“I serve a God who actually qualifies the called, and since He has called me to do it, nothing is impossible to Him…God is the same yesterday, today and forever…”
- Nicole C. Mullen

In this interview with SeedsTV , Nicole candidly shares stories about her life, childhood and the lessons learned along the journey of living her purpose…

“The moment you step out of your shoes you leave something extremely priceless vacant. Nobody can be you, no one can see the world like you…”

“Take whatever you have, your pain, your shame…your broken-heartedness, your misunderstandings and people’s misunderstandings of you, take them and give them to Him and watch Him make a masterpiece out of it…” – Nicole C. Mullen

That He would die and come alive to bridge the distance, save & set us free from darkness and live with us forever…This is the love and hope that we celebrate – life is worth the living just because He lives…

1 Peter 1:3-12

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.

7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

Read More in Context

Music and spoken word are merged in this moving video from LifeChurch.tv’s Church Online Easter Experience. Matt Maher’s song “Christ is Risen” and David Bowden’s poem “Death: His Sting and Defeat” remind us of Christ’s power over darkness and the grave.

For more info on Oraia and her ministry, visit www.oraiaspeaks.com.

Isaiah 53

1 Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

Click Here to Read More in Context

Happy Easter!

I love this video from Igniter Media that reminds us of what the words “Happy Easter” Really mean…

The Music Ministry Coach created by Ron Cross is a great resource and vocal training service for anyone who feels called to music ministry and needs guidance in knowing how to grow vocally and spiritually. The website features great articles that touch on a variety of topics in a candid and relatable way, like “Talent vs. Skill vs. Anointing; Does God really care?” and “What makes a good singer? 2 things you should work on”.

Ron Cross, The Music Ministry Coach, has been a trained, certified voice instructor and vocal coach since 2005. He has dedicated most of his life; over 30 years to serving in the music ministry in many roles.

Below Ron talks about the one thing every great singer (or any other artist) avoids…

Ron works with Christian and Gospel artists, soloists, groups, Praise Team members and Choir members who are struggling with common physical and mental limitations that keep them from answering God’s call to take their music ministry to the next level. Through specialized training clients realize their desires for greater vocal abilitiy and more confidence so so they can be a more effective witness in their ministry.

Ron also works with beginners and younger people who have a passion for singing, and remarkably gives them courage to sing even when others told them it may not be for them. He recently posted about this inspiring story of how he is helping Natalie, one of his 16-year-old students who dreams of being a singer, but who other instructors labeled and set aside as “tone deaf,” how to better control her voice.

Ron says of this story: “No matter where you are in life or what you’re trying to do, there is a message in this video for you. It’s one that goes far beyond singing and touches the heart of everyone who has seen it so far. I urge you to watch it and share it with someone else. Especially if you know someone who has similar challenges. Can anyone learn to sing? If you thought the answer was no, you’re about to have your whole perspective changed.”

Watch and be moved as 16-year-old Natalie who was labeled “tone deaf” learns how to sing on pitch:

For more resources and to learn about Ron’s services visit The-Music-Ministry-Coach.com. Also become a part of the Facebook page where you can get even more inspiration, interact with Ron and the community of hundreds of other singers and musicians, watch vocal training videos and possibly win free 30 minute on-line coaching sessions for being the Fan Of The Week.

More About The Music Ministry Coach

Have you been praying about your singing and your music ministry?

 

Do you have a burning desire to:

• Overcome physical limitations that hinder you from Giving God your best?

Nothing is worse than being up singing to the glory of God, the Holy Spirit is moving, people are being blessed..and slowly you start to feel your voice going. It’s a terrible feeling to end a song before you feel God was ready for you to. Even worse is when someone calls you to come and minister and you have to decline because you’re too hoarse to sing. Past clients like you understood that training would give them the skills and abilities to overcome those hindrances so they could effectively minister anywhere and any time God opens the door.

• Gain more confidence so you can stop operating in fear about your gift?

