The winner has been chosen! Thanks always for entering!

If you have been keeping up with our weekly Laura Story devotions, you know that Laura has written a book called What If Your Blessings Come Through Raindrops? and she has shared devotions from the book with us. This week, Laura Story covers chapter 29 and shares lessons learned from David.

According to Laura, we learn three important lessons from David:

The incorporation of David’s story

The declaration of God’s glory

The expectation of the extraordinary

“Will I be willing to, in light of my story, in light of the hard things in my life, will I be willing to sing praises to God and will I expect God to do magnificent things through me?” – Laura Story

Laura talks about how David used song to sing praises to God, and she writes songs to give praise to God, so we want to know What is one song that God has used in your life when you have been going through a hard time? It can be any song from any artist. Music can have a powerful impact. How has it impacted you?

Post your answer in the comments section & be entered to win a copy of Laura’s new book, “What If Your Blessings Come Through Raindrops?” and a signed copy of her album “Blessings!”

Don’t forget to get your copy of Laura’s Devotional Book HERE and her hit CD “Blessings” HERE!

Winner has been selected. Thank you all!

If you have been following, we have been posting weekly video devotionals from Laura Story. Today she is sharing about chapter 19 of her devotional book, what if your blessings come through raindrops. You can win a copy of the book and an autographed CD by answering the question, What is the most comforting thing a friend did for you when you were going through a trial?

“We see the apostle paul in 2 corinthians chapter 1 talking about the comfort that He shows His children in affliction… Sometimes it takes walking through a hard chapter yourself to know how to comfort others…Sometimes there are blessings when we walk through hard trials so that we can comfort others who come after us…”

- Laura Story

Sara Groves is a world traveler! She just announced a fall tour in the UK. If you live anywhere in the United Kingdom or know anyone who does, be sure to pass on the information about her UK tour!

Visit Sara’s website for more information on this exciting tour!

The winner has been chosen. Thanks to everyone for the great comments.

Last week, we brought you the first installment of Wednesdays in the Word with Laura Story! Laura has shared from her heart on several chapters from her devotional book, What If Your Blessings Come Through Raindrops?

This week, Laura shares about Chapter 13 and the Apostle Paul’s “thorn in the flesh.”

Sometimes I have a tendency of thinking that God has left these pains as punishment. Or maybe God just doesn’t care. But God says…”My grace is sufficient for you for strength is made perfect in weakness.”

So, I know for my own life, it’s so hard to understand why God allows us to go through hard things. Even though I don’t have the answers…I do believe that God longs to use our weakness in order for his holiness…to shine all the brighter through our lives.

What is a time in your life when God used your weakness for His glory? Share your story with us for a chance to win an autographed copy of “Blessings” and a copy of the Laura Story’s devotional book!

P.S. Don’t forget to get your copy of Laura’s Devotional Book HERE and her hit CD “Blessings” HERE!

If you’ve been keeping up with FreeCCM for a while, you  may remember last summer when we featured non-profit ministry organizations that Christian artists are involved with.

Darlene Zschech is one of the founders of Hope: Rwanda, a non-profit ministry that is designed to bring hope to the country of Rwanda which was devastated by war.

Hope:Rwanda just announced a rebranding of the website–it is now called Hope:Global! They are expanding their ministry to reach out to people in more places.

Here is what Darlene has to say about it!

“Have you seen our new website!? HOPE: Global/HOPE: Rwanda is now operating from a new and fantastic site: We have re-branded and to go along with that you will notice there’s a new design and feel to our page. Go have a look-see and explore around the pages.”

So check out the new website here! We love what Darlene and the Hope:Rwanda team are doing to spread the Gospel and serve others!

Also, you can pre-order their upcoming book: “Rwanda: Speak. I’m Listening.” This book is a tribute to the stories of those involved in the horrific genocide of Rwanda.

We have chosen the winner. Thanks everyone for your comments!

Not only is Laura Story a wonderful musician, but she is now an author. We have featured her new book “What If Your Blessings Come Through Raindrops?” several times here on FreeCCM.

Laura has recorded several devotions that can be paired with her book. She offers some great insights into God’s blessings! Watch this video and keep reading for a chance to win a copy of the book and an autographed Laura Story CD.

“This was a king that had everything in the world he could have possibly asked for…and you see even as God has blessed him so richly, his response to having all these things is that eventually these very things turned his heart away from the Lord.

