How Hard Times Make You Run Like Forrest

I love the movie, Forrest Gump. It’s not just the acting that blows my mind—it's the message behind the film. Despite all the incredible hardships in his life, Forrest learns to grow strong and gracious. He thrives in the same soil that leaves everyone around him bitter and withered.

You can’t miss the not-so-subtle message of the movie: life isn’t always easy, but it’s always worth living. Life is like a box of chocolates—half will surprise and delight you, and the other half may be filled with mustard and disappointment! We all face tough times, but if you look closely, those moments can make you stronger—maybe even lead to a million-dollar bullet wound that comes with all the ice cream you can eat!

Forrest had trouble walking as a child. His mother wanted to ensure he had the same opportunities as every other child his age. She learned from the local doctor that his legs were strong, but his back was “as crooked as a politician.”

No one would call the metal monstrosity on his legs beautiful, but something special happened to Forrest because of that treatment. It was impossible to run with his legs shackled in leather and metal, but while he stumbled along, his back was growing stronger.
 
When the braces came off, Forrest could “run like the wind blows.” Maybe you're shackled by setbacks that others don’t have to face. If you learn to embrace those challenges now, they might be the very thing that helps you stand straighter than everyone else once the setbacks are finally behind you.

“…because you can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it…” Benjamin Buford “Bubba” Blue knew a lot about only one thing—shrimping! Anyone can learn a little bit about a whole lot of things, but it takes a real genius to learn everything there is to know about one thing.

Instead of spending endless hours learning about every subject that interests you, try the much more challenging task of focusing your time and energy on just one. It might not make you the life of the party when conversations swirl like the four winds, but it will pay off big when your one subject becomes the talk of the town. Who knows—maybe you’ll be in a position to take some of those shrimp profits and invest in another fruit company, so “you don’t have to worry about money no more.”

Forrest faced more challenges than he could count. But rather than focusing on the difficulties he couldn’t control; he directed his energy and attention toward the few things he could. This helped him keep his eye on the ping pong ball while so many others were distracted by everything happening around them.

You are going to face difficulties this week. Distractions will come your way. But you must focus your energy and attention to “do the best with what God gave you.”

Mama instilled in Forrest the most important principle he needed to learn. She had a way of explaining things so that he could understand her. Forrest never forgot when Mama said, “Stupid is as stupid does.” It’s not so much what you say, but what you do that determines how smart you are. Forrest was faithful to Mama’s advice throughout the movie in every imaginable situation.

There are many more life lessons from Forrest Gump, but like a white feather blowing in the wind, I’ll leave you with the final piece of wisdom from the movie: I believe one of the most critical lines in the film is when Forrest tells Jenny that although he is not a smart man, he “knows what love is”—something Jenny has been trying to learn throughout the movie. All the other wisdom isn’t very profound until you’ve learned this one. But once you know what love is, the rest of the advice will help you tackle your problems like Forrest. So, “Run, Forrest, Run!”