Most Christians are familiar with Ro.8:28, and many quote it when something goes wrong, saying that God is going to do something better for them. For example, if someone loses a job, he will say God will give him a better job, and when someone loses some money he will say God will give him much more! Most people relate this 'good' to some earthly benefit.
But v.29 describes what God means by good in v.28 – to become conformed to the character of Jesus His Son. In other words, even the calamities that happen to us can be used by God to instil in us some of His nature if we allow Him. It is not that God does not care about our earthly life or that He never gives us any material good but that the most precious thing He can give us is His nature. For those who align themselves according to His purpose for their lives can learn to respond to afflictions in such a way that they obtain 'an eternal weight of glory' – as part of the divine nature (2Co.4:17). For example, a difficult situation can help us to become more patient or teach us to love our enemies. But that is not what most people are looking for.
When Paul was put in prison for preaching the Gospel, he rejoiced that this caused many to get to know the Gospel who may have never had that opportunity otherwise (Php.1:12). In a human way he would have been happy if he was released from the prison. But even that was not what was uppermost in his mind. He was not even thinking of the divine nature he could partake of through that suffering. He went beyond what could be beneficial to him physically or even spiritually, and looked for the glory of God and His will getting done on earth (Mt.6:9,10). He had become a spiritually mature man by this time.
What is our mind set on (Co.3:1,2)? What are we looking for in our life? If our dream (bucket list) is earth-oriented we have to recognise ourselves as being carnal Christians. If our goal is to partake of God's nature we are beginning to become spiritual. But when we begin to seek God's kingdom and His righteousness foremost in our life, that is when we become mature Christians.
Whatever stage we are in now, there is something higher we need to pursue (1Co.2:9). The worst thing we can do in this context is to live to enjoy this world as if there is not even a world to follow (1Co.15:19). We may not realise what we are going to miss while we are on earth, but once we find ourselves in the life to come we will see clearly what we could have received and what we lost. In addition, our regret will be intense when we realise that there is no more chance to gain what we have lost.
Many people have not even heard of such possibilities because all the gospel they have heard was about earthly blessings. Those who have heard the true Gospel have the responsibility therefore to spread it around so that more people can get to experience all that God has prepared for them. That was Paul's ambition, to proclaim the full Gospel.