LEADERSHIP TEAM
Behind every song is a team of people who believe in the vision. Message Believers is made possible by a dedicated group of leaders who generously volunteer their time, talents, and energy to help bring this ministry to life.
FOUNDER & DIRECTOR
LYS - PAUL LUKUKA
Iowa, USA
One day, I realized that nothing else was working. I was failing at everything—school, my relationship with God, my NBA goals—and I felt very lost. Then one day, I put on a tape, which was something I rarely did in college, and the prophet on that tape said that I had not crossed the line yet because, as long as there was a desire in my heart to get back to God, there was still grace for me. That gave me hope. I moved to Iowa to live with my family and started seeking God, seeking to know whether He was real and whether the Message was real. I came across a few YouTube videos of young believers from Cloverdale Bibleway sharing their testimonies about a revival that had happened at a university. Then I came across some youth services from the Louisiana Camp and saw how young people were on fire for the Lord. I started regretting how I had wasted my years in the world instead of having experiences with God and serving Him.
I kept seeking God, and my soul started thirsting for the Holy Ghost at a level I cannot describe. I would skip my classes, go to my car, and pray because I needed God to be real to me and fill me with His Holy Ghost. A few months later, He filled me, and I started having experience after experience with God. He became real to me, and I was having fun serving God. I went from thinking it was boring to be a Christian to having fun being a Christian.
The prophet said somewhere that a seed needs water in order for it to grow and needs to be in a good environment. That made me think about how I had the seed of God in me but just needed to be in a good environment for that seed to grow. I thought about how many young people are going through the same experience I went through and have the seed of God in them, but need to be around other young people who have experienced God—a good environment of brothers and sisters who can relate to them.
At that time, I wasn't a minister; I was just a musician. God told Moses, “What do you have in your hands?” I had music in my hands. I became inspired to use music as a tool to create an in-person event—a banquet and Night of Worship—where we could worship God while also giving young people an opportunity to create new Christian friendships.
We have so many talented musicians and singers in the Message, and giving those talents a platform to use their gifts for the glory of God is the ultimate goal for our choir members. We have songwriters, musicians who play various instruments, singers, vocal trainers, and so many more. Giving these young people the choir’s platform brings me the ultimate joy because their gifts can bless not just their local churches and families, but people beyond their continents and throughout the world. The greatest honor for me is to be a blessing to the Bride of my Lord and Savior throughout the whole world.
The Vision Beyond the Choir
I would like to start producing great-quality music. We have received a high-quality Message, but the music usually doesn’t reflect it. I want to use MBVC to raise the music standard in the Message and hopefully inspire other talented people to also start producing great-quality music. I want us to reach a place where we don’t always have to go listen to Maverick City, Hillsong, and many other denominational artists, but where we can also produce something of high quality.
In the next 5–10 years, I would love for the choir to become the standard for great music in the Message. I would like to travel around the world doing Nights of Worship and be a blessing to the Bride of Christ. I would love to create albums and also go beyond just Message believers, so that MBVC can be a witnessing tool to the world that God has sent a prophet in our day.
What Leading MBVC Has Taught Me
Leading MBVC has taught me to be humble and that there is nothing I did to earn this privilege. It is simply the grace of God, who chose me, just as He could have chosen someone else. I realized that this choir is a work of God. I never in my wildest dreams thought it would become what it has—that we would have people from around the world travel to attend the Night of Worship and become members of the choir.
When I think about the way God assembled this choir, especially the leadership team, I see how He led me to the right event at the right time to meet the right people who have become essential to the choir becoming what it is today. Seeing that it is the work of God, I try to remain humble and pray more, seeking His will for the choir. The ultimate leader of the choir is Jesus Christ.
I have also learned that being a great leader means being able to identify other leaders within your group who share or understand the same vision. That has made my life a lot easier.
Musical Background
I started learning how to play the piano when I was around 12 years old. My dad was the main piano player for our church back in the Congo, so sometimes I would make sure I sat right behind him so I could see how he played and then go practice at home. I also learned through prayer. I remember as a kid asking God to teach me how to play the piano. Miraculously, sometimes I would just be playing and hit a chord or note that sounded really good, and I would write it down. That is also how I learned to read sheet music. One could say I was guessing what each symbol might represent, but it was simply God teaching me how to read music.
I also play several other instruments at a basic level, including acoustic guitar, bass, alto saxophone, drums, and dulcimer.
Originally, when I first started the choir, it was during the pandemic. I had just seen a YouTube video about a virtual choir and thought it would be a cool idea to do something similar with a few friends and people I knew who sing, so that we could give people good Christian music content during the pandemic. There were so many uncertainties, fear, and loss of life during that time, and I wanted to create something that could put a smile on people’s faces. That is how the choir was originally created—as an entirely virtual choir. We released about three virtual song covers, but eventually, the vision started becoming bigger than just doing virtual songs.
