I do not believe that Hans will suffer a loss of reward simply because his earthly life was short. His time here was relatively brief, but it was complete; therefore, there was no longer any reason for him to stay among us. Instead, it was ordained of God that Hans should continue his life in his Heavenly Father’s presence.

Perhaps leaving his family so soon and so abruptly was part of some special assignment the Lord has for Hans. I do not think Hans would have volunteered to sign up for dying young in a car crash; few of us would. But he was the kind of guy that usually ended up doing jobs that nobody else wanted to do, simply because the thing needed doing and he was willing to do it. Maybe dying young was one of those jobs.

Sure, from our perspective, Hans’s years were cut short. But eternal life with the Savior is exceedingly lavish compensation, and I am confident Hans has sufficient treasure stored up in Heaven.

-Excerpt from Never Ceasing: God’s Faithfulness in Grief