Roger Meyer

Everyone is familiar with the big little word “if.” The word “if” is a conjunction introducing a condition with two or more possible outcomes. For example, there is an outcome if we give up on an endeavor or commitment and another outcome if we do not give up—if you do this or that, then there will be a result. Often we are faced with the dilemma in life of making a choice between such outcomes, based on our own personal commitment. If you face a great challenge, how far will you go to overcome it?

A true friend is a pal, someone with whom you have a trusted relationship and genuine affection. A real friend will tell you the truth—even if it might be unpleasant for you to hear—or warn you if you are going down the wrong path.

Have you ever wondered why, if the righteous go to Heaven when they die, the Bible speaks of a resurrection of the dead?

Many preachers never talk about the resurrection of the dead. It makes no sense if the righteous immediately go to Heaven when they die! But Jesus reveals this amazing truth in the gospel book of John: There will be a resurrection of the dead, and it will not take place until “the last day”! It hasn’t happened yet!

In The Lord of the Rings, British author J.R.R. Tolkien’s fictional hobbits are depicted as living wholesome but complacent lives, oblivious to the world around them. One hobbit, Frodo Baggins, is suddenly caught up in very perilous times, facing great challenges alongside several of his friends. Actor Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson’s film adaptations of The Lord of the Rings, later said that complacency is “never a good place to be working from.” It is easy to be complacent when we are comfortable and safe. Are you complacent?

In childhood, we “discovered” many exciting wonders of creation, like flowers, frogs, ants, worms, butterflies, clouds, and snowflakes. Our formal education may have included general science and then branches of science where we discovered intriguing complexity, amazing organization, physical laws, and underlying principles—all of which demand unparalleled intelligence for their origin.