Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. (John 3:2-3)
Real purifying hope is not based on who you are, but upon who you will become. Right now, you are my child, but in the natural order of all things, a child doesn’t remain a child forever. Your hope must be in the fact that your own childhood is coming to an end, and what you will grow into is the image of the one you have been looking at for most of your life. You shall be like him, for you shall see him as he is. Hope that is based on the approval of others or even the success and growth of a ministry is always a false hope. Your hope must never be in what you can build, for all buildings are temporary; your hope must only be in who you are becoming. This kind of hope (and only this kind) will completely purify your heart from all ambition, greed, and sinful desires, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
— March 26, 2022