Under the influence of GOD, My parents, U2 (Unforgetable Fire+), Sigur Ros!, the 1960's (Motown, Beach Boys, the British Invasion), Bob Marley, ColdPlay, Switchfoot, Delirious!, 311, SEAL, Sting, Alanis, Chicago, dcTalk, Michael W Smith, Jack Johnson, Oasis, Elvis, Mozart. The Bible, Rob Bell, Brian McLaren, Frank Peretti, JRR Tolkein, Donald Miller, the outcome of Pittsburgh Steeler games, Mayfield Moose Tracks, blue skies and sunshine, days over 80 degrees, Palm trees and the ocean.
Discography
Whispered and Shouted (2007)
"I feel closest to God whenever I'm leading people in worship, when I can step away from the microphone and it appears that a sea of people are singing to God from the bottom of their hearts and the top of their lungs." -- Aaron Shust
Crafting songs that make this happen was the goal with Whispered and Shouted, the follow-up album to Aaron Shust's chart-topping debut Anything Worth Saying. A life-long churchgoer Shust grew up in Pittsburgh, where he started playing piano at 7. As a teenager Aaron learned to play the guitar and was influenced by the sounds of the sixties and Mowtown. Attending Toccoa Falls College, Shust studied music theory, developed an aptitude for the likes of Back and Mozart, and soaked in the sounds of more recent masters like his favorite band U2. These contemporary influences come to bear on Whispered and Shouted It's an exploration of new musical territory for what is at its heart another praise and worship album from this exciting newcomer. This record will make you want to sing along whether you are standing in church or riding in your car.
Anything Worth Saying (2006)
The debut release from Aaron Shust! Features the number 1 hit: My Savior My God. This CD is what PRAISE music is all about! The phenomenal debut of the singer-songwriter Aaron Shust is the most amazing CD of the year. It will lift you up. It will touch your heart. You will shout the lyrics as you praise!
One short year ago, Aaron Shust sat excitedly in the crowd at his first Dove Awards to enjoy performances by many of the artists he had long admired. Today, just twelve months later, he's returning to take the stage himself at his second Dove Awards show, carrying an armload of nominations that have followed his own smash hit single, "My Savior, My God." Aaron's debut release, Anything Worth Saying, sold over 140,000 copies in the last year while "My Savior, My God" was downloaded over 85,000 times on iTunes and maintained the #1 spot on the Web site's "Inspirational" Chart for more than three months. With more radio airplay than any other song in 2006, "My Savior, My God" topped several radio charts and was named the #1 Song of the Year across multiple formats. Even as everything was changing due to his overnight success, Aaron set to work on his anticipated sophomore release, Whispered and Shouted. Though the songwriting process was sometimes challenging amid a whirlwind of media interviews, tour dates, and meet-and-greets, Aaron remained focused on writing songs that lead people to worship Christ more deeply.
"Every time you go into the studio, you wonder if the songs you bring to the table are going to be able to speak to people's hearts and minds," Aaron says of Whispered and Shouted. "It's my offering to God, and I believe that He's pleased with it, and in the end, that's the only thing that's important." It's easy for Aaron to keep that kind of perspective. He's still a new enough name on the music scene to confuse some fans. "The other night, I got introduced as 'Aaron Shoosh,'" he laughs. Touring with multi-Platinum artist MercyMe, Aaron has even had fans mistake him for a member of that mega-group. "By default, the music business is an industry that fosters 'celebrity,'" he says. "Sometimes, Satan will whisper in my ear that I'm important, and that's so different from when the Spirit tells me that I'm valued. If I ever start to believe the wrong thing, God reminds me, 'Hey, I'm the Famous One, not you.'"
After serving for five years as a worship leader at Perimeter Church in Atlanta, Georgia, Aaron is now humbled to serve a much larger congregation. As he first began to tour nationally, it was difficult for him to create the intimate environment he longed for at his concerts. "Rather than being able to lead the crowd, I had to think of it as demonstrating the songs, teaching them so that listeners could use them to worship God in their own way," Aaron recalls. "Now, people are becoming familiar with my songs, and that can change a concert into a corporate worship experience where the crowd can sing along, rather than just being entertained." Throughout the overwhelming changes he's experienced over the last few months, Aaron has continued to be awed by God's kingship and mercy over all of his life, and the songs on Whispered and Shouted are a testament to that.
The album's title was drawn from the song "Can't Hide from Your Love," which is loosely based on Romans 1:20. "Take a look at creation," Aaron says. "God reveals his existence and divinity so much that we have no excuse for not believing in Him. He whispers in the wind and shouts in the waves that He loves us and hears us."
