Yesterday, Father Anthony as part of his American Idol series was speaking about the idol of comfort, one of the points that struck me was why we should deny ourselves. The reason he gave is that the reward outweighs the cost, citing examples of how Christ, St. Paul, Mother Teresa and others willingly suffered because they looked towards the reward (Hebrews 11:25-26). He also quoted King David, “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” Psalm 84:10.

Today, I was reading Revelation 21:1-5, where St. John describes our reward, a place with no more death, sorrow, crying or pain. He quotes God as saying that He shall make all things new. Many times I lose focus and get caught up in the fray of life, this served as an important reminder for me to keep my eyes on the prize (1 Corinthians 9:24).