with hope and prayers for steven curtis chapman's family

With many others who grew up with his music or simply read the heart-wrenching story of the tragic death of Steven Curtis Chapman's daughter, I grieve for and pray for his family. With a daughter the same age, I can hardly process the sorrow of what has happened into my mind. Though I am a musician, I rarely turn to lyrics for comfort, but one of the few songs that expresses the hope that we have as believers was actually penned by Steven Curtis. I trust that the prayers of many and the arms of Christ through his church in Nashville will hold him and his family close.

"With Hope" - Steven Curtis Chapman

This is not at all how
We thought it was supposed to be
We had so many plans for you
We had so many dreams
And now you've gone away
And left us with the memories of your smile
And nothing we can say
And nothing we can do
Can take away the pain
The pain of losing you, but ...

We can cry with hope
We can say goodbye with hope
'Cause we know our goodbye is not the end, oh no
And we can grieve with hope
'Cause we believe with hope
(There's a place by God's grace)
There's a place where we'll see your face again
We'll see your face again

And never have I known
Anything so hard to understand
And never have I questioned more
The wisdom of God's plan
But through the cloud of tears
I see the Father's smile and say well done
And I imagine you
Where you wanted most to be
Seeing all your dreams come true
'Cause now you're home
And now you're free, and ...

We have this hope as an anchor
'Cause we believe that everything
God promised us is true, so ...

So we can cry with hope
And say goodbye with hope

We wait with hope
And we ache with hope
We hold on with hope
We let go with hope