To bring the new CD to life, Aaron remained loyal to the production team that crafted his first project. Working in Atlanta with producer Dan Hannon allowed him to stay close to home, and spend more time with his wife and newborn son, Danielyet another change God brought into Aaron's life last year.
Aaron also revisited one of the songs from his first album. The title for Anything Worth Saying came from a short chorus at the opening of that album dubbed "Give Me Words to Speak." Aaron finished the song - born out of an episode of writer's block - for Whispered and Shouted, and it's now a favorite of his. "That day, I couldn't find any words of inspiration," he recalls. "I sort of threw my hands up in the air and asked God, Give me words to speak, because I can't think of anything worth saying. I felt that, somehow, God was responding, "Well, Aaron, write about that."
Although that song seemed to simply flow from his prayer to paper, songwriting usually takes him months of wrestling with lyrics and notes. Nonetheless, it's a process that he enjoys immensely. "Writing requires a time of rest," he shares. "I always feel like I've accomplished something good when a tour ends or an album is recorded, but it's exhausting. After I write a song, I feel relaxed and rejuvenated."
That sentiment is illustrated best in "Create Again," a cornerstone of the new album. "I don't know how anyone who has ever flown in an airplane can look at all the amazing sites of nature and not believe in a Divine Creator," he explains. "It blows my mind that, out of all of the amazing natural wonders I can see from 40,000 feet, God chose humans to be the monument that points to His worth and His glory more than anything else. My prayer in this song is directed to the Creator of the Universe, acknowledging all that He has done, and then asking that He would create again, but this time, in me.
That realization is more important now than ever for Aaron, as he begins to deal with the trappings of fame - like the first time he was recognized by a fan on the street. "It was surreal," he admits. "I had stopped at a mall in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, traveling to a tour date, and I ran into a Verizon store to get my phone repaired. The salesperson pulled up my account, smiled, and said, 'I thought so.'"
Aaron worried that something had gone awry with his phone plan until the man pulled out his own cell phone and hit a button to play his ringtone "My Savior, My God." Life may continue to be a blur of change for Aaron Shust, but he knows that God is still with him in the midst of the melee. With more laurels already under his belt than many artists assemble in a career, Aaron's just smiling and enjoying the music.
CONCERT -
Cornerstone University / Fieldhouse - Grand Rapids, MI
Sep 13, 2008 - 7:00 PM
CONFERENCE -
Peninsula-Delaware UMC Conference - Ocean City, MD
Jan 11, 2009 - 7:00 PM
Blog
Integrity
7/14/2008 - 9:38 PM
Happy Bastille Day
I've heard integrity described as consistency in one's actions, regardless of circumstance. I'm still working on that. This is an embarrassing blog to write: not proud of it. But it's a good lesson I believe.
Yesterda...
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Congratulations Aaron...
7/08/2008 - 3:18 PM
'Give Me Words To Speak', from Aaron's CD 'Whispered and Shouted', continues to soar having been on "20 the Countdown Magazine" hosted by Jon Rivers for over a year now! Order 'Whispered and Shouted' and let Aaron lead you in praise and worship as o...
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Forgive me if my blogging has turned from a devotional into a log. I've found that people are also interested in what we musicians do from day to day, but I also miss sharing with you some truths that I stumble across in life. I'll try to incor...
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It's Like Lightning...And Thunder...
6/30/2008 - 9:14 PM
KLTY: THE Christian Radio Station of Dallas Texans, puts on an annual Festival called Celebrate Freedom. I've heard that up to 200,000 people have gone to the one day free festival.
Yesterday, not as many people turned out, maybe because it was...
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The alarm went off at 3:45 Friday morning and I loaded up my Jeep and drove through the cool and desolate Tennessee towns on the way to the airport. I met my new road manager Eric there and Scotty who had flown in from Yuma the entire day before a...
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UPDATE - July 16, 2008 - Ms. Mitchell was diagnosed with a "Weak Heart Muscle", translated to a "Second Degree Heart Block #2" on Sunday July 6th, and on Monday July 7th she was admitted to Trinity Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama, for a "Catherization" procedure to rule out blocked arteries. Her "Catherization" procedure came out negative with no blocked arteries. On Monday July 14, she was admitted to Trinity Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama for a "Pacemaker" procedure. She was released on Tuesday July 15th and taken home. She rested well throughout that afternoon and night and is doing better today ! She looks forward to being back on ShoutLife! to converse with all her friends very soon !
