One of the scriptures that is very comforting to those who follow Jesus is found in John 14:1-4, where Jesus said to His disciples:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

What a great description of heaven!  The band Audio Adrenaline has a song called “Big House” based on these verses.  The chorus goes like this:

Come and go with me to my Father’s house
It’s a big, big house
With lots and lots of rooms
A big, big table
With lots and lots of food
A big, big yard
Where we can play football
A big, big house
It’s my Father’s house

Now it may sound silly, but this song had an eternal impact on a young girl named Maria.  This 5-year-old had heard the song in her Christian pre-school class, and one day she began to think about these lyrics.  She asked her mother, “Does God have a big house?”

“Yes He does,” her mother answered.

“Does it have lots and lots of rooms?”

Her mother, now realizing the song Maria is getting her questions from, answered, “Yes, and it has a big table with lots of food.”  Maria’s eyes widened when she heard that answer.  She told her mother, “I want to go there some day.”

She called in Maria’s father and together they explained to her that Jesus had died for all the wrong things we have done, and if she was sorry for those things, and asked Jesus to forgive her and come live in her heart, that someday Jesus would bring her to that house.  Maria listened very intently, and prayed an earnest prayer to ask Jesus to be her Savior.

This happened February 20, 2008.  How do I know this?  Because Maria’s father is my favorite musical artist, Steven Curtis Chapman.  He and his wife, Mary Beth, adopted Maria and two other young girls from an orphanage in China.  With three older kids of their own, they now had six children.

Three months after Maria became a Christian, a terrible accident occurred.  Maria was running from the backyard to greet her older brother, who had just driven home from school.  He didn’t see his sister coming as he pulled into the driveway, and his truck hit her.

Maria got to go to that Big House a lot sooner than anyone expected.  But Jesus knew, and made sure that Maria was ready to come to His house.  He had prepared a place for her, just as He promised.

The Chapman’s have dealt with this tragedy in a very open way.  They have pain, they have struggled, they have questioned God, but their faith has remained, and have been an amazing testimony to their Lord.  They have appeared on Larry King Live! and other shows to talk about these events.  Steven’s latest album, “Beauty Will Rise”, is all about Maria, and the turmoil Steven has faced in the wake of her death.

His song, “February 20th”, describes the story above:

February 20th 2008
On the floor with her mom
Puttin’ 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 says,
“I really, really want to go there.”
And I said, “Why don’t we just talk to him.”
And that’s what we did
On February 20th

February 20th
I did my best to explain
How it is that we all go to be with God
How it was the Savior came

February 20th
If it’s true what he said
God himself sang along with the beautiful song
Of rejoicing in heaven
She said, “Jesus please come and live in my heart.
And someday, can I come live with you?”
We could never have imagined
She’d be going there so soon

God only knows
Everything that happened in that moment
God only knows
What he whispered to her heart
God only knows
Just how thankful I will always be
That he gave her mom and me
February 20th

The pain Steven and his family have felt is evident in this album, but the overall message of hope shines through.  Maria is in a better place, and one day she will greet her daddy and bring him into that Big House.