One of my favorite bloggers and the hostess of Five Minute Friday, Lisa Jo Baker, became an American citizen this week. Her exuberance through social media was nearly palpable. I love that a simple tweet, status update or Instagram photo can bring us right along side the party as we celebrate life’s great joys. For all the consternation over what social media does to our society, there are moments when a snippet of someone else’s reality moves us to stand up and cheer.

It also makes this writer ponder… On the heels of Lisa Jo’s celebratory status came a request from a friend in our former community. She and her family are knee deep in the decision making process of uprooting.

A total redefinition of ‘belong’. I passed the baton of data gleaned from three years in this Southern land where everybody is from somewhere else. But I couldn’t shake the uncertain feeling that I hadn’t quite covered it.

What does it mean to belong? 

For me, no matter my zip code, a sense of belonging comes from:

a friend in a similar season of life who says “me, too” when I wrestle with a burden…

an impromptu play date that springs up in the cul de sac when long summer shadows fall across the lawn…

a community of Believers to share life together not just on Sunday morning but throughout the week…

people who drop everything and come to help out when the stomach flu strikes and your youngest is hospitalized on Christmas eve…

In this chaotic life which seems to keep us moving at a dizzying pace and our constant  craving for connection often leaves us sorely lacking, I hope you will take time to think about where you belong today.

Click over to Lisa Jo’s blog to read an exceptional post by Ann Voskamp about belonging. You won’t regret it.