Liberty alumnus, pastor regains voice to share his faith through song

When Liberty University alumnus Glen Shelton (’89) lost his voice from a medical condition in 1998, he thought he would never sing or teach again. But after God miraculously healed him, Shelton used the experience to start writing and singing Christian songs, eventually leading him to sign a record deal with a Nashville label. Since then, he has shared his story with thousands.

Shelton came to Liberty in 1984 to pursue a B.S. in Health and Physical Education. As a Christian, Shelton wanted to attend a school that integrated a strong biblical worldview in its curriculum.

“Coming to Liberty was just a no-brainer for me being the type of person I am,” he said. “It was one of the best decisions I ever made.”

Shelton joined Liberty’s football team as a wide receiver and kicker. He said the highlight of his collegiate football career was rooming with teammates Fred Banks and Richard Shelton when traveling to games. Both later played in the NFL.

While Shelton said he valued the education and extracurriculars at Liberty, the university also molded him through the example set by his professors.

“I got a whole lot more than a great education at Liberty. Liberty doesn’t just educate people. They, as (Liberty founder) Jerry Falwell Sr. said, Train Champions for Christ,” Shelton said. “The professors I had treated me — and all the students — like we were really important. They didn’t just treat us like a number; they were all incredible teachers!”

After graduating in 1989 and staying local to Lynchburg, Shelton became a full-time public school teacher for health and physical education. While he always enjoyed music, his gift and passion for singing grew in 1991, and he started performing at local events.

But in 1998, Shelton lost his voice, and the cause was a medical mystery for a long time.

“The diagnosis was everything from severe allergies to cancer,” Shelton said. “The doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong, so I went to a series of specialists, and they could not figure it out either.”

Shelton was unable to sing or teach for months. Eventually, he visited a medical voice clinic in Nashville, and the doctors told him he had a massive hemorrhage (a polyp) on both vocal cords. They could not guarantee a successful surgery or that his voice would completely return, but they believed they could help him.

Shelton prayed for healing before undergoing surgery, and miraculously, God guided the surgeon’s hands and healed Shelton’s vocal cords completely. Shelton went back to singing and teaching, and he started focusing his songs on Christian themes so he could give thanks to God and share his desire to fulfill the Great Commission.

“(Before I lost my voice) I didn’t sing songs that were contradictory to my faith, but I’m really more of a country singer, as far as my style,” he said. “But after (I lost my voice), I realized, instead of just avoiding the bad songs, I needed to be assertive in choosing the best songs I could sing to make a difference in the people’s lives at my concerts.”

Shelton became serious about sharing his faith, and he started performing worship nights at churches. He became involved in youth ministry and later pastored a church.

In 2014, he founded and became the lead pastor of Christ Community Church in Amherst, VA. He still taught health and physical education full time and eventually taught Bible at Christian schools as well.

In 2022, Shelton signed with Jordash Records, a record label in Nashville, Tenn. Two singles, “Before You” and “I’m All In,” landed on the Top 50 National Country Music Row Chart. He released his first album, “Before You,” earlier this year.

Shelton has recorded with various band players who have worked with major music artists like Taylor Swift, Tim McGraw, Jonas Brothers, Willie Nelson, Lionel Richie, and more. His radio releases are available on most streaming services, including Spotify, iTunes, and Amazon, and his music has aired on radio stations across the country. He is touring through the rest of the year.

Shelton now performs at many country concerts and events, using them as a platform to share the Gospel with his audiences. He has had the opportunity to share the stage with over 50 well-known National Acts, including Clint Black, Randy Travis, and John Schneider.

“A lot of times venues don’t book Gospel artists, but they will book a country artist. Then I go there, and I sing my Christian country concert, and they get a lot more than what they realized,” he said. “All of that came as a result of me losing my voice. I can witness to hundreds — sometimes thousands — of people all at the same time because I’m the one with the microphone. I share my testimony at every concert that I go to.”

While Shelton stepped down from teaching when he signed the record deal, he still pastors Christ Community Church with the help of the youth pastor and others.

The music video for his most recent release, “Play for Mama,” was filmed at Liberty Christian Academy’s football stadium (with the LCA football team) and Liberty’s Williams Stadium. Shelton noted the timing of the video was perfect, as the LCA Bulldogs had recently won the State Championship and one of the opening lines in his song mentions a team “going all the way to state.” The song and video tell the story of a player who loses his mother and how he turned to Christ through the tragedy.

“The opportunity to film this video with LCA on Liberty Mountain was a dream come true,” Shelton said. “Liberty University prepared me for life and basically fulfilled what Jerry Sr. said: to be trained to be Champions for Christ.”