Did you attend the Nativity Pageant of Knoxville? If you did, you heard the remarkable voice of Scott Chism as a soloist during the event. Chism was born and raised in Cleveland, Tennessee, where he lived until he says “God called to the new adventure in 2021 of being a husband to a wonderful wife and a bonus dad to two amazing children.” Now living in a new town where he still needs GPS to navigate, Scott is learning to trust that God’s plans are far better than his own.

Over the past few years Scott has seen those divine fingerprints are over all parts of his life through both the good and the bad times, mainly working in Scott’s life through music.

Scott has always had a love for music, not necessarily a love for performing. He was blessed with parents who also love music and it was his parents who insisted he participate in the children’s choir at church even though his lack of interest resulted in the director approaching his mother to inform her that Scott was tone deaf.

His mom still laughs at the memory because she knew that Scott could sing better than he was letting on. His parents insisted on his joining the choir in spite of his alleged tone deafness where he soon learned to love it.

By high school Scott began auditioning for solos. Overcoming the fear of singing in public was a big challenge and he was so nervous the first time he sang a solo, that he neglected to tell his family. They did not find out until he started singing.

Once he found the courage to start singing solos, Scott quickly learned that the audience was nothing to fear. They were not there to watch him mess up but to enjoy the music and the message that it conveyed. Growing up, his music director challenged Scott to think about the meaning behind the words he was singing rather than just repeating the words on the page. As he has matured and grown in his musical skill, Scott has learned to believe it truly is the message that matters.

Once it finally clicked, music became much more powerful to him. Now as he sings, he is often brought to tears thinking about the truth behind the words.

At times in his life, Scott has felt like an outsider, particularly having difficulty finding his spiritual grounding through a church. He did not feel that he had found his place until he was close to 30-years-old. He reflects, “It was then that God helped me see that his church had been his home all along. He started to embrace it as a place to belong and find lifelong friends, particularly in the choir.”

He loves his new home town and is still connecting to people through music with events like the Nativity Pageant of Knoxville and recently helping to lead worship at his new church home, Nehemiah Church. His future plans are in flux, with God placing some exciting opportunities before him and his family, but he is continuing to grow in trusting the Lord and taking things one day at a time.

Crystal Kelly is a feature writer for KnoxTNToday.