John Chrysostom

He did not say simply, "You have made me the gift of joy" but "of heart," suggesting that the joy is not in external things, not in … gold or silver, not in clothing or groaning tables, not in the extent of sovereignty or the size of one's house. Such joy is not of heart but of eyes only. Many people with these possessions, at any rate, think life not worth living; they carry around with them in their soul a furnace of despondency, exhausted by the multitude of concerns and oppressed by unceasing apprehension.… If present realities give you joy, and you learn God's providence from them, gain a greater and deeper learning from future realities, for the reason that they are better, more stable and permanent. You see, if you believe God's providence takes the form of you being in wealth and prosperity, let your having wealth in heaven bring you much more to this conviction. If, however, you inquire, "Why is it that these things are kept in store in hope and are not immediately obvious?" I should give this reply, that we believers regard the objects of hope to be more obvious than those that are obvious; such, after all, is the certainty of faith. But if you were to inquire again, "Why is it that we do not gain rewards here and now?" I should give this reply, that the present is the time for struggles and contests, the future is the time for wreaths and laurels. And this is an effect of God's providence, the gathering together of difficulties and sweat in this brief and passing life, on the one hand, and on the other the continuance of laurels and wreaths throughout an everlasting and ageless eternity.