Friday, February 24, 2012
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Friday, February 10, 2012
Gospel singer sees her voice as an instrument to carry out the will of God
Sometimes a person’s blessing is not delivered in a sermon, but through a powerful song.
That message certainly rang true for contemporary gospel singer Sonya McGuire.
McGuire is the daughter of Rockdale County preacher Harold McGuire and grew up knowing what the Lord could do.
But the 30-something Decatur resident still had an epiphany four years ago when she arrived at a Baptist church in Macon to perform, expecting the usual gospel concert.
Instead, McGuire, a recent Gospel Choice Awards nominee, found out that God sometimes has other plans for you.
“That day everything was going wrong and I was beginning to get upset,” she said.
So instead of performing the song she planned, she said the spirit of God told her to sing “I Just Can’t Give Up Now,” a song recently remade by contemporary gospel group Mary Mary and also performed by Lee Williams & the Spiritual QC’s.
“I consider myself a servant of the Lord and I believe God has anointed me to do his work,” she said.
In the midst of the song, a man in his mid-20s approached her. His eyes were heavy, she recalled this week.
She knew he had been crying, but his tears had stopped flowing by the time he reached her.
The man suddenly reached into his jacket. McGuire’s eyes grew wide when she saw something she never expected to see in a church.
“The man had a gun on his side and he gave me a letter,” McGuire said.
She learned later that the man had planned to take his own life after the service. But after receiving encouragement through the gospel song, he changed his mind. McGuire said the man’s sister knew he was troubled and had encouraged him to go to church. He avoided the regular Sunday service and opted instead to attend the gospel concert.
“He went to the gospel concert because he didn’t want anyone preaching at him,” McGuire said.
At the end of the concert, the man intended to end his life.
But McGuire’s singing changed his mind.
She kept in touch with him and said he’s now married with children and doing well.
“Sometimes as artists we get so caught up in appearance and sound that we forget there are lives at stake,” she said.
McGuire, who has a daughter, Ariel and two sons, Mikhail and Dorion, said she is grateful she is able to reach people through her music.
She comes from a large family that includes seven sisters and six brothers. All are all musically inclined.
Her father played the guitar, her mother sang, and all of her siblings either sang or played a musical instrument.
McGuire said she wasn’t always the obvious pick to become the next gospel star, but she honed her skills, first as a drummer at age 12, then as a choir director, and finally as a gospel singer.
The fact that people told her that she couldn’t do it only pushed her that much further. And this has made her success that much sweeter.
Her first solo album, “My Journey,” released in fall 2009, made others take notice.
Over the years she has shared the stage with gospel greats like Tye Tribbett, Donnie McClurkin, Dorinda Clark-Cole, Kim Burrell, Marvin Sapp, Marcus Cole, Natalie Wilson and S.O.P., Rizen, Nancy Jackson, Angela Spivey, Youthful Praise, Mary Mary, Eugene Cole and Purpose, Crystal Rucker, Bernard Johnson, Twinkie Clark-Terrell and the Georgia Mass Choir.
Her music is being played in 25 of the 50 states.
“God is really blessing me,” she said.
For more information, visit http://www.sonyamcguire.com/.
-Originally appeared in Crossroads News newspaper.
That message certainly rang true for contemporary gospel singer Sonya McGuire.
McGuire is the daughter of Rockdale County preacher Harold McGuire and grew up knowing what the Lord could do.
But the 30-something Decatur resident still had an epiphany four years ago when she arrived at a Baptist church in Macon to perform, expecting the usual gospel concert.
Instead, McGuire, a recent Gospel Choice Awards nominee, found out that God sometimes has other plans for you.
“That day everything was going wrong and I was beginning to get upset,” she said.
So instead of performing the song she planned, she said the spirit of God told her to sing “I Just Can’t Give Up Now,” a song recently remade by contemporary gospel group Mary Mary and also performed by Lee Williams & the Spiritual QC’s.
“I consider myself a servant of the Lord and I believe God has anointed me to do his work,” she said.
