As I was driving to the Steven Curtis Chapman concert, listening to his latest CD, random thoughts flooded my brain. What should I include in this review? I decided in the car that day that I would not talk about the tragic, accidental death of his youngest adopted daughter, Maria Sue. I felt this was a personal family tragedy that should be kept just that. By the time I left that night, though, my feelings were different.
The first thing Steven did, with beaming pride, was introduce both of his sons. Caleb graduated high school last year, and just married his fourth grade sweetheart. He played electric guitar that night. Will Franklin, on the drums, took some time away from the band, and recently started playing with them again. His oldest daughter, Emily Elizabeth, 23, is currently in Ireland with her husband, studying for a year. His wife, Mary Beth, was on a camping trip with the two youngest daughters, Shaohannah Hope, 10, and Stevey Joy, 6.
I immediately felt like I knew this family because Steven Curtis shared story after story about all of them. My favorite was the one he told about Maria Sue. He said she was the family's alarm clock, being the first one up in the morning. She would wake them up and say, “Mommy, I need a potty and a pancake.”
Steven Curtis Chapman married Mary Beth in 1984. Shortly after that, his singing and song writing career took off. To date, he has released more than twenty albums, and won fifty-six Dove awards and five Grammies. He has won Artist Of The Year seven times and has sold more than ten million albums. He also has nine RIAA-certified gold or platinum albums.
The band did a spectacular job that night, playing flawlessly. They performed a mix of old and new tunes. Steven introduced his good friend, Geoff Moore, to the audience. He sang, "If You Could See What I See." Then he and Steven sang several songs, one of which was, “I Want You To Know.” Steven and Geoff have enjoyed singing and writing songs together over the years. It was just a great time watching them having fun, singing and talking about their years together as friends.
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Geoff took the stage for a few moments and told his family’s story of feeling called by God to adopt. One of the little girls they adopted was in the same orphanage with Maria Sue. Their beds were side by side. He spoke about Maria’s Big House of Hope. This healing home for special needs orphans opened in Luoyang China on July 2nd. The facility was named in loving memory of Maria Sue, and is equipped with everything these children need. The building is 60,000 square feet, with 128 beds, and a staff that includes 190 nurses and nannies. They call it “Show Hope.”
I really got to know Steven, as a person, that night. He shared his dark days after Maria’s death, and how Geoff and his wife played a major role in helping them survive those painful months that followed. What I found astounding was the realization he made known to his audience. God will meet us in the dark, and lead us out. You will be surrounded by a great support system that will carry you when you don’t have the strength to walk through it alone. I heard hope in his voice, when he quoted something a friend had said to him: “Maria is a bigger part of your future than she is of your past. We know that the day is coming when God will make all things new.” Isn’t that just one of the many beauties of Christianity? When I think about how fast the first half of my life has gone by, the realization of this quote hits me straight in the gut. We’re here for just a minute, but we share eternity with Christ. All of us together, forever. What an amazing amount of peace this hope can bring us. Steven Curtis reminded us that our God can even take the sting out of death. God never promised us days without trials, but He did promise us He would be there with us. Steven said he felt God’s presence there with him and his family; even when he had questions of “Why!?”
Before Steven sang “Cinderella,” he told the story that lead him to write this song. He was getting his three youngest daughters bathed and ready for bed. They wanted to play dress up, and go to the ball. Unfortunately, on this particular night he just didn’t have the time. He was busy with work, and needed to get right back to it. He rushed them through their bath, told them, jokingly, to pray only for immediate family members because he knew they would want to pray for the entire world that night, and then sent them off to bed. He said that at one point he was talking through his teeth, because they were just not cooperating. The audience laughed, because this feeling of frustration was familiar to all of us.
When he finally did get back to his work, he felt terrible, which lead him to write “Cinderella.” When he sang the song, the concert seemed to take on a whole new meaning: reminding myself, and everyone else in the audience, how our time together is so limited.
As he sang the song, I watched the video that was displayed on each side of the stage. The video showed his daughters, dancing like ballerinas from young, small girls into grown women. The woman sitting in front of me put her arms around her daughter, and kissed her cheek, the daughter kissed her back.
Steven admitted that when Maria died he didn’t think he would ever be able to sing “Cinderella” again. But he explained that the days are short before he’ll see Maria again, and this day he’s in now matters; so he’ll sing the song with purpose. He did, and it brought families together to their feet, to give him a standing ovation. It seems that sharing his experience with his fans is part of a healing process for Steven Curtis Chapman. He is a very powerful, talented artist who reaches millions with his songs. What I witnessed at his concert was a positive message that hit home for so many that night.
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