Interested in purchasing your copy of Madalyn's new CD "STEPPING STONE"? Be sure to visit her online store. And thanks to everyone for your continued support of Madalyn's ministry!
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
Why Worry?
I sang recently at a Sunday church service in my community where the main message for the morning in scripture reading and song was Be Not Afraid! Don’t Worry! The Scripture reading was from Matthew chapter 6 where Jesus asks, “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life”? The song that I had chosen to sing, “Threaten me with Heaven” by Vince Gill fit exactly into the message. Once again, God reminded me that I am not in control, that life is not about me and I can do nothing on my own. The Lord chose the song He wanted me to sing and gave me a passion for it in order to minister to others, ultimately glorifying Him.
It never really occurred to me before, but worrying and being anxious could actually be considered sin. If I’m honest with myself, I am guilty too often of worrying about how things are going to turn out, and not just relying on God and trusting that he’s “got my back”. Do I really believe Him when He says, “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you”? I forget, so often that He is on our side and desires for us to succeed in life. When God is in the center of our lives, His desires become our desires and life becomes even more beautiful.
Too often I catch myself stressing about how something is going to work out and forgetting that I’m not really in control of what is going to happen. God is! God calls on me to be productive, not be lazy, to seek answers through prayer, reading His word, and surrounding myself with those who will lift me up and I can likewise encourage and lift them up. I can’t just sit around and expect an answer to fall into my lap. I’ve got to be active and do all I can to work out problems and challenges that come my way. But worry? Stress about what’s going to happen next? No. There’s no time to worry. Dreams don’t become reality by worrying. Problems aren’t solved by worrying. No one is encouraged by worrying. The only thing produced from worrying is wrinkles…and it stresses you and everyone around you.
The talented writers who penned the lyrics to many of the songs on my CD “Stepping Stone” are dialed right in on what our attitude should be when faced with problems, hardship, and anxiety. Jamie Owens who wrote “Hard Times” said, “Don’t you fret now child, don’t you worry. The rain’s to help you grow so don’t try to hurry the storms along. The hard times make you strong”. Or Mindy Smith in “Come to Jesus” urging us, “Child, when life don’t seem worth living. Come to Jesus and let Him hold you in His arms.” Or Nicole Witt and A.J. Yuill who wrote the lyrics to “Fearless” …”You’ll always be there for me, whatever I go through. That’s the difference between your love and this world, I’m fearless with You”.
Are you fearless about living the Christian life and diving head first into your ambitions and goals with God in the center. Is it easy to just trust God to meet all your needs? Sometimes I have to turn to the lyrics in my own music and remember that its at the cross that I find peace and purpose, by His blood that I find mercy and truth. I hope the songs I chose to include on my CD are uplifting and an encouragement to you.
Do you struggle with trusting God to see you through the hard times? What brings you back and gets you back on track? I would love to know what gets you through each day. Let me know what you think!
Friday, July 13, 2012
CD RELEASE CONCERT JULY 28!
- I HOPE YOU CAN JOIN ME!
Thumb Area Center for the Arts presents local recording artist Madalyn McHugh's official CD Release Concert. Proceeds benefit TACA’s Joy Street Church Roofing Project.
Listen and watch: http://www.reverbnation.com/madalynmchugh
$10 tickets available at:
-State Street Pharmacy in Caro,
-Online at www.TACFTA.org
-At the door.
Madalyn has a big voice and a unique style that captivates her audience and leaves them wanting more. Her first full album release with Creative Soul Records producer, Eric Copeland will be released this summer. The album resounds with a message of hope and encouragement. Learn more at www.madalynmchugh.com.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Do It for Yourself
It’s always the same answer and I always come to the same conclusion: If you sincerely desire something, you’ve gotta do it yourself and you can't rely on other people. It's so easy to get discouraged about dreams never happening, or even little things that you hoped for never taking place. Well, I’ve learned that the answer is simple.I have to be self motivated and not rely on anyone but God.Something I try to remember is that people are just people. Every great person had to start somewhere. Every great accomplishment took a lot of work. What we see as the finished product is beautiful and inspiring. But what we don’t see, being on the outside, is the blood, sweat and tears spent to accomplish that goal.
