Pastor Mike Nodland of the Christian Fellowship Church in Vining, IA.

Back to school reminds me of bicycling to school as a kid. For some reason, it seemed cool to use wooden close pins to attach playing cards flapping against the tire spokes so that we could make simulated motorcycle sounds up and down the street.

Equally cool was a large headlight on your bike with more rear reflectors than an 18-wheeler! And the horn could not be cheesy, but a battery powered, push button that scared to death any 6-year-old in my path.

In junior high, I had a paper route, delivering newspapers in Des Moines. My buddy, we called him “Doc,” helped me and we had a riot on Sunday mornings at 6 AM delivering newspapers. Finishing, we played “chicken” with our bikes, me with a red Radio wagon emptied of newspapers roped behind my bike. We’d dare to come as close as we could to crashing…and sometimes we did…ending up flat out on the street, laughing and tangled in wagon rope! Unfortunately, neighbors yelled at us, so we’d move down the street for more mayhem! Disaster was laughter to us.

Maturing, playing “chicken” became more serious, safety more essential and life more important. Above all, eternal life became vitally crucial. Don’t play “chicken” with life. Trust in Jesus today!