Deification, “becoming like God” is not something reserved for a few select initiates, but something intended for all alike.
The Orthodox Church believes that it is the normal goal for every Christian without exception.
Certainly we shall only be fully deified on the Last Day, but for each of us the process of divinization must begin here and now in the present life.
It is true that in this present life very few indeed attain full mystical union with God.
But every true Christian tries to love God and to fulfill His commandments; and so long as we sincerely seek to do that, then however weak our attempts may be and however often we may fall, we are already in some degree deified.
Elder Sophrony