On Friday, April 19, it was announced that Christian music artist Mandisa passed away in her Nashville, Tennessee, home at the relatively young age of 47. Announcing her death was Christian radio network K-LOVE, which reported the sad news over the air on Friday morning, then later on the same day shared the tragic news on social media.
In a statement released after Mandisa’s passing, K-LOVE’s Chief Media Officer, David Pierce, said, “Mandisa loved Jesus, and she used her unusually extensive platform to talk about Him at every turn. Her kindness was epic, her smile electric, her voice massive, but it was no match for the size of her heart.” He continued, “Mandisa struggled, and she was vulnerable enough to share that with us, which helped us talk about our own struggles.”
Mandisa’s X account posted the news as well, saying, “We can confirm that yesterday Mandisa was found in her home deceased. At this time we do not know the cause of death or any further details. We ask for your prayers for her family and close knit circle of friends during this incredibly difficult time.”
Replying, commenters left powerful testaments to how her Christian music helped them in their faith journeys. One commenter, for example, wrote, “😞 Thank you Mandisa for sharing your love of Jesus with us through your music. Your music inspired thousands, myself among them. Our Heavenly Father called you home. We thank Him for sharing you with us for a moment. R.I.P. 🙏🏼😔”
But left behind was more than just her music. In a powerful interview with CBN News, Mandisa explained how she recovered her faith after the tragic passing of a friend from breast cancer and explained to those listening that, to be strengthened in their faith even in times where tragedy made them doubt it, they should look to the book of Psalms.
CBN News, reporting on that discussion, noted that Mandisa said, “When she passed away, it shook the foundation underneath me and I was angry.” She added, “[I] was numb. And then I started to question God.” She continued, “Before I knew it, I was miserable and hopeless. I didn’t want to be around anybody. I stayed in my house for two years, essentially, just eating and getting worse and worse.” That sadness escalated to the point of a suicide attempt, she said: “It was a slow fade until the point where I really wanted to end it all.”
But she, fortunately, failed in the attempt to take her life and, after her suicide attempt, saw how God helped redeem her life. She said, CBN News reports, “I’m able to see now how God has redeemed it. I still wish my friend were here, but I’ve learned how important it is to grieve and to walk with God through things like that.”
Then, encouraging people to look at the book of Psalms, she said, “Look at the Psalms. I mean, you see David one minute talking about how good God is and the next minute saying, ‘I want you to slaughter my enemies,’ and, ‘How could you allow this?’ … I have learned how important it is to say these things because I think we miss the comfort that we get from God when we choose to just stuff it down and not say anything at all.”
Featured image credit: By Jyle Dupuis from Canada – Mandisa, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6830114