Delayed Gratification

Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.  You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’  ” And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.” So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.    Luke 18:18-23 NKJV

Good things come to those who wait.
Delayed gratification.
Patience.
Hope.

Putting off the treasures that we can see, feel, taste, and enjoy now for the far better and lasting treasures of heaven shouldn't be that hard. The rich young ruler should have ran to the dollar store to buy a marker, stickers, and signs and headed home to begin setting up one epic garage sale! Instead, he got depressed. Remember, he was a good guy. He kept the commandments and had all his life. But this time Jesus asked for more than he could give... His wealth.

Hanging on tightly to our stuff makes it hard to believe the Hope of heaven is better than the glitter of earth. The less glitter we keep, the brighter the Hope shines.

Remember... not all that glitters is gold.