Choosing to SEE - Mary Beth Chapman [55]
Steven and I were both crying as we raised our heads, and then Stevey Joy, who’d been watching from the sofa, jumped up and yelled, “Well, if she’s going to God’s big, big house, I wanna go there too!”
So we put Stevey Joy up on the counter and she prayed a similar, sincere prayer. These two small sisters, sitting side by side on the kitchen counter, were now new sisters in Christ!
We celebrated with maple syrup kisses and hugs as coats were zipped and Dad took them out the back door on that morning of February 20, 2008. Maria could hardly wait to get to school, find her teacher Miss Megan, throw her arms around her, and tell her she was going to God’s big, big house.
Later, of course, what transpired in the kitchen that day would give us specific, sweet comfort because of Maria’s big decision. But at the time it was just a normal Wednesday, a crazy Chapman morning, running late and getting ready for school.
Soon, though, a day was coming when I wouldn’t have any more “normal.”On the floor with her mom
“February 20th”
Words and music by Steven Curtis Chapman
Putting her shoes on
Getting ready for another day
February 20th
She says, “Mom, is it true?”
“Does God really have a big, big house?”
“Does it really have a lot of rooms?”
And she said,
“I really, really want to go there.”
And I said,
“So why don’t we just talk to Him?”
That’s what we did
On February 20th
February 20th
I did my best to explain
How it is that we all will be with God
How it was the Savior came
February 20th
If it’s true what He said
Then God Himself sang along
With the beautiful song of rejoicing in Heaven
As she prayed, “Jesus, please come and live in my heart.”
“And someday can I come live with You?”
And we could never have imagined
She’d be going there so soon
22
May 21, 2008
DEAR MOM AND DAD
I love you. I will always be with you. Bye. Kiss.
LOVE MARIA
Note Maria dictated to her preschool teacher in spring 2008
It was a beautiful, warm spring day. The evening before, I’d gone shopping with Emily for her wedding dress. I couldn’t believe it: my firstborn girl was getting married! We had prayed since she was little that God would bring her the right man at the right time. Since Emily had struggled with self-esteem issues, the fact that she was marrying a wonderful godly gentleman like Tanner had overwhelmed us all with a sense of God’s goodness and faithfulness.
Tanner’s mom, Janie; his sister, Tabby; Caleb’s then-girlfriend (now wife), Julia; Anna-Ruth, Emily’s best friend since first grade; and Karen, Julia’s mom and one of my best friends, all crowded into The Bride Room, a boutique outside of Nashville.
I held my breath as the consultant collected several dresses in styles Emily had described. I had spent many shopping outings with Emily while she cried her eyes out in disappointment because the latest, greatest styles just didn’t fit her body shape. Today I prayed that my daughter would put on a gown, look in the mirror, and not only know that this was the dress in which she would marry Tanner, but that she would see herself as the beautiful woman God created her to be – a daughter of the King!
Emily tried three dresses on for us, and everyone was polite, but you could sense the self-image “liar” beginning to make his way into Emily’s head and heart. She went back into the dressing room, shoulders drooping in disappointment, and my heart ached for her.
Then Anna-Ruth, who had been in the dressing room with Emily, pulled back the curtain, and Emily walked out in a simple but elegant dress with an empire waist, beadwork at the top, and lace and netting at the bottom.
Emily walked to the platform in front of a long line of mirrors. Keeping her eyes down, she stepped up and waited while the wedding consultant straightened the dress and fluffed the train.
Emily slowly looked up into the mirrors . . . and tears started streaming down her face. The rest of us followed suit. It was one big blubber-fest. Even the consultant started