Michelle Boyd

Living Sacrifice
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will."  Romans 12: 1-2

"I love singing gospel music because singing to the Lord puts me in a different place,"

I was born, a cat loving Leo, on July 25th  in East Harlem NYC. I have two sisters and three brothers.  I grew up in a single parent home. My mother worked at night and so I learned responsibility at an early age. My mother depended on me.

When I became older I decided to go out into the world to see what I had been missing.  I had made some bad choices and learned some very important lessons. The best thing that came out of those years is my daughter Shidavia. My daughter literally saved my life in a big way. I'd never felt so much love for anybody as I did for her. From the moment she was born my love for her and the desire to be there for her was so strong it drove me to settling down. I began to embrace the lessons of responsibility I had learned as a child, when I was too young to appreciate them.

What I wanted for my baby more than anything else was for her to have a spiritual foundation to grow on. I wasn't sure what that meant. All I knew is that I wanted to give her the best life possible which meant GOD would have to be involved. So, I decided to send her to catholic school.

At this time I was running around trying to find my way and was thinking of converting to Islam, but I became hesitant because I still wasn't sure if being a part of the Muslim faith was truly where I needed to be or what I really wanted to be. I just knew that there was a void in my life and GOD was the only one who could fill it.  I didn't want to rush into anything and not finish like I had done so many times before.  I'd attended my share of churches, but I never felt like I belonged to any of them.  I didn't know if Jesus was real anymore and as much as I talked against the Christian Faith, I wasn't sure that becoming a Muslim was the answer either. I just wanted something real. 

I began losing sleep over the issue and ended up on my knees one night begging God to reveal himself to me. I demanded that He show me what was true.  If Jesus is your son, tell me. If not, tell me. I said to HIM -- until YOU tell me what is true I will not utter the name of Jesus. And I will forbid my daughter from speaking His name in this house as well.

It wasn't long after my sister invited me to a Mother's Day Celebration which was hosted by the New York Church of Christ. I decided to go and the people were singing song in Spanish and English, and there was a large mixture of people from different ethnic backgrounds hugging, holding hands and praising God together. There were no instruments, not even an organ – just folks singing out to the Lord. The experience was amazing!  After visiting a few more times I began studying the bible and as I was digging through the scriptures to find the answers I needed to clear my confusion and God was moving in a powerful way. He started revealing his love for me and all the questions I had at the time were answered and I became more convicted in my heart about who HE is.  On June 20th 1997, I confessed Jesus As Lord, and was baptized in His Name. I never stopped showing up for God since.

God answered my prayers in a way.  He completely changed my life. All of His ways are perfect and my whole life is wrapped up in his blessings. I had been a member of the Harlem Church Choir for almost 8 years, and I was also one of the sound technicians for our Sunday and Mid-week services.

I met Nedra Jones in the Church. We bonded through the music ministry and when she decided to put a gospel group together, she asked me to be a part of it. I am not sure why God led her to choose me - but I'm glad He did. We (the sisters of Refining Faith) have become a true sisterhood - a family. There is nothing we would not do for each other. We Pray, love, laugh and cry together.  Our single-minded goal as a group is to be a ministry – bringing people closer to GOD.

This January I decided to listen to GOD.  You know there is a pull for us to get closer to HIM and if where you are is not getting you there sometimes you have to go.  So I did just that and believe me it wasn't easy.  I now attend Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn.  I do know that I received a solid foundation from the New York City Church of Christ.  They taught me how to read my Bible, Pray and Love.  We are always growing and must never stop.

Favorite things to do:

Reading good books and hanging out with family and friends

I love hanging out with my daughter, we are alike in many ways.  She makes me laugh.

Watching wrestling with my nephew - We have a really good time.  We also like to play basketball, football and baseball video games.  He's very good and an A Student.  I have a younger nephew also, who I just love to wrestle with.

Favorite Artists, Music when kicking back at home:

I like all types of Music – Gospel and true old school 70s and 80s.

My name is Nedra.　I was born September 21st in Portsmouth, VA - the youngest of 12 children.　 Our mom died when I was only 15 months old. My grandmother, who raised us, was the mother of St. Pauls Holiness Church on Elm Avenue in Portsmouth, where we grew up. She instilled a fear of God in me that never really left me to this day.

By fear, I mean deep rooted faith and respect. Growing up, I always felt that my grandmother was the strictest person in the world, but as I got older I realized that she loved me and definitely had a biblical standard for life.

