Chris Sligh: Praising God to the Last Note

GREENVILLE, S.C. - Chris Sligh is enjoying some down time these days after the consuming frenzy of the American Idol competition.

As he waits for this summer's Idol tour, he's fixed his eyes on a higher calling.

"I feel like my calling, my mission field is to reach people through my music," Sligh said. "Praising God is the thing we're supposed to do all the time. I think that's the important thing to me is that worship is a lifestyle, worship is not the kind of music you do."

Singing in front of some 30 million viewers each week made him a household name, but for Sligh, the experience was about much more than music.

"I got to share my faith with every single one of those contestants," said Sligh. "God's word does not return void. I think what we should do as Christians is deal with relationships and evangelize through relationships and show people the love of Christ and so that's what I tried to do through the whole competition."

Chris learned that love at an early age. He grew up the son of missionary parents in Wiesbaden, Germany.

But it was in his early 20s when his faith came alive.

Sligh said, "It was just one of those things where I think I realized all the things the world had to offer just weren't the same - weren't as good as what Christ had to offer."

It is Christ's offer of unconditional love that Sligh hopes to share through his music.

This multi-talented artist doesn't just sing, he also plays the guitar, and the bass, as well as the keyboard and even writes his own music.

To this day, he's written hundreds of songs such as the communion song he wrote for Seacoast Church Greenville where he leads worship on Sunday mornings.

When he's not playing at church, he's playing with his band Half Past Forever.

Chris knows some might see him as "kind-of-a-big-deal" now. But despite the media hype, he tries to stay humble.

"You cant buy into the hype and so I laugh about it. It's just funny to me - some chubby kid from South Carolina - that people want to take a picture with me. Are you really gonna put that anywhere? Like seriously." Sligh chuckles.

All jokes aside, one thing Sligh is serious about is his love for God and his love for people.

He said, "I want people to know that I love people and that's the most important thing - more important than any song I write, any show I play - people are the most important thing."

He continued, "I love to tell people He is completely love because to take someone like me and love me in spite of my mistakes - that I'm deserving of that - that's what people should focus on and finding out who God is."

Sligh says he can see God's hand helping him make it as far as he did and he'll never regret his American Idol experience - even up until his last note.