In the midst of the song, a man in his mid-20s approached her. His eyes were heavy, she recalled this week.
She knew he had been crying, but his tears had stopped flowing by the time he reached her.
The man suddenly reached into his jacket. McGuire’s eyes grew wide when she saw something she never expected to see in a church.
“The man had a gun on his side and he gave me a letter,” McGuire said.
She learned later that the man had planned to take his own life after the service. But after receiving encouragement through the gospel song, he changed his mind. McGuire said the man’s sister knew he was troubled and had encouraged him to go to church. He avoided the regular Sunday service and opted instead to attend the gospel concert.
“He went to the gospel concert because he didn’t want anyone preaching at him,” McGuire said.
At the end of the concert, the man intended to end his life.
But McGuire’s singing changed his mind.
She kept in touch with him and said he’s now married with children and doing well.
“Sometimes as artists we get so caught up in appearance and sound that we forget there are lives at stake,” she said.
McGuire, who has a daughter, Ariel and two sons, Mikhail and Dorion, said she is grateful she is able to reach people through her music.
She comes from a large family that includes seven sisters and six brothers. All are all musically inclined.
Her father played the guitar, her mother sang, and all of her siblings either sang or played a musical instrument.
McGuire said she wasn’t always the obvious pick to become the next gospel star, but she honed her skills, first as a drummer at age 12, then as a choir director, and finally as a gospel singer.
The fact that people told her that she couldn’t do it only pushed her that much further. And this has made her success that much sweeter.
Her first solo album, “My Journey,” released in fall 2009, made others take notice.
Over the years she has shared the stage with gospel greats like Tye Tribbett, Donnie McClurkin, Dorinda Clark-Cole, Kim Burrell, Marvin Sapp, Marcus Cole, Natalie Wilson and S.O.P., Rizen, Nancy Jackson, Angela Spivey, Youthful Praise, Mary Mary, Eugene Cole and Purpose, Crystal Rucker, Bernard Johnson, Twinkie Clark-Terrell and the Georgia Mass Choir.
Her music is being played in 25 of the 50 states.
“God is really blessing me,” she said.
For more information, visit http://www.sonyamcguire.com/.
-Originally appeared in Crossroads News newspaper.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Stop wallowing in misery. Lean on God.
Stop wallowing in misery. Lean on God.
by Lee Williams
There were times when I had little food to eat. There were times when the bills kept piling up and I had little money coming in. There were days when I wanted to sleep my life away because it just became too unbearable.
But, then, I would hear a gospel song, or a church sermon or I would just look around and see little acts of kindness going on in the world and something would click.
The eloquent words that preacher spoke with such conviction or the words to that gospel song would just move me beyond measure. At that moment, the Holy Spirit would say to me, “Stop wallowing in your misery. Don’t you know the God you serve can move mountains? He can do all things. Nothing is impossible to him.”
In an instant, I would be humbled and transformed.
A lot of you out there may be struggling. You are used to having all of the bills paid on time, but now things are different. Not only have you fallen behind on your bills, but you are left to make some difficult choices – the food or the rent, fuel for the car or money for utility bills. It’s getting harder to live day to day.
But just know, like I know, and God knows, this too shall pass. You have to talk to God. You have to thank him for the lesson that he is teaching you. And, then, you have to ask him to release those burdens that are weighing you down.
Begin to speak victory over adversity in your life and he will answer your prayers.
Ask. Believe. Receive.
“Weeping may endure for the night but joy cometh in the morning” (King James Version Psalms 30:5).
God would never put more on you than you can bear. He made you and breathed life into you. Surely, he knows what you can handle and where you need to grow.
There are no shortcuts to heaven. You have to be tried to make it into heaven. God is not just going to give his angel wings to anybody.
But, the problem is we try to fight the battle alone. The battle is not ours. It belongs to God. The victory has already been won.
So praise him, shout and dance your way to victory. Stand firmly on the promises of God. God said he would never leave you, nor forsake you. So, it’s time we stop playing and starting putting our faith and trust in him.
My God is surely good.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
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