Sometimes I am tempted to buy into that American dream. The big house, the picket fence, the 2.5 kids—whatever that looks like for you! And I buy into this lie that if I just had a little bit more, I would be satisfied. A lot of that I just have to lay before the Lord and realize that God is not going to give me things that I prize over Him. That is not the best thing for my soul!

Truly seek first the kingdom, and all those things will be added to us as we need them.”

What is one of the “things” that turns your heart of away from the Lord like Laura talked about with Solomon? Comment with an answer for your chance to win!

P.S. Don’t forget to get your copy of Laura’s Devotional Book HERE and her hit CD “Blessings” HERE!

Three weeks ago, we played a little trivia game and asked you to answer some questions about one of our favorite artists, Laura Story. Usually when we do a quiz, most people get it right! But this time it was anybody’s game. We had answers all over the board.

Of 43 people who entered the contest, only TWO people got all three answers correct! Congratulations Cuthbedd and Sunrise in Him!

Here are some more stats for your enjoyment:

18 people got question 1 correct!

9 people got question 2 correct!

14 people got question 3 correct!

The answers were as follows:

Laura’s favorite football team: A. The Georgia Bulldogs

Favorite Bible character: C. Peter

Favorite Sport: C. Cycling

Now you know a little more about Laura Story! We also got a few more questions answered from Laura.

Laura’s favorite ice cream: Breyer’s Mint Chocolate Chip

Favorite past time: Hiking/camping

Greatest claim to fame: being married to the most wonderful man on earth! (so sweet!)

Now you know! Not only is Laura an incredible singer and songwriter, she seems to be quite adventurous!

*Cycling picture by Michal Marcol

*Camping picture by think4photop

We have chosen a winner! Congratulations to Mary Ross!

Pinterest is quickly becoming one of the most popular social media sites on the internet! It was developed in 2011, and it has already grown to over 10.4 million users! If you haven’t joined this fun bulletin board-style site yet, and you are interested in discovering new ideas on crafts, gifts, decorating, weddings, or any of the other dozens of categories, you should join.

Most Pinterest users are females, but some guys have found a use for it too!

I don’t know if you know, but FreeCCM is on Pinterest, and we would love to connect with other Christian music fans!

So, here’s the deal. We are giving away a $15 Michael’s Gift Card for one Pinterest/FreeCCM user to use to buy some supplies to make a Pinterest recipe (or anything else you may need!) along with a copy of Laura Story’s Blessings CD. All you have to do is repin the image below onto YOUR Pinterest and follow OUR Pinterest HERE.

Comment on this page and let us know that you repinned the image, and you will be entered to win!

It’s hard to believe Easter is already upon us! If you gave up anything for lent, you may be counting down the days! I love Easter. It is such a wonderful opportunity to enjoy time with family, celebrate the spring, and most importantly to celebrate the resurrection of our savior!

Last  year, Jonny Diaz shared a devotional with us about the importance of the cross. We thought it was good enough to share again! We are also giving away a copy of his devotional book entitled “More Beautiful You” and both of his CDs!

The “BEAUTY OF THE CROSS” Is Found In The Resurrection
By: Jonny Diaz

Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven. . .  1 Peter 1:3b-4 (The Message)

There is a song on my new record called, “Beauty Of The Cross.”  This title may not sound very strange or contradictory to you.   After all, we’ve been singing songs such as “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,” and “How Beautiful the Cross” for decades.  However, if you step back and check this out from a non-churched perspective, you have to admit that it seems a little, well . . . weird!

That’s because to this day the cross is known as one of the most torturous killing devices ever conceived.  No one would ever sing a song called “The Beauty Of The Electric Chair,” or “The Wondrous Lethal Injection.”  Songs like these would not only get puzzled looks, but they would enrage many listeners.  And yet, we sing songs proclaiming the wondrous beauty of the cross, and no one bats an eye.  How do we explain this?

Well, it was on that ugly, barbaric cross that God’s amazing love for us was demonstrated.  It was on that cross that Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice for us was made.  It was on that cross where the forces of evil and the grace of God battled for supremacy.

At first glance, it would appear that evil was victorious . . . but three days later, when Jesus’ tomb was found empty, everything changed!  You see, it was the resurrection that brought beauty to that blood-stained cross.  It was the resurrection that turned tragedy into triumph and sacrifice into salvation.  It was the resurrection that transformed condemnation into redemption.

