses never will.

John Wayne once said, “Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.” That’s the spirit required to face reality as it is, not as you wish it to be. Scripture puts it another way: “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.”[9]

Conclusion

So stop waiting for a savior; you already have one who has shown you the way.  Stop imagining that someone else will carry your load. You are responsible for your own fate. It’s on you to stand tall, to square your shoulders against the storm, and to do the work that life demands.

Be real. Be smart. Be disciplined. Work hard. Pay attention. Pay your dues. And remember: no one is coming to rescue you. You are the rescuer. You are the worker. You are the soldier of your own destiny.

As Paul wrote: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”[10] That’s the battle order. That’s the mission. And it’s yours to fulfill.

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[1] Galatians 6:7

[2] Luke 6:46

[3] James 2:17

[4] Mosiah 4:14–15

[5] Ezekiel 18:20

[6] 2 Thessalonians 3:10

[7] 2 Nephi 1:20

[8] Alma 37:6

[9] 1 Corinthians 16:13

[10] Philippians 2:12

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