1096
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 4, Ch. 24]
one is fully situated in unalloyed devotional service, there is no guarantee of liberation, even if one is elevated to the heavenly planets or to the impersonal Brahman effulgence. A devotee's achievement, however, is never lost by the influence of time. Even if a devotee cannot completely execute devotional service, in his next life he begins from the point where he left off. Such an opportunity is not given to the  karmīs  and  jñānīs , whose achievements are destroyed. The  bhakta 's achievement is never destroyed, for it goes on perpetually, be it complete or incomplete. This is the verdict of all Vedic literatures.
śrī bhagavān uvāca 
  pārtha naiveha nāmutra 
  vināśas tasya vidyate 
  na hi kalyāṇa-kṛt kaścid 
  durgatiṁ tāta gacchati
prāpya puṇya-kṛtāṁ lokān 
  uṣitvā śāśvatīḥ samāḥ 
  śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe 
  yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate
“The Blessed Lord said: Son of Pṛthā, a transcendentalist engaged in auspicious activities does not meet with destruction either in this world or in the spiritual world; one who does good, My friend, is never overcome by evil. The unsuccessful  yogī , after many, many years of enjoyment on the planets of the pious living entities, is born into a family of righteous people, or into a family of rich aristocracy.” (Bg. 6.40-41)
Thus if one is unable to complete the process of  bhakti-yoga , he is given a chance in his next life to take birth in a pure family of devotees or in a rich family. In such families a person can have a good opportunity to further progress in devotional service.
When Yamarāja, the superintendent of death, was instructing his assistants, he told them not to approach the devotees. “The devotees should be offered respect,” he said, “but do not go near them.” Thus the devotees of the Lord are not under the jurisdiction of Yamarāja. Yamarāja is a representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and he controls the death of every living entity. Yet he has nothing to do with the devotees. Simply by blinking his eyes, Time personified can destroy the entire cosmic manifestation, but he has nothing to do with the devotee. In other words, devotional service which is rendered by the devotee in this lifetime can never be destroyed by time. Such spiritual assets remain unchanged, being beyond the influence of time.