On a hot summer day in July I was walking my then 88-year-old grandma out to her car. As we approached her vehicle, I turned to her and asked, “Grandma, how are you feeling?” She stopped walking, looked me in the eye, and said, “James, I’m not what I once was.” She paused, smiled, and continued, “But I’m not yet what I will be.” Who says that?! I’d like to think it was original to my grandma, but it wasn’t. 

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

The best is yet to come. That’s good news when you’re growing old and feeling weary. It’s good news when you fight sickness or are dealt a debilitating disease. It’s good news when relationships come crashing down and hardship comes crashing in. It’s even good news when life brings joy. This life isn’t as good as it gets. At its very best, this world is only an appetizer to the main course. And when life’s circumstances are at their worst, remember, the world will not have the final say.  

We may not be what we were, but we’re not yet what we will be. The best is yet to come.

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.