"Ultralight Beam" was introduced to me randomly through a friend. I had been originally been hesitant to listen to anything from "The Life of Pablo," but like the true Kanye West stan I am, I surrendered myself to his latest creation. I was not prepared for the effect it would have on me.

I was immediately caught off guard by the first 25 seconds of the song where a toddler is passionately stating, “We don’t want no devils in the house, God. We want the lord. That’s it,” with the same gusto of a southern Baptist pastor on Easter Sunday. After a chorus of affirming “Hallelujahs” the song begins with simple organ chords and vocals by Terius Youngdell “The-Dream” Nash.

This wasn’t Kanye West’s first foray into gospel. His 2004 hit “Jesus Walks” was critically acclaimed and received numerous accolades for daring to use hip-hop to convey a spiritual message. So in a way, “Ultralight Beam” can be seen as part two to “Jesus Walks.”

West’s first verse is serves as a prayer asking for serenity, peace, and love; with an additional prayer for the city of Paris and the parents of the victims of the November 13, 2015 terrorist attack at an Eagles of Death Metal concert. Having touched on such a somber event, an event that could have tested anyone’s faith, The-Dream comes in with a pleading, almost desperate second verse, asking for inner peace.

It’s in the third and fourth verses that the song builds on its spiritual message. When she was interviewed by The Fader magazine Kelly Price, the vocal powerhouse behind the third verse, said that she was given instructions to just write what she felt from listening to the song. She sings from the perspective of a believer who is having their faith tested, but ultimately knows that things will turn out right because she believes and trusts in the higher power watching over her. Until she passes this test of faith however, she simply looks towards the light and passes the mic to Chance the Rapper.

Now, I can’t quite put my finger on it, but there’s just something about Chance the Rapper’s verse that steals the show (and not just because it’s the longest verse in the song). I don’t know if it’s the way he makes himself vulnerable while at the same time remaining unapologetically himself, or the way he just completely makes the song his own with clever quips like, “You can feel the lyrics, the spirit coming in braille/Tubman of the underground, come and follow the trail," which are references to him being an independent artist and paving the way for others like him.

He begins by pledging his allegiance and faith to his higher power and goes into his life and personal struggles, but the climax of the song comes when he says “This is my part, nobody else speak.” You can just visualize in your mind watching the performance live, a hush going over the audience as he launches into the latter part of his verse:

I'mma make sure that they go where they can't go/ If they don't wanna ride I'mma still give them raincoats

Know what God said when he made the first rainbow/ Just throw this at the end if I'm too late for the intro

Ugh, I'm just having fun with it/ You know that a n**** was lost

I laugh in my head/ Cause I bet that my ex looking back like a pillar of salt

Ugh, cause they'll flip the script on your ass like Wesley and Spike

You cannot mess with the light/ Look at lil Chano from 79th

After being taken all the way to church, gospel heavyweight Kirk Franklin makes an appearance with a prayer to uplift even the lowest spirits. In his words, “you can never go too far, when you can’t come back home again.”

I'm not a very religious person, and as a nondenominational Christian, I typically refrain from discussing religion heavily. However, listening to this song reminds me of the joy that comes along with being a believer. There's something so incredibly comforting about knowing that a higher power is watching over you and the ones that you love, and that's something that I feel "Ultralight Beam" is showing us. It not about the extent of your faith. It's about believing.