傑明到某所大學就讀為期三年的課程，他要求住進最便宜的宿舍，但他完全沒想過自己將面對怎樣的環境。他回憶說：「太可怕了，房間和浴室都很糟糕。」但他沒什麼錢，也沒得選擇。他說：「我能做的就是一直想著，三年後我就可以回到一個美好的家，因此我會堅持下去，充分利用我在這裡的時間。」

傑明的經歷反映了我們每天都會碰到的挑戰，我們以「地上的帳篷」──人類必死的軀體（哥林多後書5章1節），生活在最終會消逝的世界裡（約翰一書2章17節）。因此，當我們努力應對生活帶來的種種艱難時，我們會「歎息勞苦」（哥林多後書5章4節）。

我們能堅持下去的原因，是確信有一天我們將以不朽的、復活的身體──「天上的居所」（4節，和合本修訂版），住在另一個世界，那裡不再有歎息和悲傷（羅馬書8章19-22節）。這份盼望使我們能充分活出慈愛的上帝給我們在世上的生命。上帝也會幫助我們運用祂所賜的資源與才幹，去服事上帝和他人。正因如此，「我們立定志向，無論住在身內或是與身體分開，都要討主的喜悅」（哥林多後書5章9節，新譯本）。

Jeremy didn’t realize what he was getting into when he arrived at the university for his three-year course and asked for the cheapest dorm room available. “It was awful,” he recounted. “The room and its bathroom were terrible.” But he had little money and little choice. “All I could do,” he said, “was think, I have a nice home to go back to in three years’ time, so I’ll stick with this and make the most of my time here.”

Jeremy’s story mirrors the everyday challenges of living in an “earthly tent”—a human body that will die (2 Corinthians 5:1), operating in a world that is passing away (1 John 2:17). Thus we “groan and are burdened” (2 Corinthians 5:4) as we struggle to cope with the many difficulties life throws at us.

What keeps us going is the certain hope that one day we’ll have an immortal, resurrected body—a “heavenly dwelling” (v. 4)—and be living in a world free of its present groaning and frustration (Romans 8:19-22). This hope enables us to make the most of this present life God has lovingly provided. He’ll also help us to use the resources and talents He’s given us, so we can serve Him and others. And that’s why “we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it” (2 Corinthians 5:9).