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One common misconception among Christians (especially in North America) is that the Christian life is basically a life of ease and comfort. I can't find anywhere in the Bible where God promises us a convenient, problem-free life. We may even assume that if things are going well in our life, then God must be blessing me and loving me, but if things are going bad, then God must have abandoned me or have me out in the wilderness.

In many countries today, Christians are persecuted for their faith in Jesus. Their friends abandon them. Their families deny them. Christianity actually brings more problems into their life. Yet, many Christians are willing to face those consequences because they now know the truth, which has set them free.

Jesus' disciples certainly didn't equate the call of Christ as a ticket to the "good life." To them, His call was, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." (Matthew 16:24-25). They knew Christianity would lead them down the path of suffering, and yet they didn't walk away from it. Why?