The Uphill Battle

I know I've mentioned before how much I love biking, especially when there's great scenery to be enjoyed. Today was a day of said enjoyment. Of perfect weather, good views of the lake, of cruising over rocks and even some sand, followed by the nice challenge of the climb up the hill.
There's a few steep roads that connect the highway to town. I happen to live closet to the hill that has, by far, the least amount of traffic so when I need a good, challenging workout, that's where I go. Down the hill, and then back up.
A couple days ago a friend mentioned this hill to me. She said that once in awhile a coworker of hers will ride his bike down the hill, to work. According to her, he's a strong guy, yet he still struggles coming back up that hill and has to get off his bike and walk. When I heard this, I just assumed he was strong in other ways because you need different muscles to ride a bike than to lift weights and I've made it up that hill several times, but don't consider myself buff.
Heading back up the hill today, I started thinking about my friend's coworker. I noticed how quickly I had to shift gears down and down again. I wondered how many gears this coworker had and if he used them. I realized I wouldn't be able to make it up the hill without being able to shift to a very low gear.
It made me think about the gospel; about trials in our lives and how we handle them. As we rely on the Savior, some of the pressures and weight gets taken away; the atonement allows us to shift down so it's easier to pedal. Don't get me wrong, the climb upward is slow going and you have to be diligent. If you decide you're tired and stop, you'll go backwards or fall. We have to be diligent and do everything we can, but the Lord makes it possible for us to do so.
In biking up on the steepest parts of the hill, I've found it helpful to zig-zag across the road, making the path I travel, not as steep. It's a longer path, but it's sometimes helpful.
Using the road this way is like using other types of support. Friends, family, coworkers, etc., can be a great help in time of need. If I get off my bike in the middle of the hill, usually the only way to get back on and moving again is to zig-zag across the road. However, even if I zig-zag across the road, I still need to be in lower gear. We still need the atonement, we can't rely alone on the other support systems.
Knowing those few things about bike riding makes it possible to climb bigger hills. I bet my friend's coworker can make it up, he just doesn't know it. In our life, we know the Lord won't give us challenges we can't overcome with his help. The hills may continue to get bigger and more challenging, but that's because our spiritual muscles are growing and we need those challenges.
I love bike rides like today's where I step off my bike and feel what conquering the hill has done to my muscles. It makes me grateful for my bike and its many gears.