It's so easy to get distracted and get off course from the goal. But life is short. Time is limited. Each day is fleeting. Work hard and develop strength for yourself. Your dream may not be in God’s timing. It may not even be in His plan. But that doesn’t mean you give up. Working hard while waiting is part of the beautiful cycle of life.
So many lessons can be learned on the path less traveled. But the hard thing (especially being young)is that the path less traveled is often extremely unpopular. It involves a lot of sacrifices. In the end though, you will be blessed for standing up, walking tall and forging ahead towards your dream. And it's gonna feel great when you have at least tried. You never know until you try.
What if your life plan involved God wanting to use you in an incredible way but you never got up? What if the dream you have for your life is the same plan God has for you? The only way to know is through dedication and a trip down the narrow road.
Maybe its scary...but it's worth it.
Do it for yourself!
-Madalyn
Madalyn McHugh is a small town girl with a life-size passion for singing and sharing her message with young people. What message? You don’t have to compromise your beliefs or who you are in order to be “OK”, or be accepted. For more information on Madalyn's ministry or to have her visit your church or organization, visit madalynmchugh.com
So many lessons can be learned on the path less traveled. But the hard thing (especially being young)is that the path less traveled is often extremely unpopular. It involves a lot of sacrifices. In the end though, you will be blessed for standing up, walking tall and forging ahead towards your dream. And it's gonna feel great when you have at least tried. You never know until you try.
What if your life plan involved God wanting to use you in an incredible way but you never got up? What if the dream you have for your life is the same plan God has for you? The only way to know is through dedication and a trip down the narrow road.
Maybe its scary...but it's worth it.
Do it for yourself!
-Madalyn
Madalyn McHugh is a small town girl with a life-size passion for singing and sharing her message with young people. What message? You don’t have to compromise your beliefs or who you are in order to be “OK”, or be accepted. For more information on Madalyn's ministry or to have her visit your church or organization, visit madalynmchugh.com
Friday, June 29, 2012
Ready To Roll
First of all, I want to say that getting ready for my CD release concert is so exciting! I feel like everything is coming together. The musicians and I have been meeting to rehearse and I feel so blessed that such talented people are going to play at my concert! The concert is going to be at my high school of which I am recently an alumni which makes everything even more exciting.
Through all of this excitement, I think a lot about my life so far. I’m in that transitioning period of life right after high school. Getting to know people, becoming close, hearing their stories, developing a heart for them and then all of a sudden going in separate directions is so surreal. It was difficult to accept the fact that what I’ve known for so long is over and it’s time to move on to the next chapter.
Life with the people at Caro High School was so familiar to me and it felt impossible to let go. Knowing that everyone is going their separate ways is a strange thought and its very difficult to accept. But at the same time, it’s a beautiful thing. There’s never been a better time to pursue our dreams, running with them and never looking back. I'm ready to move on to bigger and better things but it scares me to know that my childhood is gone and my teenage years are quickly flying by. Suddenly time means something to me. The old saying "you don't know what you've got till its gone" runs through my mind a lot these days.
I'm learning to embrace every moment, love with all I've got, and work to make a difference. The song “Stepping Stone” on the album talks about just that. “Don’t look back but don’t forget that what’s in your past got you to where you’re at and that little home town was a stepping stone to the next road.” That song means so much to me because it is my life.
I hope you guys can listen to “Stepping Stone” and be able to relate in the same way. The past may be hard to let go of but when you get to the point where you are okay with yourself to move on….the past becomes a beautiful memory and the future becomes bright. I’m ready to sing and I’m ready to shine. I sincerely hope that people can be encouraged by this album!
Through all of this excitement, I think a lot about my life so far. I’m in that transitioning period of life right after high school. Getting to know people, becoming close, hearing their stories, developing a heart for them and then all of a sudden going in separate directions is so surreal. It was difficult to accept the fact that what I’ve known for so long is over and it’s time to move on to the next chapter.
