When we hear the words eternal life, most of us tend to interpret that as "a life that waits for us in eternity." But eternal means "unending," not "later." The Scriptures use the term to mean we can never lose it. It's a life that can't be taken fron us. The offer is life, and that life starts now.
-John Eldredge, from Waking the Dead: the glory of a heart fully alive