First of all, thank you to Switchfoot, the band who gave me the song "Where I Belong." I'm not sure where I'd be without "Where I Belong." The title makes the song sound like a cheesy, "finding yourself" song, but in reality, it is the most deep, and dare I say, glorious modern-day song I've ever come across.
I've got a shirt with the entire handwritten lyrics on them. I won't lie, I cried when I heard the song in concert. The closest thing to a life motto that I have is these lyrics:
Until I die, I'll sing these songs///on the shores of Babylon
Switchfoot plays "Where I Belong" towards the end of each concert these days, and, each time, a fan brings a white flag with the title in black lettering and passes it to Jon Foreman. Foreman, the band's lead singer, waves the flag and wears it like a cape, alternating between the two.
It's one of Switchfoot's most overtly Christian songs, but not oppressively. Emotion sneaks up on the listener, as it has to me each and every time. Almost each lyric is a direct shot to the heart.
It's an anthem.
It's the anthem of the troubled, the lost, and the afraid. It's the anthem of the Christian who knows that this earth is not their home. It's the anthem of God's people everywhere. (Look up the lyrics if you'd like to understand where I'm coming from.)
Now, I'm not saying that the song itself is the anthem, but the sentiment is. Where do I belong? Where do you belong, Christian? Where do we belong, brothers and sisters?
Not here.
Our job here is to sing those songs on Babylon's shores - to tell the world about the glory awaiting each one of God's children. To give a reason for the hope that we have. To tell the story of the grace of God in the lives of broken sinners.
And when I reach the other side///I wanna look you in the eye///And know that I've arrived in a world where I belong
Our lives are in the here and now, but I, for one, cannot wait to "reach the other side". I can't wait to see all my brothers and sisters in Christ joining in an eternal anthem to our Lord and Savior. We don't know what heaven will be like, but we do know that it will be glorious.
All the pain, brokenness, and wandering will be gone. All the sin and distractions of this world will fade away. The hate that envelopes the world today will disappear and there will be no more tears.
I can't wait for that day.
