Page 69 - The Divine Quest

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the years mentioned, and at one point the snow built up so deep along the trail that
when a few warm days occurred in April a tremendous avalanche occurred that
buried 63 people. As soon as the bodies were dug out and carried downhill, the trek
began again.

All this time men and women were having to live in the most primitive of
accommodations. They slept in tents in the frigid weather, and lived on the most
basic of diets. Once the prospectors reached the lake with their supplies they had to
build a boat, which was a task most had never done before. Trees for miles around
the lake were cut down, and each board had to be hand sawn using a whipsaw, a two
man saw, and this was more back breaking labor. This was no small boat that had to
be constructed, for it had to carry a ton of supplies, and many men worked in teams
and were therefore transporting two tons of goods.

How were men able to bring themselves to endure such rigors? They had their eye
on the prize set before them. They dreamed of gold and all that it could buy them.
How much greater is the prize that lies ahead of the overcomer in Christ? It is of
immeasurably greater value. Should we not be willing to endure some hardship as
we pursue this faith which Yahweh so highly esteems? The apostle Paul stated that
the glory to be revealed in the overcomer is not worthy to even be compared to the
suffering that is the portion of the saints in Christ.

There were those among the gold seekers who traveled the Chilkoot Pass on the way
to the Yukon who became millionaires. The satisfaction that was theirs upon
receiving the prize they sought was made all the sweeter as they recounted the
arduous path they trod to attain it. There were also many men and women who
arrived at the Pass, and upon seeing the great difficulty of it, they turned back and
returned home. Those who endured had a satisfaction that could not be bought. I can
imagine them telling their children and grandchildren of the struggle, the suffering,
and the final victory they achieved. Yet all this was merely in pursuit of the gold that
perishes. The overcomer in Christ has a much more illustrious, valuable and
enduring prize set before them.

As much as I detest suffering in my flesh and my soul, it is a matter that I do not dare
ignore. This life here on earth is fleeting, yet what we do in this mortal body will
determine immense things for many long ages to come. We must grow past being so
temporally minded.

Our faith, that is, our confidence in the love of God toward us, has much to do with
our willingness to follow Christ down paths of suffering. We must believe that God
only subjects us to that which is necessary to help us that we might be presented