Life with the people at Caro High School was so familiar to me and it felt impossible to let go. Knowing that everyone is going their separate ways is a strange thought and its very difficult to accept. But at the same time, it’s a beautiful thing. There’s never been a better time to pursue our dreams, running with them and never looking back. I'm ready to move on to bigger and better things but it scares me to know that my childhood is gone and my teenage years are quickly flying by. Suddenly time means something to me. The old saying "you don't know what you've got till its gone" runs through my mind a lot these days.
I'm learning to embrace every moment, love with all I've got, and work to make a difference. The song “Stepping Stone” on the album talks about just that. “Don’t look back but don’t forget that what’s in your past got you to where you’re at and that little home town was a stepping stone to the next road.” That song means so much to me because it is my life.
I hope you guys can listen to “Stepping Stone” and be able to relate in the same way. The past may be hard to let go of but when you get to the point where you are okay with yourself to move on….the past becomes a beautiful memory and the future becomes bright. I’m ready to sing and I’m ready to shine. I sincerely hope that people can be encouraged by this album!
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Welcome to My Website!
Hello! This is the very very beginning of a long and exciting road that I've been ready to travel for so long! Thanks for taking the time to visit my site.
Since you're reading this, I'll start off with a little background and explain what I'm doing. I've wanted to sing forever. When I was just a little girl I was gonna be a Disney Channel star....I had it all planned out. I've tried out for American Idol twice. I've auditioned for America's Got Talent. I've done countless amounts of local talent shows, competitions, etc. I've done a lot with my voice and had many great opportunities, but the most incredible one of all came a year ago.
In July of 2011, my dad and I went to Nashville and met with Creative Soul Records, producer, Eric Copeland. From the moment we shook hands, I knew God had sent us to him for a reason. Eric introduced us to many talented musicians and other individuals at Dark Horse Recording Studio and from there the emotions were just overwhelming. The people we met, the places we went to, and the music that was created was like nothing I've ever experienced before. I knew at that moment, meeting Eric, that God had opened a door and given me the chance to fly. All of those other times were my timing. I gave every single competition my all and sang from the depths of my soul but it wasn't God's timing. He finally said yes and I feel blessed far beyond what I deserve.
I learned an incredible amount while in Nashville and had the privilege to work with some amazing musicians. Its been a long time coming but my first album which I am extremely excited for people to hear, is less than 2 weeks away! What I'm going to be doing is traveling to different churches and events sharing the music that we created and loving every second of it.
I don't know who will hear my music, I don't know what God's plan is, I don't know what opportunities will come my way, but I have faith that God will send the right people at the right time to be blessed by this music. Thank you so much for coming to my site and taking the time to hear my story.
Since you're reading this, I'll start off with a little background and explain what I'm doing. I've wanted to sing forever. When I was just a little girl I was gonna be a Disney Channel star....I had it all planned out. I've tried out for American Idol twice. I've auditioned for America's Got Talent. I've done countless amounts of local talent shows, competitions, etc. I've done a lot with my voice and had many great opportunities, but the most incredible one of all came a year ago.
In July of 2011, my dad and I went to Nashville and met with Creative Soul Records, producer, Eric Copeland. From the moment we shook hands, I knew God had sent us to him for a reason. Eric introduced us to many talented musicians and other individuals at Dark Horse Recording Studio and from there the emotions were just overwhelming. The people we met, the places we went to, and the music that was created was like nothing I've ever experienced before. I knew at that moment, meeting Eric, that God had opened a door and given me the chance to fly. All of those other times were my timing. I gave every single competition my all and sang from the depths of my soul but it wasn't God's timing. He finally said yes and I feel blessed far beyond what I deserve.
I learned an incredible amount while in Nashville and had the privilege to work with some amazing musicians. Its been a long time coming but my first album which I am extremely excited for people to hear, is less than 2 weeks away! What I'm going to be doing is traveling to different churches and events sharing the music that we created and loving every second of it.
I don't know who will hear my music, I don't know what God's plan is, I don't know what opportunities will come my way, but I have faith that God will send the right people at the right time to be blessed by this music. Thank you so much for coming to my site and taking the time to hear my story.
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