Is it not worth suffering a little while now, if we’re going to be forever with our Lord and Saviour? Even if the Christian had nothing ahead but the joy and blessing he gets right now from having Christ, it would be a wonderfully fine investment.
But it isn’t confined to this. Dear young believer, I want to tell you that the Christian path is a happy path. Scripture says the path of the just is as a shining light that shines more and more unto the perfect day. That’s well worth having. I’d rather have my soul filled with Christ, even if I had no shirt on my back, than to be well off in the world without Him.
Wouldn’t you rather be filled with eternal life and joy that you know nothing can take away from you? I want to tell you, I say again, I’d rather remain in the depths of poverty with Christ than to have all the wealth of this world to roll in without Him.
I tell you this too—after having gone on with Him for more than 50 years—He hasn’t got tired of me yet! And I certainly know that I’ll never get tired of Him, for He is so wonderful! Oh, if I could only tell you how wonderful He is to my soul—how He fills up the days and the nights with Himself! Yes, if the light of God’s countenance is lifted up on us, we can let everything else go. Just as long as you have Christ and you have the blessing of God with you—never mind anything else.
C. Kohler (adapted)