GARLANDS OF HEAVEN
In India, whenever I preached I would get a garland made of carnations or roses or some other kind of flower. (This was done as a gesture of honor.) They smelled nice at first, but they were bulky and awkward (most of them would hang down almost to your knees), and after your fourth or fifth garland, let’s face it, the thrill was gone. Add to that fact that I was the one who often paid for the garland which was given to honor me, and you can see why I got tired of them. The real trial came when, after several days, the closet in my hotel room was full of garlands in various stages of decay.
How much better to know that the crowns of heaven do not fade, tarnish, rot, go out of style, or in any way lose their glory. They are incorruptible and everlasting. 1 Corinthians 9:25