Don't Stop Believin'

I just got done watching Jonathan Cain’s  I Am Second film, and I have to say: I’ve lost a lot of time in the aftermath contemplating the meaning behind the phrase, “don’t stop believing.”

In this film, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member of the band Journey shares the inspiration behind some of the band’s biggest hits including “Don’t Stop Believin.’”

So why did I lose a lot of time after watching the film? Because I immediately had to open my Spotify and listen to “Don’t Stop Believin’” on repeat.

Once I finished my binge, it got me thinking about that song, Cain’s story and evaluating my own life. I started asking myself, “Why shouldn’t we stop believing? Why should we have hope?” Especially when it comes to faith.

“Why should I, or why do I, believe in God?” is the specific question I’ve asked myself. Maybe you’ve asked similar questions too.

There’s a popular movement right now to “deconstruct your faith.” Plenty has been written about it, but here’s my contribution: It’s good to ask questions about your faith. It’s good to really focus on why you believe what you believe. I’ve asked those types of questions. And you know the conclusion I’ve come to?

I can’t stop believing. 

How? Why? Well, there’s a passage in the Bible that has helped me. It comes from the biblical writer Paul. Take a look at what he says in the book of Romans, chapter 5, verses 1-5: 

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

“Hope does not put us to shame.” 

Don’t stop believing? I can’t because as I persevere, it produces hope and hope doesn’t disappoint.

Friend, God has met me at the end of each one of my questions. And even though I can’t make sense of everything, there’s something inside of me that won’t let me stop believing. I know it’s true, even if I can’t always explain it. Because I have a hope that doesn’t disappoint.

That hope isn’t about making it in your career, getting that relationship you’ve been craving or hitting the jackpot. No, the true hope you have is eternal. The point is that if you have a relationship with Jesus you can have hope in your ultimate destination, your ultimate meaning and purpose. And that will never disappoint. It can’t.

I know many of you have given up hope. Circumstances downright stink right now. You’re wondering if all of “this” is true. Can I tell you something? Don’t stop believing. Don’t give up hope. Rest in the fact that, if you’re a follower of Jesus, there’s an ultimate security that nothing can replace or take away. It’s real. It’s true. It’s worth believing.

Now before I get any emails about assigning a deeper meaning to the “Don’t Stop Believin’” lyrics and trying to retroactively turn a song about a “city boy” and a “small town girl” into a spiritual ballad, let me mention this: In the film, Jonathan Cain talks about a conversation he had with God years after writing that song and after he had started following Jesus. In that conversation, God revealed that it was Him in the room with Cain when he was writing his hits.

“And then God, his voice, came to me,” he explains. “I started weeping at the piano. He said, ‘No, Jon, it’s been me. It’s me. Jon, It’s always been me. I am the source. I am where it comes from, Jon.”  

“So you were the guy in the room when I wrote ‘Faithfully’?” he asked God.

“Yeah.”

“That moment opened my eyes to the transcendence of a father reaching down to his son through his natural father. I know where it all comes from now.” 

Can I say that I’m not surprised? The “Don’t Stop Believin’” song isn’t a “Christian” song in the traditional sense. But the mantra is true for our spiritual walk. And the fact that God was there when it was written should remind us that even when hope is elusive, God is still there. Even when we’re asking all sorts of questions, He is present. 

I believe in a God that is writing incredible stories. And I don’t think it’s too far-fetched that He was weaving this narrative all along, so that one of the most popular songs of all time could trace its roots back to a deeper meaning. I think He works like that a lot.

So ask your questions. Wrestle. Ponder. Struggle, even.

But in the end, “Don’t Stop Believin’”.