Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. -Lk. 14:27
Martin Luther believed if you do not have any hardship or suffering in your life, you should take it upon yourself to go out and get some. In his view, that was the only way to follow Christ. The problem with his view is it portrays suffering as the end goal of life. That's not the point of Jesus' words at all.
The point is that sometimes disciples make conscious decisions they know will cause more adverse circumstances in their lives. It may mean more work. It may mean more headaches. It may mean suffering and hardship. Disciples know the mere fact something is hard or stressful does not excuse them from doing it.
Even though Jesus made a tough decision when He went to the cross, He didn't go just for the pain of it. Likewise, disciples make these tough decisions not because of the pain it causes but because of the good it brings about for others. We are not sadists. We are servants. Serving others may mean more work. It may mean more headaches. It may even mean suffering and hardship. Regardless, the disciple is willing to go through hardship to follow Christ.
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