On May 21, the Steven Curtis Chapman family suffered a horrible loss when their youngest daughter, Maria Sue, ran into the path of the family SUV and died at a Nashville hospital a few hours later. Her 17-year-old brother was behind the wheel.
Chapman, a 5-time Grammy award winner and advocate for adoption, resumed his touring schedule in mid-July. In a recent article for our sister site, Today’sChristian.com, Elizabeth Diffin reports on how Maria’s death has impacted Chapman’s music:
It’s not often you leave a concert reflecting on the words of a song by a different artist. But as I exited the July 24 Steven Curtis Chapman event, the words of a Matt Redman worship song echoed through my head. Chapman opened the concert with “Blessed Be Your Name” just two months after the death of his 5-year-old daughter, Maria Sue, in a tragic accident at the family’s home.
“Blessed Be Your Name” was also the first song Chapman sang May 21, the day of Maria’s death, when he wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to sing again. Inspired by the story of Job, at one point the lyrics repeat, “He gives and takes away.”
“As I sang this song ? it wasn’t a song, it was a cry, a scream, a prayer,” Chapman explained to the audience of nearly 5,000. “I found an amazing comfort and peace that surpasses all understanding.”
Chapman also shared that after Maria’s death, he’d reconsidered the words to all his songs and if he could still sing – and believe – them. Instead, losing his little girl brought the meaning of some of those songs into sharper focus. One example was “Yours,” which addresses how everything in the world belongs to God.
“In this song, in particular, I had to come to a new realization,” he said. “There’s not an inch of creation that God doesn’t look at and say ‘all of that’s mine.'”
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Hear what the Chapman family has to say about life after the accident.