The way God dealt with me and saved me played a big role in that shift in vision. I was born into a family that believed the Message of the Hour, and that was all I knew growing up in the Congo. I came to the United States at 16 years old and attended a Christian boarding school in Kentucky. Thousands of miles away from my family, I saw it as an opportunity to try the world, so I started drifting away from the Message. Two years later, I went to college in North Dakota with the goal of staying away from as many believers as possible so I could be fully free to live a worldly life. I succeeded at that. I fully backslid, and the only time I would go to church was on Sunday. I used to think God was not fair. Why would He allow other people to enjoy the world first and then, when they are 70 years old, give Him their lives, while I was required to give Him mine at a young age? I thought I had crossed the line and was too far gone to be brought back to God.
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
MELISSA MAKAZA
Virginia, USA
Melissa joined MBVC in 2021, just before the choir began preparing for its first Night of Worship in Arizona. Music has been an integral part of her life from a young age. She participated in choir and band throughout elementary, middle, and high school, where she began writing, arranging, and conducting music. A former marching band flute player, she also plays piano, acoustic guitar, and bass guitar. In college, Melissa minored in Music with a focus on voice and served as the Music Director of an a cappella group, where her skills in transcription and arrangement flourished. She has since continued using her musical gifts to direct her church choir and serve through music.
Being part of MBVC has taught Melissa that her gifts are not her own, but are meant to serve the body of Christ. As her role within the choir has evolved, she has transitioned from being the primary arranger and conductor into an administrative role, helping oversee teams such as social media and fundraising while continuing to contribute musically behind the scenes. When arranging MBVC music, Melissa considers the atmosphere the song should create, the strengths of the choir, and how each part can be shaped to help the choir present its best while adding something unique. Above all, she sees music as one of her primary ways of connecting with God and values MBVC not only as a place to serve, but as a community where she has built meaningful friendships and found family among fellow believers.
MUSIC DIRECTOR
JOSEPH MUKOKO
Colorado, USA
Joseph has been a musician and keyboard player for over 15 years. His musical journey began when his church was in need of musicians and his father encouraged him to learn piano. What started as an unexpected push eventually revealed a gift God had placed within him and grew into a passion that has become a major part of his life. As a keyboardist, Joseph has developed experience playing piano, organ, synths, and creating the sounds and textures that support a full band. As MBVC’s Musical Director, he believes musicians are called to use their gifts to serve worship, remain spiritually sensitive, and help create an environment where others can focus on God rather than themselves.
Joseph is passionate about developing arrangements that complement the message of each song while encouraging creativity and collaboration among musicians. When building a team, he values skill, humility, professionalism, dependability, and a genuine commitment to Christ and the vision of MBVC. He describes MBVC’s musical identity as joyful, diverse, and innovative, with a desire to honor its musical roots while embracing new sounds and original music. One of his greatest joys in leadership is watching musicians grow musically, personally, and spiritually while building a team capable of carrying the vision even in his absence. For Joseph, every finished song represents countless hours of preparation, collaboration, creativity, and sacrifice—all worth it when the music ultimately serves God and the mission of MBVC.
VOCAL DIRECTOR
VICTORIA ADIMORA
Vancouver, Canada
Victoria has been part of MBVC since its earliest days, beginning with the choir’s first trip to Arizona. A singer, songwriter, arranger, and conductor, she discovered her musical gift at a young age and has been actively involved in music ministry ever since. Her experience spans church choirs, chamber, jazz, and concert choirs, as well as piano, flute, vocal arranging, and choir leadership. Over the years, she has served as a choir member, soloist, section leader, vocal arranger, and conductor.
Being part of MBVC has been a significant part of Victoria’s growth both musically and spiritually. The choir has given her opportunities to develop gifts she had not fully explored, particularly in vocal arranging and conducting, while deepening her understanding of her place in the Body of Christ. She is passionate about using the gifts God has given her to serve, bless others, and contribute to a global community of believers through worship.
VOCAL ASSISTANT
Colorado, USA
SHALOM SHYAMBA
Shalom has been part of MBVC since its beginnings as a simple virtual choir project during COVID and has been grateful to watch the ministry grow over the past five years. Though she did not grow up in a musical family or have a formal musical background, her love for music began at a young age. Around 13, she began experimenting with piano and guitar and eventually served as a musician at church. At 19, she discovered her gift for singing and has since sought to use it for the glory of God.
Being part of MBVC has deepened Shaloms’s understanding of worship—not only as something we do when we feel like it, but as a lifestyle and an offering to God. Music has become her primary avenue of worship and a central part of her walk with Christ. Her favorite part of serving with MBVC is seeing the gifts of people from different places come together, blending their voices into one sound both behind the scenes and in worship.
VOCAL ASSISTANT
Josué has been part of MBVC for three years and brings a strong musical background to the choir. He has been singing and playing music since childhood, earning a B.A. in Music and participating in marching band, school bands, and choirs throughout high school and college. He currently serves as a pianist at his local church in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Through MBVC, he has found a community of like-minded believers who share his passion for Christ and music, contributing greatly to his growth as both a Christian and a musician.
For him, music is a powerful way to praise and worship God, and having the opportunity to do so alongside believers from around the world is both an honor and a blessing. One of his favorite parts of MBVC is the fellowship—spending time with fellow young Christians, having fun, talking about the Word of God, and, of course, singing together.
Connecticut, USA
JOSUÉ SYVELSAINT