Thank you to all of Ms. Mitchell's ShoutLife! Friends for your prayers and support ! Please continue your prayers and blessings. Send Her an E-Mail
O. E. Cruiser Small
Agent-Director-Producer
Lighthouse Coastal Productions Agent-Director-Producer
"He whispers in the wind and shouts in the waves that He loves us and hears us." I love that line you have here as I have experienced the true intimacy of those special seasons when God turns up the amplifier of His presence in our life and we feel Him in every breeze, hear Him in the rustle of the tree leaves -- what a special time to walk with Him so closely!
May God continue to flow through you and bless your ministry of reaching into the depths of the soul and drawing people closer to Jesus!
I love Your ministry! Give me words to speak don't let my spirit sleep cuz I can't think of anything worth saying but i know that I owe u my life. Powerful!!!!!!!! Your worthy of praise & I desire to speak your worth cuz my natural & spirit man isn't ignorant to who you've been & continue to be.I dare not utter praise that is empty and measurable since you're grace, mercy, and love surpass the words that proceed from my mouth. So i give you what is yours in silence. My LIFE!!!!! I love your ministry
What a Fabulous time we had listening to you in Cordova-Tenn this past week ! You are just Amazing and Awesome ! My Agent and I thouroughly enjoyed the concert with you and Jeremey. We are looking forward to Atlanta on Aug 30th ! We play your CD's all the time while we travel around. You are an amazing promoter for Jesus and the unfortunate children of the World! Compassion Int is lucky to have you speaking for them. And the children are just as lucky. May God continute to Bless you and your Family, and please have safe travels as you promote God's word on the road.
May God Bless You Always and in ALL Ways...
"Satisfy us in our earliest youth with your loving-kindness, giving us constant joy to the end of our lives"... Psalms 90:14 (TLB)
"Cast thy burden upon the Lord , and He shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." Psalms 55:22
Check us out! we are a christian band! we just played bamboozle this year with bands like mae the devil wears prada paramore and many more(snoop dogg)! we got new music up on our myspace and purevolume and we will be on itunes soon! God bless!
Hey Aaron,
Even though you're a Steeler fan, I LOVE your music! GO BROWNS! this year's the year for MY team! :) :) Thanks for the inspiration!
God Bless,
Don M.
We are so looking forward to seeing you again - this time we will be in Cordova, Tenn to hear your magnificent voice ! We have missed our time here on ShoutLife!... We have been away to many Events and are now ready to slow down a bit and get reorganized. We have another Event coming up in July in Orlando. And we are slowly getting out new office space organized and completed. Maybe we can catch up a little on ShoutLife now ! We will start writing more in a day or two... I hope your weekend ahead is a sensational one for you !!!
"Satisfy us in our earliest youth with your loving-kindness, giving us constant joy to the end of our lives"... Psalms 90:14 (TLB)
"Cast thy burden upon the Lord , and He shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." Psalms 55:22
SONGS, AND WHERE DO THEY COME FROM? Monday, June 9, 2008 - 8:00 AM
I LOVE TO SING, I LOVE TO WRITE (LIKE YOU DON'T KNOW THAT!!) lol......
I TRY REAL HARD TO KEEP IT SHORT, BUT I END UP LONG! OH WELL, WHAT WOMAN DOESN'T LIKE TO TALK?
I LOVE TO WALK DOWN MEMORY ROAD WITH THE LORD AND LOOK TO WHERE HE BROUGHT ME FROM. THE BLESSINGS HAVE BEEN UNMEASUREABLE AND TRIALS, YEP, I'VE HAD A FEW, MOUNTAINS AND VALLEYS, BUT ALL IN ALL, IT IS A ROAD I HAVE LOVED TO WALK. I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO THE REST OF THE JOURNEY TOO!! I LOVE LIVING THIS LIFE, "TO LIVE IS CHRIST"
MOST ALL OF OUR JOURNEY WILL END UP SOMEWHERE,(I MEAN IN THIS LIFE) EITHER OUT OF OUR MOUTH VERBALLY, WRITTEN DOWN ON PAPER, PAINTED ON A CANVAS, BUT FOR ALL OF US, LIVED OUT BEFORE OTHERS...
