"Don't Stop Believin"

 "Happy are those who believe that the Lord's message will come true!" ~ Luke 1:45

Jon, like so many other struggling musicians in the late 70’s was ready to quit the Sunset Strip and move back home to Chicago.  Everything had been going wrong: he had no rock band prospects and had recently split with a girlfriend.  Worst of all, his beloved dog had been nearly killed by a car.  Unpaid vet bills were climbing faster than inflation.

Nearly out of cash, he called his Dad for another loan.  It was Jon’s father who’d gotten him into music at an early age.  By his teens, he played piano, bass, and harmonica.  Jon’s Dad encouraged him to pursue a music career.

As a child, Jon survived a horrific fire at the Catholic school he attended that killed 92 of his classmates and 3 nuns.  That experience formed a resilience that would carry him through both tragedy and success.

“Don’t come home son,” Dad urged.  “God gifted you many talents.  Stick to your guns!  Don’t stop believin’.  Jon scribbled the phrase in a notebook he kept for song ideas and took the advice to heart.  Dad sent the money and things started to happen – not all good things.

“There were many broken promises and rejections,” he’d later recall.  “The Lord kept saying ‘Not yet!’  “It wasn’t until I surrendered; emptied out.  Lord, please lead me!”

He never abandoned his vision, eventually getting his big break with Journey, a San Francisco rock band, writing songs that became the soundtrack of a generation. 

The band needed one final song for its 7^th album, “Escape.”  Lead vocalist Steve Perry asked Jon if he had any lyrics or melodies that might work.  He went home, paged through his spiral notebook, and found his father’s quote from their long-distance call years before: “Don’t stop believin.’” 

“I wrote the chorus, and we all finished the song together,” he confided.  “It was magical!”

The song’s inspirational message became a megahit, helping propel Escape to multi-platinum status worldwide.  While it never topped the charts, Don’t Stop Believin’ captured our culture in countless ways: the “Sopranos” series finale and that memorable “Glee” pilot.  Rarely a wedding or party happens without it. 

While he gives credit to his father, Jonathon’s Cain’s aha moment came when he realized that his Dad was a conduit for the Lord’s message.  “It was always God talking,” he admitted humbly, feeling the need to pay his blessings forward today by writing and singing Christian music that he hopes will one day be as "timeless" as Journey's 1981 hit single.

Cain has released eight solo Christian albums since 2016.   Additionally, he serves as the Worship Leader at the City of Destiny megachurch, where his wife Paula White serves as Senior Pastor and Spiritual Advisor to President Donald Trump.   

Father God, thank You for loving, forgiving, and showing me my worthiness.  I’m in awe of You Lord and submit my heart to You.  May Your Holy Spirit transform me and make me like You.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.