Joyce Im Bartholomew will be the first to say she doesn't have it all figured out, pointing instead to a daily dependence on Jesus' guidance. It's that humility and those lessons that shape Bartholomew's music, mission and passions. The lessons she's learned, the situations she's witnessed and the hopes within her heart have found their way into her new project, Songs From The Deep (BUY HERE).

Though Bartholomew has been making music a long time, she's still pretty new to a lot of Christian music fans, as is the organization for which she works, Mission: PreBorn. I asked the multifaceted mom 10 questions to introduce fans to her. 

What's something unexpected about you that you can tell us? 

I am a first degree black belt in taekwondo with five national medals, but this was from years ago, so I am not as flexible or as strong anymore!

Tell us your musical background, and how you got into doing what you're doing now. 

I have been performing and singing on stage in community theater since the age of eight because I grew up in the greater Los Angeles area. I had four years of classical piano training as a child, but I stopped, so picking it all up again as an adult has not been so easy. I can play some guitar too. 

I have had over a decade of serious private vocal training with different stylistic teachers, and I was a professional film, TV, and stage performer while my husband and I lived in Toronto for many years. We are not Canadian, but we were there for his work. In Toronto, I was singing a lot on stage too. 

I got into what I am doing now because the president of Mission: PreBorn was living in Naples, Florida, which is my town, and he was the director of a pregnancy resource center here for a few years. He was having a fundraiser event with Pam Tebow as the speaker. She is Tim Tebow's mother, who was pressured into trying to abort Tim by the doctors. My husband knew the president and his name is Dan Steiner, and Dan asked my husband if he knew of any local singers for the event, and my husband said that his wife sang, and that is how it all began. 

Then he heard me sing and said my singing was "anointed" and asked me to tour with Rebecca St. James at the time as her opening act. He also knew that I had been a pregnancy care counselor for many years in Toronto, all volunteer too. I am also a volunteer spokesperson for this organization, because I don't want people to think I am doing this for the money.
 
Are you involved in music ministry at your church? What's your secret identity? 

I have been singing solos and on the praise team at church my entire life! During one year, while I took off from MPB so that I could pray about my motives for the pro-life movement, I served as an interim worship leader, and it was so hard because I am not a techy person and this job required me to be that! My secret identity is being a mother of teenagers and two dogs! People see me run around with the teens at club soccer and other extracurricular activities and also run my giant Schnauzer guard dog all of the time!

How'd you pick the title "Songs From The Deep"? Is this referring to a particular time in your life? 

I originally had the title "Songs From My Heart," because these are all my original messages from my heart to the Christian audience, desiring that they grow closer to God. Then, Brett Manning, who is my vocal coach and friend, and co-writer for "Humble Me" and vocal producer on the album, suggested "Songs From The Deep," because he thought the messages were very deep. I loved it because I envisioned an album cover by the ocean deep and it dawned on me that it was a perfect title in more ways than one! But, most of all, I wanted these songs to be deep messages that would hit deep into a Christian's heart, by the power of the Holy Spirit. And, I am a deeper person, in general, too.

The song "Fight For Our Marriage" is deeply honest and personal. What made you write it, and what has been the response? 

My songs usually begin with a conviction from the Holy Spirit that does not leave me. I will often think about the subject matter during the daytime, and during my daily devotionals. I will almost not be able to help it. All these people around me were divorcing without really fighting to stay together. They were fighting within their marriages, but not fighting in prayer and seeking God and what the Bible has to say about this covenant made before God. 

I would hear their reasons for divorcing and giving up and I knew that I had gone through longer years of hardship than they had ever endured, for many reasons, and I saw how God turned what was hopeless into something better and more beautiful than before. So, I wanted to be open about my hardships. I also felt I had suffered long enough to be able to help others through their sufferings too, and also be able to encourage them to see the beauty that was on the other side, if they would forgive, love, and accept one another's differences. The response has been overwhelmingly positive because so many people have gone through what I have gone through! And so many people need to hear this type of message today, about marriage. The response has been incredible--all God, really!
 
We live in a very narcissistic culture. The message of "Humble Me" seems to fly right at that. What inspired this one? 

I agree about our narcissistic culture! "Humble Me" was inspired by deepest loathing of my own ego and pride. My idol is me, and I despise that. I wish that I were humble, and I pray that God will change me so that I will be like Jesus, who was never bothered even when they insulted Him, and He was the Son of God. I also know that "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" as James 4:6 says, and I don't want God to oppose me. I also know that the sin of pride is what made Lucifer fall, and this pride resides in all of mankind, and we can all fall too. And I don't want to fall because of my own loathsome pride. I have been praying about my pride for decades.

"We Are What We Think" in itself is a great message, even without the rest of the song for which it is named. Is this a mantra you have personally? 

Yes, this is a personal mantra for me. I am a healthy person, and I know that "we are what we eat," but I noticed that I would not think about my mind at all. I would just worry about what entered my stomach having an impact on my health and overall being, but then I realized that I never filtered what entered my mind. And what enters my thoughts and my mind has a direct impact on my actions, speech, habits, character. I would leave my mind blank, open to the devil's attacks, unaware to his tactics. This is actually our first line of defense, and I combat this with the word of God. It has made a huge difference in my daily walk, simply controlling my thoughts according to the word of God. I am not perfect, but I am striving daily in repentance and obedience.

What's your calling as best you can tell? 

I am called to fight for pro life right now, and to be Mission: PreBorn's national spokesperson. I am called to be a mother right now too. I am also called to be in music right now, but however God may lead me, I will follow, if that path should change!

What's your new year's resolution? 

To memorize more scripture, to lift weights more regularly, to be more patient with my teenagers, to play the piano and guitar even better for myself, to record another album, but this one will be for the mainstream audience with all of my Christian messages. (This is because of a dream I had two days after I finished recording "Songs From The Deep.")

How can people be praying for you? 

Thank you for asking me this! I need prayer for victory against Google/YouTube in my lawsuit regarding my pro-life music video called "What Was Your Name," in which they censored the video years ago stating that I had violated some terms of service. This was false and I am suing for defamation and it has been going on for a long time. They removed my view counts, but recently I remarketed on Google and it reached over 473,000 views now! But I have had more recent trouble that I cannot discuss just yet.