Maria

My heart broke when I read the headlines this morning...

5 YEAR OLD MARIA SUE CHAPMAN, DAUGHTER OF STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN, DIES IN ACCIDENT AT FAMILY HOME

...and then my heart broke again when I read that she was killed accidentally by her older brother. I can't even imagine the pain he is feeling right now and the guilt that is going through his mind. This is beyond comprehension to me in this moment. Please pray for him, the teenage son who will now live on with this weight...a reality that I don't know if I could bare. Please be in prayer for this family as they experience this painful situation...

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Steven Curtis Chapman, he is a five-time GRAMMY winner and 54-time Dove Award winning artist who has sold over 10 million albums and garnered 44 No. 1 singles. More than five years ago, Chapman and his wife MaryBeth founded The Shaohannah’s Hope Ministry after bringing their first adopted daughter, Shaohannah, home from China. The ministry’s goal is to help families reduce the financial barrier of adoption, and has provided grants to over 1700 families wishing to adopt orphans from around the world. Maria, who they adopted years ago from China, was their youngest. She is sitting in Steven's lap in the photo above.

Please keep this family in your prayers!

"the Lord is near to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit" - Psalm 34:18

Maria - she's too young to understand, but old enough to feel the pain
Of living where no love can grow with no hope for change
Maria - her world is an angry place but she makes sure that scars don't show
And with every hurt her tender heart is growing cold (but)

CHORUS
Who, who's gonna love Maria
Who, who's gonna touch her with the tenderness she longs for
Like a desert longs for rain
She's got a hunger deep inside and with every tear she cries
She wonders if there's someone out there somewhere
Who's gonna love Maria

(Maria) She looks in the mirror now and the little girl is gone
But still the search for someone's love goes on and on for Maria
But does anybody care or even notice her at all
Is anyone listening close enough to hear her call (and who)

CHORUS
Who, who's gonna love Maria
Who, who's gonna touch her with the tenderness she longs for
Like a desert longs for rain
She's got a hunger deep inside and with every tear she cries
She wonders if there's someone out there

BRIDGE
Maria if you can hear me, please know that you're not forgotten
Somebody's trying to get to you

Written by Steven Curtis Chapman and Mary Beth Chapman and James Isaac Elliott
Matt 25:37-40