In 2003 I was diagnosed with cancer. Initially, my faith was shaken. It was the greatest struggle of my life. My mother had died of the same type of cancer that was now staring me in the face. That’s not an easy thing. Although you try to live in the spirit, human flesh takes over in times of crisis and all you see is what is before you.

Through the prayers of family and friends, and encouragement from my sister and one of my best friends, I began to give the illness to God. My faith was quickly restored. One of the scriptures my sister shared with me was John 11:4, which says: When he heard this, Jesus said, this sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it." My doctors were amazed at my recovery and expressed to me how "lucky" I was.

I know, however, that it had nothing to do with "luck," and everything to do with God. Every chance I get, I make the most of the opportunity to share my story with others so that they can see that God is still in the business of healing.

I learned that faith is the key to healing and to anything we desire within God’s will. For Jesus says: "your faith has healed you". And: "…if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, `Move from here to there' and it will move." I thank my Grandmother for bringing me up in the church - even for the times when she had to drag me to get me there. I appreciate the sense of faith she instilled in me as a child. [Matthew 9: 22 17: 20]

My family life played a huge role in affecting my music. My Grandmother on my Mother’s side, the one who raised me - played the piano, my Father’s Mother sang opera, and my older sisters were part of a singing group called the Sparkettes. They were very good, and got to share the stage with many greats.

My brothers also sang. They formed a group by the name of "The Main Attractions" when they were young boys, (which later became "Careem"). They were very popular in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia; I remember them having a car with the groups’ name on it. They placed first several times at the Apollo, and has since shared the stage with Gerald Lavert, Earth Wind and Fire, Regina Bell, The Manhattans, and Blue Magic - just to name a few. I’ve always been inspired by them and very proud of their achievements. I learned harmony sitting in on their rehearsals.

I was a part of the St. Pauls Holiness Church Jr. Choir. This was an amazing Choir.　 We had very powerful singers and were well known in a lot of the Churches in the area. After graduating from High School here in New York, I returned to Va. to attend Norfolk State University. While there, I teamed up with a childhood friend and a band member of the college to form a gospel singing group by the name of "The Angelic Trio". We had great harmony. In 2001, I had an opportunity to tour Europe with a singing ministry. It was a lifetime memory. It proved to me that God’s love and spirit has no boundaries.

When I was sixteen I moved to NY to live with my sister, and to be honest with you, I had no desire to start attending church right a way. I had been in church a minimum of three times a week all my life, and felt a sense of freedom once I arrived in the city. I wanted to do what I wanted to do; and I did. I lived like that for seventeen years of my life; and I suffered some of the consequences of my actions.

One day I was met by a woman on the train named Amy. She invited me to church and told me that I didn’t have to dress up to go. I liked that, so I met her and we went together.

I liked what I saw and heard. I decided to study the bible. I saw God’s word in a whole new light. I learned that the bible was not to be read just to obtain knowledge, but that application was the key. I was baptized on February 14, 1995. From that day on Jesus has been Lord of my life, and I continue to strive daily to live my life with the bible as the standard. I fall short daily, but I continue to strive.

Learning to put God first in my life, through the word, has not only added new life to my soul - but also to my music. Good lyrics in gospel music transform me. I feel every word, and when I sing I feel obligated to relay that to my listeners and that they will feel it too, and allow it to hit home. I also love the creative part of the music. I enjoy putting together harmonies, and helping others bring out the best in their voices.

A very good friend of mine, Michael Crump - who now lives in Atlanta, inspired me to write my first gospel song. He started writing a song titled "Never Say No to Jesus;" after the first verse and the chorus he got stuck and asked me for my assistance. Since then I have collaborated with him on a few other songs and have also done some writing on my own.

As the founding member of Refining Faith, I am constantly amazed at how God is working in our lives. The bond that we have together is fantastic. We aren’t just a group that gets together and sing; there are many times when we get together for rehearsal and not sing a note.　 We have spent　entire rehearsals mentoring and encouraging each other.　　All members share the same hope of wanting our music to touch others; and that we can’t be what we need to be as a musical ministry if we aren’t striving to be like Jesus in our own lives. We always pray together, we talk about everything, and we work out whatever differences we may have with one another. I appreciate every member of the group for their individual commitments to God. I believe we have something special and that it comes out when we sing together.