As a much younger man, I accepted the scripturally underscored importance of enduring to the end. But that stern requirement was only superficially appreciated back then. Life has since underscored, again and again, what a high test enduring well is for us mortals. Moreover, it isn't just for old people, nor is it just something one does near the very end of the pathway of discipleship. It is, instead, an ongoing thing which varies from season to season and from experience to experience. As if all this were not enough in itself, the challenge of enduring in the last days includes so many added challenges in this difficult world. For instance, the trends cited in the forepart of the book are like pythons-capable of squeezing spirituality out unless they are deliberately offset by serious discipleship. Furthermore, some gospel principles, once very pervasive in western culture, now must compete with the "play-dough principles" of permissiveness. The situation makes for high adventure. Thus while the doctrine of enduring is like a diamond with many facets, this is an attempt to turn that diamond around, so that the light of the gospel can be played upon its different dimensions.