ONE OF MY MOST FAVORITE SONGS THE LORD ALLOWED ME TO PEN WAS "THE NEW SONG OF PRAISE." LITTLE DID I KNOW THAT HE WOULD USE THAT SONG, TUCKED AWAY IN A PIANO BENCH FOR A FEW YEARS, ONLY TO BE BROUGHT OUT AND SANG MANY TIMES OVER. AIRED ON A RADIO STATION FOR 25 YEARS EVERY SUNDAY MORNING. JUST A LITTLE SONG, BUT WHEN HE GIVES IT, IT IS HIS, AND IT IS POWERFUL AND IT IS TO BE SHARED IN HIS TIME... (BART KNOWS SOMETHING ABOUT THAT, HUH!!! FREE TO FLY, BORN OUT OF EXPERIENCE....FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS......)
SINGING THE SONG ONE DAY, I HAD TO STOP AND JUST THINK ABOUT WHAT I WAS SINGING. IT WAS MY LIFE.
I REMEMBER THE DAY HE POURED THAT LITTLE SONG THRU ME. STANDING AT THE KITCHEN SINK, MY HEART WAS FULL OF LOVE AND GRATITUDE FOR WHAT THE LORD HAD DONE FOR ME, I JUST STARTED PRAISING HIM AND THANKING HIM AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, HERE COMES THIS SONG. USUALLY WHEN THE HOLY SPIRIT BEGINS TO GIVE SOMETHING LIKE THAT, IT IS FAST AND ALMOST OVER WHEN I REALIZE, "HEY, THAT'S HIM, SHARING WITH ME SOMETHING I NEED TO HEAR!!! RUN AND WRITE IT DOWN!" (AND YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT JOURNALING. MANY YEARS ON DOWN THE ROAD, IT IS SO NEAT TO BE ABLE TO REFLECT ON ALL THE BLESSINGS IN YOUR LIFE. SOMETIMES, THE OLDER WE GET THE MEMORIES GET DIM. BUT WRITTEN, YOU CAN ALWAYS LOOK BACK. THEY ARE TREASURES IN INK!
ANYWAY, THE SONG!
MY FAVORITE SCRIPTURE IS PSALMS 40:3. EVERYTIME I SEE OR HEAR THAT VERSE I WANT TO STAND UP AND YELL, "THAT'S MINE" "HE WROTE THAT FOR ME." (AND I'M SURE COUNTLESS OTHERS TOO :) IT IS WHERE I WAS THOUGH. GOING DOWN A PATH NOT BLESSED BY MY FATHER. THE SONG WASN'T HIS. NEITHER WAS THE LIFE. BUT THAT WAS ALL FIXING TO CHANGE.
"OH, A NEW SONG OF PRAISE HE HAS PUT IN MY HEART"
see, the song has to start in the heart. My heart was cold, not yet warmed by the Spirit of the living God. I was lost, doing my own thing, until that day kneeling in my living room. Jesus found me. He had been searching for me. Praise the Lord!
TO THE ANCIENT OF DAYS, I'LL NEVER DEPART....(I had come face to face with the one who created me for His use and it did something to my whole being. He bought me heart and soul! I remember getting up from the floor and I felt as white as snow, clean as clean could ever be. I felt like you could see clear thru me. And loved? I never wanted to leave that spot, just basking in His goodness and peace)
I WILL LIFT UP HIS NAME, AND I'LL WALK IN HIS WAYS....
I had struggled with finding my identity. What was His plan for my life? When HE found me, all I wanted to do was lift my hands and thank Him, I wanted my walk to be His walk, my life was His life. Jesus was all I wanted to talk about. I was totally awed by the presence that met me in that living room.
I SOUGHT THE LORD AND HE HEARD MY CRY, DELIVERED ME FROM FEARS AND HE NOW LIVES INSIDE.....
All my life I had struggled with fear. It had gripped my life. Many times I would ask mother why am I so afraid? Sickness at a early age, knowing I had been given just weeks to live maybe had something to do with that. She, knowing how God had reached into my life, was very protective of my comings and goings. I remember the first time I was asked to go inside a prison and minister...My, my! That had to be the Lord. I was more or less afraid of my shadow. I didn't like traveling alone or after dark. I was crippled with fear. But I knew after praying about that, the prison was a door the Lord was opening and I needed to trust Him and walk thru it. Well, for 14 years we traveled and ministered behind prison walls and I dare say, the blessings we received would take years to tell you about. My fear was gone, I had been delivered. And day by day, year by year, I have conquered many of the fears that crippled me for so many years. (I am still working on tornadoes though) lol....
A spirit of fear is more than just being afraid... It is torment from the pit of hell. Jesus came to deliver you from that. The word says, "God didn't give us a spirit of fear, but of love, joy and a sound mind." I am free today. He says to call upon Him and He will show you great and wonderful things. I was and still am today being molded! I stay on the potter's wheel. He has His hands inside my very being, my heart of hearts, molding and shaping me into the vessel He has destined me to become.... I am still a work in progress.
