DARLENE ZSCHECH has a new solo album. She spoke at length to Mike Rimmer.

The family is very important for Darlene but isn't it hard for her children to have a famous mother? Darlene admits that the kids sometimes have their moments when they are dealing with it. She shares, "Chloe, our middle one, just a couple of weeks ago got a hard time at school for something and I said, 'Would you like mummy to stop work? What do you need?' And she said, 'Oh no mum! No way!' It was so funny! I was ready to be the martyr and she was like, 'Stop feeling sorry for yourself! Come on mum!'" Darlene laughs. With a surname like Zschech, she agrees that it's hard for the children to hide. "I think when they want to move forward in music and in ministry and find their own way and style and sound, that is definitely something they have got to negotiate. People's expectations can be hard. I'm sure everyone has faced that from time to time."

When it came to recording the new album, Darlene had a huge number of songs filed away that could have made it onto the album. As a woman who is continually writing songs, how does she decide what's to be recorded now? She explains that she didn't just want to record an album of worship songs, the songs had to have a wider purpose than that. She explains, "God is always doing something for a reason and you just see this whole wave of worship gaining such a momentum around the earth. And just as I dug through the Scriptures more, I could see that worship would always end up with people encountering Christ. And then after that there was injustice confronted, there were people's lives changed. The woman at the well, after her encounter, she didn't just have her encounter, but then she went and helped others encounter Christ. And you see this happen again and again and again."

She continues, "I guess our hearts have just been consumed with helping other people. That's where 'Change Your World' came from, just through Compassion. I work with Compassion and being on the field in Africa, the songs have got to challenge people to now live what we're singing. Let's go and bring the life and the light of Christ to a hurting world. And it truly is a hurting world."

But isn't it difficult with the worship scene to get people so outwardly focussed? It seems that in many places across the world, the worship scene can tend towards overindulgence with worshippers seeking the experience of being in worship rather than being changed by worship? Isn't there a temptation to get caught up in what an old room mate of mine once described as a "bless up"?

"Yeah most definitely," comes the honest response. "I've spoken at conferences on worship and injustice. It wasn't just my opinion, I filled it with Scripture on what the Word continues to say. I feel like we're on to something. I don't feel that I've discovered anything new or amazing but I do think we are on to something. Right around the world some of the key guys are starting to uncover this at the same time. In worship you always have a choice. You have a choice to change. You have a choice first to worship and then when you encounter God you can't stay the same. So you have a choice. Worship always involves choice and change. And with change comes responsibility. So I guess that's what these songs convey, gracefully and graciously. That's my prayer anyway."

Did she write songs specifically for the album on these topics or did they simply emerge from what had been captivating her thinking? She shares, "It's like if you journal or however it is you record your thoughts. Mine are often recorded in a song. So I guess as this was happening in my heart I could hear the songs starting to say a similar thing. So when I came to looking for songs, this similar theme kept coming through. Then we wrote a couple of additional songs as well with that purposely in mind."

One of the special songs on the album is "Never Give Up" which was inspired by the work of Mercy Ministries. There's a sample of Winston Churchill in the middle of that. Darlene jokes, "A duet with Winston! The song is just saying, 'Honey, don't give in! Be strong!'"

Mercy Ministries is part of the philanthropic work that Darlene and her husband Mark have poured their heart and cash into. The songwriting success has brought financial rewards and the Zschech family are trying to use the money wisely. She tells me, "We understand that to whom much is given, much is required. We feel such a great responsibility to be honest. We just love people! So we always had a dream in our heart to do something. And then when you get the ability to be able to do something, that's an amazing thing. That doesn't mean it's easy but it's an amazing thing." The first UK Mercy Home opens in 2006 near Bradford. She enthuses, "It's a beautiful old home with a long driveway. We'll be able to put about 20 girls in there straightaway. It's very exciting. It's a great start."

The inspiration for the ministry comes straight from Darlene's own experiences when she was a teenager. She confesses, "I was very bulimic when I was in my late teens. I really struggled with bad self-esteem. When Mark and I were first involved in youth ministry we were surrounded by broken people who were suffering with life-controlling issues. Eating disorders and self-harm are rampant. So I guess it's always been dear to our hearts.
And then babies.they're my passion! We always say to people, 'Don't have abortions!' But what if girls don't know any differently? How are we going to deal with these people and give them a true way? Then there are also young children; if a young girl wants to keep her baby and no-one wants to know her, you've got to have somewhere for her to grow and to flourish and to give her dignity in the middle of her circumstance. So it's just dealing with things like that."

Darlene continues, "When we had our Extravagant Worship conference in London in April, this man, a beautiful father, had driven his 18-year-old daughter down from Wales. They sat in the meeting and she was terribly, terribly sick with anorexia. We've been able to help her. But here is a girl and her mother couldn't deal with this girl's problem so her mother left and the father had to leave his job and they've had to sell their house. This father was just 24/7 caring for his 18-year-old daughter and with nowhere to go. When you hear things like that you have to do something! So it's for girls like that. Beautiful girls who just need a chance."

'Change Your World' seems like an apt title for a woman who believes that experiencing the presence of Jesus can change your world but beyond that she is demonstrating what can happen when people pour their love and resources into helping others.