Crosswalk Talk: Celebrity Christian Interviews

Filmmaker Kevin Downes of Kingdom Story Company explains why the new movie White Bird is a "rush of hope" America needs. "We're doing true-life stories that showcase the power of the gospel, that offer this rush of hope. And so White Bird is exactly that." "White Bird" is a sequel to the movie "Wonder" and tells the story of Julian, who is visited by his grandmother and is transformed by the story of her attempts to escape Nazi-occupied France during World War II. Listen to the entire interview here! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Dallas Jenkins, the creator and director of "The Chosen," is the director of a new movie, "The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever. " Based on a classic children's book, it tells the story of a group of troubled siblings who encounter the true meaning of Christmas. The film will be released in theaters on November 8. Jenkins says the film contains a powerful gospel message: "Jesus came to earth for you."  Listen here to the whole interview!  Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Matthew West has 34 No. 1 songs as an artist and songwriter combined, but he says his primary goal is to spread the gospel. “I don't care about that -- I used to care about that,” he says of success. His prayer, he says, is this: “God, what have You really put me on this earth to do? And that's to make You known and to tell the lost and hurting world that there's a God who hears them when they pray.” West’s next album releases October 4. Listen to the entire conversation here! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

For Alexandra Osteen, growing up in a megachurch and being raised by parents who are recognized around the globe felt, surprisingly, normal. The daughter of Lakewood Church's Joel and Victoria Osteen, Alexandra has made a name for herself in recent years as a worship leader at the Houston congregation, as well as being a powerful voice for Lakewood Music, which released its new album, Oh How Worthy, this month. "They've always just been my parents, and I could brag on them for days on end," Alexandra Osteen told Crosswalk Headlines. "They're great parents, and who they are on stage is who they are at home." Lakewood Church is the fourth largest congregation in the United States, drawing 45,000 attendees each week and millions more tuning into its worship services worldwide on television and online. Alexandra was about 7 when the congregation moved into the former Summit/Compaq Center, the former home of the NBA's Houston Rockets.  "As I've grown up, I've… recognized [that] this is not normal," she said of the church's size. "This is the hand of God that's blessed us and given us this ministry. And we have to steward and do the best that we can with it, and always point to Jesus." Listen to the entire interview here! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

To this day, Coach Joe Kennedy looks back with bewilderment that a simple 30-second post-game prayer sparked a cultural battle and, ultimately, a Supreme Court case. Kennedy won that case, and he also won over many critics. He also inspired countless Christians around the world. Still, Kennedy is amazed that his defiant act—he prayed after being told to stop—changed America's legal landscape.   "This was such a simple thing," Kennedy told Crosswalk Headlines. "[Prayer has] been going on from the beginning of time." He had no interest in stirring controversy, he said, "but God had other plans." Listen to the whole episode here! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Filmmaker and minister DeVon Franklin was a producer of Breakthrough, The Star, Miracles from Heaven and Flamin' Hot and recently signed a Netflix deal to produce a new movie about Ruth and Boaz. Crosswalk Talk recently spoke with him about his career and his thoughts on the future of faith entertainment. The interview took place on the red carpet of The Forge. Listen to the whole interview here! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

The lead singer of the rock band Skillet says he wants the group's music to give hope to an angst-filled younger generation that is bombarded daily with unbiblical messages and desperately needs the "hope we found in Christ." Frontman John Cooper and his bandmates on Nov. 1 will release their next album, Revolution, a 10-track high-octane project that includes counter-cultural messages that have defined the group's music. The single Unpopular encourages fans to oppose the world's insanity. The title track, Revolution, bemoans the world's hopelessness but declares: "I believe that there's time to save us." Another track, Not Afraid, urges fans to "keep the faith" and "never back down." The album, Cooper said, is calling for a revolution "against the sadness, depression, angst, demonic stuff that we are experiencing in our culture every day." "The amount of people suffering from depression and suicidal thoughts and who think that they don't matter is so overwhelming to me. It just breaks my heart," Cooper told Crosswalk Headlines, referencing what he reads on social media and on Skillet's feeds. "That's one of the things I really, really care deeply about, is people that are struggling with suicidal thoughts and mental health -- those kinds of things."  "I believe it's a result of a society who has just thrown God away [and] who has said, 'We don't believe in God. There's nothing but the material world. There's nothing but the way I feel.' And if there is no God, they really find it hard to find a reason to live." Listen to the entire interivew here!   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Jason Sobel was a hard-working young Jewish man living in New York City who believed he knew the intricacies of his faith. But as he acknowledges now, he didn't. At the time, Sobel was an employee at a large recording studio in the Big Apple, surrounded by rock stars and rappers. "I looked at their life, and I said, 'There has to be something more than this,'" Sobel told Crosswalk Headlines. "And I began a spiritual journey. I was going to the synagogue and studying with my traditional rabbi. And I started studying martial arts and Eastern philosophy." Eventually, he found Christianity. Or, as he says, Jesus found him.  "One day, I was meditating and had this crazy spiritual experience. My soul began to leave my body. Next thing I know, I was up in Heaven and standing before this King," Sobel said.  Sobel remembers a "glorious light."  "I felt the power of God pulsate through every part of my body. And I didn't know anything, but I knew that that was Jesus …seated there on that throne, and He told me I was called to serve Him. Next thing I knew, I was back in my body, shaking under the power of Heaven, running around, going, 'I'm called to serve Him.' My mom's like, 'You're called to serve who? We're Jewish, for goodness sake.'" Listen to the whole conversation here! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

The award-winning CCM band renowned for their matching outfits and signature harmonies has channeled their talents into a children's book aimed at teaching kids timeless, eternal truths. CAIN's new book, I'm So Blessed, is a lyrical picture book based on their hit song that reminds children that God loves them in the midst of trials. It climbed to No. 1 on Amazon's list of children's Christian early readers fiction and follows three characters -- Tay-Tay Tangerine, Logo Lemon, and Maddie Melon -- that are based on the group's real-world siblings: Taylor Cain Matz, Logan Cain, and Madison Cain Johnson.  "The concept of trying to teach your kid godly things feels daunting sometimes," Logan Cain told Crosswalk Headlines.  "And so this is an arrow that a parent can put in their bag" to teach "their kids in the way they should go." Listen to their whole conversation here!  Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

The pioneering Christian band who helped popularize modern worship and high-energy praise music is still singing about the love of God as it celebrates its 25th anniversary. Sonicflood, which launched in 1999 and won a Dove Award the following year for Praise and Worship Album of the Year, will embark on its "One Nation Under God" tour this fall. The band will perform well-known hits alongside newer songs in multiple cities. The band performed and popularized some of the most well-known songs within contemporary Christian music, including I Want to Know You, I Could Sing of Your Love, Open the Eyes of My Heart, Cry Holy, and Here I Am to Worship. Lead singer Rick Heil joined the band after leaving another CCM group, Big Tent Revival. Originally formed as a touring band to open for DC Talk, Sonicflood quickly distinguished itself and became a prominent name in the contemporary Christian music scene. "I joined Big Tent, went on the road, and God expanded my understanding of who He was in these different denominations," Heil said. "... I didn't see denominations. I just saw the church as a whole worldwide -- the church. And I had a paradigm shift." Heil learned that he could "put my two loves of music and worship together." "And God uses that to glorify Himself and to change people's hearts. And music is quite an amazing gift as a tool. …Music takes the message right to the heart, you know, right past the brain. …Any way that we can get the message out that God is hope, God is love, needs to be broadcast." Read the full story here!  Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.