Without the resurrection the cross would remain just a horrific symbol of suffering and shame.  Instead it is a symbol of love and life and beauty.  And, when we believe that Jesus died on that cross for our sins and that he rose from the grave on the third day, our lives become beautiful too.

Jonny also recently released a new single called “Scars” that talks about the Scars that Jesus endured for our salvation! Check out the story behind the song video and keep reading for  your chance to win a contest.

We are giving away Jonny Diaz’s devotional book, More Beautiful You, along with copies of both of his CDs. Tell us your favorite Easter candy for a chance to win!

We are excited to introduce a new band to you this week: Fuzed Worship! Be sure to check in on our downloads page later today for a free download of their song “All I Want.”

“Fuzed Worship is not about a band or solo artist. It’s about creating music that upholds truth and surpasses trends and momentary movements–centered on Justice and focused on worship–music to unite and inspire a generation to serve Christ and demonstrate His love.”

We got a chance to talk to the leader of Fuzed Worship, Nate Edmonds, and he answered some questions about how the band got their start, their mission, and their future goals!

Chandler: How did your band get started?

Nate: God really surprised us with the birth of Fuzed Worship.  I (Nate Edmonds) had just come off a 1 year fast from music and Daniel Meyer asked if I’d take some lyrics he had written on the mission field and make a song out of them.  Funny thing is, he wasn’t a musician and had never written a song in his life and I hadn’t sang or played in a year.  But God had bigger plans than we could imagine.  We wrote our 1^st song that night called Revolving Love.  Thirty songs later God began to reveal His plans.  Joyce Meyer Ministries took us under their wing and God has been slowly putting all the pieces together.  We held auditions and God brought an amazing group of worshipers together.  We have put two music projects out and we are on our second year of Conference Tours with Joyce Meyer Ministries.  It’s been amazing to see God bring something to life that we could never have done ourselves or even dreamed of.

Chandler: What do you consider the mission statement of Fuzed Worship?

Nate: Our mission is about coming together in worship, justice and service to create a culture centered on the heart of God. Our passion is to make worship more than just music—to establish something that serves God and makes a difference in the lives of hurting people through action and deed. Taking lyrics and melody and infusing it with the sincere conviction to see the world united for the cause of Christ—to not only say we are the church, but to truly become it.

Chandler: Where do you see yourself in five years?

Nate: That’s a really good question.  God seems to give us direction one step at a time so it’s hard to know exactly what’s around the corner.  We would love to see Fuzed Worship really take off and begin to grow within Joyce Meyer Ministries but also outside of JMM.  We hope to start touring and doing more worship events outside of our normal ministry conferences and maybe some day have Fuzed Worship Conferences similar to Passion and Jesus Culture.  We are going to keep writing and recording and be ready to go wherever God decides to send us.

Chandler: If you could communicate one thing to your fans, what would it be?

Nate: I would encourage them to earnestly seek God and be confident that He sees them, knows them, and has everything under control. There’s no rush, there’s no pressure to figure everything out.  His timing is perfect and His ways are higher than ours.  He works all things together for our good.  Just focus on loving God and helping others and everything will work out in the end.

Chandler: What is your favorite Bible verse?

Nate: Isaiah 58:10

and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.

Chandler: Do you have any funny stories from tour? If so, can you tell us?

Nate: We have a lot of fun on the road and we are so honored to be working with everyone out there.  There was a really funny thing that happened recently.  We brought on a new bass player and he’s a really fun guy to hang out with.  He just came from a restaurant and had a to-go cup in his hand, so….we decided to haze him a bit and pull a small initiation prank on him.  We were in a parking lot and some of the guys called him over for what looked like an impromptu band meeting.  We created a quick “fake” conversation and started recording video on my iPhone.  Once he was intently listening we did a thing we like to call “Food Ninja” (based on the iPhone Fruit Ninja game).  So Wes our guitarist runs up and slaps his cup right out of his hand!  As lemonade flew in the air and his cup slams to the ground, he realized he had been “Food Ninja’d”.  I think he was in shock so he just kept looking at his empty hand.  It was so funny that we couldn’t stop rewinding the video and pressing pause as he just stared at his empty hand in awe.  This was all done in love of course.  There’s a video on our Facebook page.  It’s worth checking out.

Visit FuzedWorship.com to learn more about the band and their music!