Luke Smallbone, one half of the Grammy-winning Christian duo For King & Country, is no stranger to struggle. The challenges he and his wife have endured have proven to be blessings in their lives. Smallbone told CBN News, “I fiercely love my wife. And a lot of that has to do with the fact that we’ve actually been through some things. We actually lived out our vows in our 20s. Not many people are saying, ‘Hey, I’ve lived out my vows in my 20s.’ They usually think that’s gonna take place in their 60s and 80s.”
He continued, “But for us, living out those things has given our relationship the ability to look back and say, ‘Hey, if we went through this, why can’t we go through that?’ And I think that’s been nothing but a good thing for us.” Smallbone’s wife, Courtney, has opened up to CBN News in the past about her intense fight with crippling anxiety and drug addiction brought on, respectively, by a rare disease diagnosis and severe morning sickness during her second pregnancy. Thanks to her husband’s support and the Lord’s faithfulness in her life, Courtney has found healing and freedom from her addiction.
Reflecting, Smallbone sees how God has used painful things, like the potential loss of their son, to speak to him and his wife. “When pain comes, allow that to be an opportunity for change,” he said, sharing a lesson God has taught him over the years. “[I]f something catastrophic happened and I lose my marbles, it probably says something about me. It probably has less to do with the circumstance.” Avoiding pain and suffering is a natural human instinct. In Western culture, one of the ways people often try to numb or distract themselves from difficulty is by filling their calendars with things — events to busy their bodies and minds.
View this post on Instagram
Over the years, though, Smallbone said he’s realized dealing with challenging relational issues, rather than running from them, has proven to have the power to deepen the bond he has with Courtney. “What I realized about being in a family, in a marriage, is, when resolved conflict takes place, it breeds a stronger relationship, it breeds a stronger friendship,” he reflected. The “Burn the Ships” singer-songwriter gained some of that wisdom as a result of a near-tragedy in 2018 when his and his wife’s then-2-month-old son almost died of what doctors deemed a Sudden Infant Death Syndrome incident.
Struggles like that, the potential loss of a child, the suffering his wife endured and her battle with addiction have been fodder for the songs that now minister to those who listen to For King & Country. Smallbone sees himself as a storyteller, using words and songs to point people to the Gospel.
“I’ve written songs about nearly every struggle I’ve had in my life,” the singer said. “I feel like God’s given me those stories, and I’m trying to shepherd those stories, steward those stories because I think that, if storytelling was good enough for Jesus, it’s probably gonna be pretty good for us.”
Read Previous Post
