How THE FORGE is Deepening Alex Kendrick’s Relationship With God
By Movieguide® Contributor
Director Alex Kendrick is placing more faith in the Lord than ever while creating his upcoming movie, THE FORGE, a story about Christian discipleship.
“In Ezekiel chapter 47, there is a very interesting vision that God gives Ezekiel. It starts where a river of light from the Lord is flowing out of the temple,” Kendrick said. “It’s about ankle-deep. He says it’s no problem to cross the river and come to the other side. [Ezekiel] goes further down the river and it gets up to knee-deep, later waist-deep. He can still cross, but you gotta keep your footing, be a little more careful because the current’s coming.”
“Later down the river, he gets where it’s so deep he can’t touch the bottom,’ Kendrick continued. “He says, ‘You cannot cross. You’ve got to go with the flow of the river if you’re gonna get in.’ I am mindful that in my spiritual life, I have been ankle-deep with the Lord in my faith, trying to follow what the Lord’s doing, but just ankle-deep. ‘Lord, I can tell you’re moving. I want to be with what you’re moving,’ but honestly, I’m relying heavily on my own logic and control. It’s just ankle-deep.”
“Later, the Lord [has] called me waist-deep. ‘I’m a little nervous now it’s waist-deep. My feet are still touching the bottom of the river as I’m crossing and getting down into the flow, but the current is now stronger,’” Kendrick added. “The Lord’s taking me deeper. He’s teaching more things, sometimes through trials…but I still feel like, ‘Okay, I’m not out of wits yet.’”
With THE FORGE, Kendrick is going deeper than ever and allowing himself to enter the river at the spot where he has to rely on the current to carry him rather than crossing by his own strength.
“I want to go deeper with the Lord, I want to go deeper in my faith. Eventually, God’s going to get me where I can’t touch the bottom anymore and all I can do is trust in Him,” Kendrick explained. “In other words, I’m completely in his hands. I’m asking God to take me deeper over the course of this movie.”
THE FORGE tells the story of Isaiah Wright, a young man a year out of high school who has no plans for his life. His mother introduces him to a successful businessman who challenges him to take his life seriously while walking him down a path toward the Lord. The movie is set to come to theaters this August.
“We were already inspired with a powerful storyline, but the entire movie vaulted up when we realized it beautifully fit alongside our favorite War Room characters,” said Stephen Kendrick. Alex Kendrick added, “We’ve thought outside the box and did some things we’ve never done before with THE FORGE and can’t wait to see how audiences react to it and these themes of mentorship and second chances.”
The Kendrick brothers’ previous projects include WAR ROOM, COURAGOUS and OVERCOMER, for which they have won multiple Teddy Bear Awards®.
Movieguide® previously reported:
THE FORGE explores how having strong leaders can make an incredible impact. While this is true for all areas of life, it is especially true for faith, where having somebody to shepherd you through can be the difference between whether or not you form a relationship with Christ.
“[THE FORGE] is family-friendly, but it is intense and exciting. In some different places, it is an emotional roller coaster. There’s some funny humor that’s in the movie, but most importantly, it’s this call to discipleship—that we need to get busy about leading people into an abiding surrendered walk with Jesus because that’s the greatest thing in the world,” said Stephen Kendrick.
“We believe the Lord is going to stir up this focus in the body of Christ, and so we’re very grateful to have worked on a movie like this,” Alex Kendrick added. “It was challenging for us but edifying for the body of Christ because we need to be salt and light like never before.”
- Content: +1Share:
- Content: +1