Where are you from? 

Oh, that most dreaded and convoluting question. After years overseas, it becomes a conundrum on how to answer such a seemingly simple question. My children have resorted to first staking out the situation and then giving the easiest answer that will alleviate as many follow up question as possible. Their answer adjusts accordingly. At one point, my youngest answered, “I’m from nowhere… and everywhere.” We can laugh at this scenario and think of this global life as a strange one. It is definitely not the norm when you are around “normal” people. One can end up wondering, “Where Am I from? Where DO I belong? Cause I don’t feel like it’s suburbia, but at the same time the streets of the Middle East don’t always get that sense of belonging either.” Our places may feel comfortable and familiar, but at times we are reminded that we don’t quite belong either. This can happen anywhere and in any country. After some time overseas, your hometown can feel like you don’t belong there either.  

Have you noticed when you gather with other global nomads, there is a sense of camaraderie? The shared experiences, challenges, mishaps, and joys can bring a gathering of strangers from around the world and make them fast friends in a matter of hours. All of a sudden, we all belong. We understand one another and don’t need to further explain and give background information to help in the understanding. We just “get it” and “get” each other. It is such a wonderful feeling. We are finally amongst our tribe. 

When Jesus prays for his disciples, He mentions this scenario. He states, “They are not of the world as I am not”. He knows and understands this in-between-worlds predicament in which we find ourselves. He said, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified” (John 15:17-19). He even compared their situation to His own. He was not of this world either. He knows exactly what it feels like to be in a world but not “from” it. We are in good company—the best actually. Although we may not always feel like we fit in, we know that Jesus “gets” us and He is praying for us and for our success in reaching more people to believe in Him! Not only do we have a community within one another, but we also can find a place of belonging within the fellowship of Jesus. That’s a great place to be from.