Part 1
Those willing souls who remain open to what Real Life is projected to teach, who consent to receive those celestial lessons from whose humbling "cup" they would rather not drink, will never find the gates of Heaven closed on that glad day of their final approach... even if getting there takes a "thousand" years.
Part 2
When it comes to true self-awakening, there is no escaping the following: we must learn to witness our weaknesses -- daring to see the true source of their nature -- even as they act themselves out. This willingness -- to observe the darkness we have unconsciously embodied -- builds in us a new and higher understanding whose strength not only empowers us to consciously suffer these lower parts of us, but that gradually sees to their perfection, as well.