Dancing with the Creator

We were privileged to attend a Steven Curtis Chapman concert at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville on Friday night.

You may know that the Chapmans’ 5-year-old daughter Maria was tragically killed in an accident in May.

We thrilled to listen to his music while watching the sunset over the North Carolina mountains. From the opening song, Blessed Be the Name of the Lord, to the final number, I felt that even the rocks were crying out in praise to the Creator.

Tears didn’t flow like I expected them to. But Steven Curtis Chapman talked about Maria and the music before he sang each song. He provided context for the songs—all of which were written before Maria’s death—explaining that grief has made the words more real to him today than when he wrote them.

I don’t remember his exact words but his basic message was this: he doesn’t have it all figured out, but he does know that God is faithful, and that he will dance with Maria again—someday in Heaven.

It was humbling to see this father able to say, “Yes, God, even little Maria is Yours,” after losing her so suddenly at such a young age. So was standing under the canopy of God’s creation and worshipping our Father with him.

The Chapmans had adopted Maria from China, and her father reminded us that we were all once like Maria—orphans without hope. But once we place our faith in Jesus Christ, we are adopted into God’s family forever. I am thankful that we have never had to face the kind of sudden, life-shattering tragedy the Chapmans have dealt with these last two months. I pray that, in the daily “crises” that seem so difficult, I will have the same grace and deep assurance of God’s goodness and love.