Lose Your Life or Save It?

Matthew 16:25 (KJV)
"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it."

I was just reflecting the other night on how cushy our lives can be living here in America and how we easily forget about how much suffering our persecuted brothers and sisters endure in places like Nigeria, North Korea and Iran, etc. Can you imagine one night sleeping in your warm, comfortable bed and you get a knock on the door from a terrorist who wants to break into your home and haul you off for questioning about your faith and ultimately end up in prison to languish and be tortured for years or even death? We Christians in America must realize the most important truth that Jesus preached about counting the cost as stated in Luke 14:28:

"For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish."

Are we willing to suffer for Jesus' sake and for the gospel? How much do we truly love Him? Are we so much in love with our comfort and forget about the suffering we may encounter? Remember our lives here on planet Earth is so very short and then there's eternity. I would rather suffer for Jesus here and be ready to live with Him in His glorious kingdom.