Romans 8:18 – For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

For me, this is one of those verses that brings proper perspective to the difficulties that happen in my life. Paul clearly had the right perspective when he looked at his life in the light of the life that was to come for him. Heaven is going to be everything you can imagine and much, much more. Whatever you can dream up as the absolute greatest experience you could ever have, heaven will be even greater than that. Paul was not ignorant or blind to the sufferings of human existence. He experienced more of them than most any of us today. Yet he still considered that the future glory far outweighed the present sufferings. Without a heavenly hope, Paul considered the Christian life foolish and tragic (1 Corinthians 15:19). Yet in light of eternity it is the wisest and best choice anyone can make. Paul consistently speaks of the present sufferings as light afflictions which are only for a moment, but he describes the glory as an exceeding and eternal weight.

Challenge:

Whenever Paul describes the coming glory, his words seem to bend under the weight of the idea. If we could only appreciate the glory that is to be ours, we could count the sufferings along the way as trivial. This weeks challenge for you, is to look at every difficult experience with heavenly eyes. Every time someone cuts you off in traffic, be thankful there will be no traffic in heaven. Every time someone lets you down and does not keep their promise, be thankful that God will never let you down and will fulfill every one of His promises. When the electrical company turns off your lights because you didn’t pay your bill, be thankful that when you leave this world the glory of God will light up heaven forever! This week, as the Apostle Paul did, embrace the proper perspective on how things are right now on earth compared to how things will be forever in heaven. Keep a heavenly perspective by keeping your eyes on Jesus. God bless.