“A little while” is, in other words, the time until Jesus’ second coming. It might seem strange to call it “a little while” since it’s now been two thousand years. But it’s a question of measuring time by God’s own standard as it fits into his plans for the whole course of the world. It is a little time in comparison with the time that has passed since creation. it’s an infinitely small amount of time in comparison with everything that awaits us in eternity. It will also be a little while for every individual – a few short years until we meet Jesus face-to-face as heirs to His kingdom.
It’s a common and disastrous mistake to think that Jesus’ return is a long time off, that we have plenty of time to fix all “that stuff about God” later. It’s human and understandable to feel that times of difficulty and suffering last a long time. Time goes very slowly when we suffer. Yet the apostle Paul says that our affliction is momentary and weighs little. He can say this because he sees suffering in the big picture. “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17). that’s the correct perspective. It shows us that it really is only a little while.
– “To Live With Christ“, pages 318-319