If you develop geographic tongue, will it likely be visible the rest of your life or will it eventually resolve?

Depends: Geographic tongue can alter its appearance during your lifetime. It can come and go. It can last upwards of a year or more before resolving on its own. Avoiding tobacco and hot, spicy foods will help you deal with it better. There's a genetic link to geographic tongue and is seen more frequently in people with psoriasis and fissured tongue.

Episodic in nature: Geographic tongue (migratory glossitis) is a episodic event. It will come and go over time as the cells in your tongue undergo constant regeneration over your lifetime. Sometimes there will be no evidence of it and then suddenly it will reappear. If you have more questions you should talk to your dentist and have him/her go into further detail with you.