And because of that...
I'LL EXALT HIS NAME AND I'LL THANK HIM EACH DAY, FOR THIS SONG OF PRAISE!
I am reminded in that last sentence about 10 lepers that the Lord touched. ONly one came back to thank him. Daily, I cannot tell the Lord how thankful I am for the intervention in my life. Giving me a clean slate, pouring His forgiveness in me, placing in me the desire to praise His name and to share that with others. Giving me a new song to sing. I thank Him for the call! His name is to be exalted over all the earth and He uses us, His children to proclaim the good news!!!! Living our life for Him is a way of saying "thank you Lord, for saving my soul, thank you Lord for making me whole, thank you Lord, for giving to me. Life so abundant, so rich and so free!!!
THE VERSES CONTINUE.
OUT OF THE PIT (because that is where He finds us all) ONE DAY I CRIED,
UNTO THE LORD THAT WAS CRUCIFIED, (He went to the cross and would have if I had been the only one, but thank God, He died for all and to as many as receive Him, to them He gives power)
I CRIED OUT, LORD, FORGIVE MY SIN, BRING PEACE WITHIN (he says whosoever shall call upon His name shall not be ashamed....He will give you His peace, the peace that passes understanding.
AND IN A VERY STILL SMALL VOICE, I HEARD, "MY CHILD, YOU ARE MY CHOICE" (did you hear that, He chose you! You didn't choose Him!)
COME ENTER IN TO ALL OF THE JOYS THAT I GIVE... (it is truly joy unspeakable and full of glory)
VERSE 2
NOW THIS NEW SONG OF PRAISE HAS BECOME MY WAY(His ways are not my ways, neither my thoughts His thoughts, I change my ways and my thoughts to conform to Him. As we grow in Him, we become more like Him. We take on His characteristics. Halleluah....
OF LIVING MY LIFE FROM DAY TO DAY (He burys the old and wraps you in the new life. It's a new way of living) Now my days are lived by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.
THAT OTHERS MAY COME TO KNOW THE ONE THAT I LOVE SO...
(what He has done in you, is for you to give away, not keep. We are to share this marvelous encounter with others so they can come to know that wonderful shepherd!) always be ready to share the hope that lies within you. Pray that the Holy Spirit will give you the right words to share with someone hurting, someone that is lonely, someone that is living where you were delivered from.
CAUSE LIVING FOR HIM IS THE ONLY WAY TO BRING LIFE TO A WORLD THAT IS DYING EACH DAY...
(and truly many, many lives are hanging in the balances. People searching, wandering around looking for something to feel the void in their lives, not realizing it is Jesus.. *the old saying of 'you may be the only Bible some people read is so true.' That is why we need to be living our faith, speaking our faith, loving and praying for others to come into the knowledge of the truth. Praying that the Holy Spirit will draw and woo them into the kingdom as we go about sharing the gospel) what a commission!
SO LET ME WALK AND SHOW FORTH THIS PRAISE THAT'S IN MY HEART!! (It is a song that can not only be heard but SEEN!!! PSALMS 40:3 "For it's out of the abundance of the heart, what is residing in your heart, if what comes out your mouth!"
OH A NEW SONG OF PRAISE
HE HAS PUT IN MY HEART
TO THE ANCIENT OF DAYS
I'LL NEVER DEPART
I WILL LIFT UP HIS NAME
AND I'LL WALK IN HIS WAYS
I SOUGHT THE LORD AND HE HEARD MY CRY
DELIVERED ME FROM FEARS AND HE NOW LIVES INSIDE
I'LL EXALT HIS NAME AND I'LL THANK HIM EACH DAY
FOR THIS SONG OF PRAISE!!!!!
Look at what you are writing, what you are speaking...It is coming from the very center of your heart. The redeemed part of you. The real you.....He is giving you a message to share with the world. His song, His message... So sing it, write it, walk it, live it!!!!
well, I'm off to work this rainy Monday, but I'm singing as I go... :) blessings, tisha
NOTE: THE SONG IN IT'S ENTIRETY IS THE FIRST ON THE SOUNDCLIP...TAKE A LISTEN AND SING THE SONG WITH ME, BECAUSE HE HAS GIVEN YOU A NEW SONG OF PRAISE TOO.
I DON'T SHARE MY 2 CENTS EITHER BETWEEN THE LINES!!! HA. AND THAT IS SO HARD FOR ME....LOL...... ISN'T SERVING JESUS GREAT???