Probably the single biggest deterrent keeping people from moving to a higher level of music ministry; even when they’re certain God is calling them to step up; is the lack of confidence in your own ability to do it. You may feel like you lack the abilities or skill to step forward and walk into that next realm of ministry, and nothing anyone can say can convince you otherwise. For many of my past clients, vocal training has been the answer. Just like your salvation, confidence comes in what you know that you know. Vocal training has been the key for many people.

• Be more EFFECTIVE and to stop feeling like you’re in self when you’re up ministering?

That’s the bottom line, isn’t it? It’s the reason for everything we do. It’s the reason for all the other reasons. Let me be honest with you for a moment. I’ve been a singer all my life. And I can tell you there have been very few times I’ve walked off that stage feeling like I was completely out of self the entire time I ministered. For most of us, even when everything is going great and the spirit is high, there is some small part of us deep inside that is always worrying about our voice. Will it hold out? Will I be able to hit that high note coming up? Will I crack? Am I screaming? Am I on pitch? Mental distractions keep us from flowing effectively when we’re going forth in ministry.

“One Desire” Lyrics

Here I am
Just for You, only You
Here I stand
Wanting You, only You

In Your presence Lord
I will find my strength
You’re the breath in me
You’re my everything

With my heart bowed low
And my hands held high
All consuming fire
You’re my one desire

Your name, oh Your name
Let it stay on my lips
I will seek Your face
God, it’s You, only You

In Your presence Lord
I will find my strength
You’re the breath in me
You’re my everything

With my heart bowed low
And my hands held high
All consuming fire
You’re my one desire

It’s You, God
It’s You
It’s You, only You

My heart will always sing
I love You, I love You

So many times we look at our past, our failures and blunders, and reason that we are too damaged, too different, too disqualified to be used by God.

Looking at all of the people with flaws and unlikely pasts God used in the Bible though reminds us how God uses those the world may set aside for His purposes, from Jacob to Peter and Paul. He qualifies the called when they have the faith to step into the arena He has called them to.

“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are.” 1 Corinthians 1:27-28

You may not look the part, people may look and pass over you, and your past may “disqualify” you – but don’t count yourself out! God loves you, and loves to choose the least likely ones to do great works and make a difference! (Why do you think the “underdog” plot is so popular?).

Despite what you’ve been through He’s tapped you into the game; play boldly knowing He wants you to win. – Julene

And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap a harvest, if we faint not. Galatians 6:9

This year we have an extra day to make a leap toward our purpose. I wanted to share this message from my heart and a poem I wrote above entitled “Dreams in Due Season” to encourage you to keep going where ever you are on your journey…

So many of us start out life dreaming in wide-eyed wonder – then life happens and leaves us in a dazed slumber. We face disappointments, discouragement and detours…and we get practical.

We become sleepwalkers, settling for the ordinary because the dreams we had seem too lofty, too out of reach. My journey has been similar; throughout the years I’ve had great visions yet often get lost in loneliness and and weary when the dreams don’t always grow the way I imagined.

I want to encourage you today to arise, shine and bring those dreams back to life. Everyone was born with purpose and no one’s purpose is more important than another’s. There are dreams in your heart that were planted there for a reason to impact the world – we all miss out if you don’t water them.

It’s up to you to nurture them – give them some love and let them grow today. Don’t give up on your purpose…you’ll reap a harvest in due season if you don’t give up!

My dream is to inspire you to realize and pursue the importance of your purpose.

What’s your dream? What vision or passion have you set aside for the more practical and everyday cares of life?

I dare you to nourish the seeds of those dreams, nuture them back to health and bring them to the Light – one step guided by God is like a leap and can take you further and higher than you can go on your own.

Share your aspirations, and the dreams you want to accomplish in 2012 in the comments, I’d love to hear them!

God bless, and keep dreaming and nurturing the dreams in your heart – Dear Dreamer, the world awaits!

- Julene “Dreamfleur” Fleurmond

Editor of DreaminSoul.com

P.S. Click here to read the story behind this poem and about a dream that has recently begun to come to fruition for me…