Jesus, when dying upon the cross, was offered a sponge to take away his pain. This unsolicited act of kindness by a Roman soldier at Calvary puts to shame some of the followers of Christ who refuse to give Him the time of day. Yet for Christ to demand from us would distract from the holiness of the moment. To be holy is to be reserved for a special purpose. Holiness is sanctification.
Sanctification is what makes a 'saint' to differ from an 'aint'.
Some think that a saint is an afterlife mix of an angel and a dead man living out eternity seated upon clouds. Others perceive saints to be self sacrificing role-models such as Mother Theresa who subsist in lifes gutters, daily giving of themselves to the lost. The normal Christian experience is to be saint-ified. When someone turns from their own course to follow in the footsteps of Christ, their life is constrained by the path that He takes. Toss away your notion of halo rimmed saints seated upon heavenly vapor, dress them in shoe leather and put then down here on the Earth.