Courageous

BY G. P. Galle

In 2003 a few Baptists ministers in the tiny town of Albany, Georgia decided to make a movie.  There was no budget. All the actors were volunteer. The cameras weren’t fancy. Excellent lighting and sound? Forget it. This movie was called Flywheel. Their Church got it released in one theater. 

And it sold out for 6 weeks.  

Two movies would follow. The first, produced with all church volunteers save a cinematographer, would shock the box office with $10 million in ticket sales. The second film, Fireproof, would also blow people away making $33 million. Both have sold hundreds of millions in DVDs. 

But the biggest part of these films is not the box office. 

The biggest thing are the lives being changed. These films are not merely entertainment. They are ministry. They are evangelism. They bring people to Christ. They have been proven to rejuvenate lives...and on September 30th, the biggest film yet, Courageous, comes to theaters. 

Courageous centers around one of the most important and lacking components to our culture: fathers. The film is a call to action: Where are you men?! Alex Kendrick, the lead actor of the film cries in one film scene. Apparently they are answering. In droves. Churches are buying out theaters all over the country. I know, as I went on behalf of my mens group Men of St. Joseph, to sponsor a theater. We couldn’t get the time we wanted, as both theaters were already bought out by other church groups. We were actually number 6 of churches that bought theaters. Awesome.

Some Hollywood executives would ask: what in the heck? Why is this working? 

It’s a simple answer, though business people have a hard time understanding. It is the prayer. These films have no major actors. No big producers. And none of the smut everyone says you have to have. Nope. They have prayer. They have Jesus. And Jesus is showing up for this once little church out of Albany, Georgia.

Coming September 30th, Courageous will go to wide release. Don’t miss it. 

About GP Galle G.P. Galle, Jr. has spent over 10 years studying the intersection of faith, politics, and pop culture. He is a writer and producer, previous works including A Dream Worth Living a culture of live musical, and vivace, a Christian Art extravaganza. He has a law degree from the University of Alabama Law School, and graduate magna cum laude from Auburn University.