Steven Curtis Chapman on God's Faithfulness Following Tragic Death of His Daughter: "It's the Ultimate Unfixable"

Leah Marieann Klett : Jun 24, 2017
The Gospel Herald

"There is a hope that we have that we're anchored to in the midst of just what sometimes seems unbearable." — Steven Curtis Chapman

(Nashville, TN) — [The Gospel Herald] CCM artist Steven Curtis Chapman has opened up about the 2008 death of his 5-year-old daughter, Maria, and shared how God has revealed Himself in "profound ways even through the valley of the shadow of death." (Photo Credit: Steven Curtis Chapman/Facebook via The Gospel Herald)

"It's what I call the ultimate unfixable - the loss of our daughter," the award-winning, multi-platinum-selling artist told Christian Today. "What I've found in telling my story is the places that I'd want to avoid at all costs, the places I would have scripted very differently in my life - which have actually been the places where I have actually encountered God in profound ways and the deepest ways."

On May 21, 2008, Maria Sue Chapman was accidentally hit by a car driven by Chapman's son, Will Franklin, after she ran into the driveway of their house as he was backing up his SUV. Maria, who was adopted from China, later died at a Nashville hospital.

Nearly a decade later, Chapman told CT that if he scripted out his own life, he would "undo" his daughter's death. However, the singer said God used all the brokenness and pain he's faced to bring him closer to Himself.

"What I would go back and undo in any way if I could was the loss of our daughter," he said. "But I have had to acknowledge and see how God has revealed Himself and we've experienced such profound ways even through the valley of the shadow of death."

The "Cinderella" singer said that the "key" to dealing with pain is holding on to the promise that the story's not over yet.

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The Gospel Herald