Matthew W. Bassford passed from this life on October 25, 2023. I’m thankful to be part of a church that plans ahead. One week prior to Matt’s passing, we made the request of Matt and Charli Couchman to use their hymn Exalted as the basis of our 2024 Wednesday Evening Summer Series. Time moves quickly, and that series kicks off tomorrow evening.
To our church family: learning more about Matt will only deepen your appreciation of what we learn about together over the next two months. A few resources:
- My reflections on his passing
- Matt’s own reflections on writing Exalted here and here
- Many of Matt’s hymns are available as recordings from Sumphonia
- Matt’s workbook, Principles of Praise
- Matt’s Worshiping with the Psalms
- Matt’s obituary
It’s hard for me to believe that Exalted is now 25 years old.
In the wake of Matt’s passing, I wrote (and still believe)…
Even though he lived only 45 years on this earth, I can’t think of any member of my generation who will have (I believe) a larger impact on the people of God for decades to come than Matthew Bassford.
The next time you sing in an assembly of worship, take a peek at that bottom left corner. I have a strong hunch it won’t be long before you read Matt’s name. When you do, take a brief moment to thank our Father in heaven for the talents he gave to Matt and the way Matt used them to craft blessings for untold multitudes.
I don’t know if we’ll sing lyrics written by mere mortals around the throne of God above. If we do, I hope to hear the myriads upon myriads of angels and glorified saints sing Exalted. How awesome would that be? If we do, I hope I get to stand close to Matt. I can’t wait to sing with him for ages to come in bodies that never tire, never weaken, never wear out…
I’m excited for this Summer Series and thankful to have Jordan Shouse kicking it off for us. Details and upcoming recordings of the lessons at CharlestownRoad.org.