4:13 Podcast: Behind the Scenes With the Kendrick Brothers on Their Latest Film, The Forge [BONUS]

Alex Kendrick: Follow me as I follow Christ is what Paul said, and we need more men saying that, I am devoted to Jesus. So to nurture our own devotion to Jesus and then invite other people to walk with us is basically what discipleship is. And we want people to be inspired to do that when they see this movie The Forge, and we're praying for lots of fruitfulness and effectiveness when this movie comes out.

Jennifer Rothschild: Oh, oh, oh, you are going to love this inside scoop on the Kendrick Brothers' latest movie, The Forge. Our girl Priscilla, she is in it, and so is Miss Clara from The War Room. So today on The 4:13, go behind the scenes and hear about the cast, the script, the shoot, and the never-ending editing process. These guys, oh, they are fully devoted to Jesus, and what they produce, it draws us to be more devoted to Jesus also. So pop the popcorn, get comfy, and put on those comfy pants and let's go to the movies.

K.C. Wright: (Singing) Let's go to the movies.

Jennifer Rothschild: (Singing) I knew you were going to sing that.

K.C. Wright: (Singing) Let's go see the stars.

Jennifer Rothschild: All right, cue the intro, K.C.

K.C. Wright: Welcome to the 4:13 Podcast, where practical encouragement and biblical wisdom set you up to live the "I Can" life, because you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.

Now, welcome your host, Jennifer Rothschild.

Jennifer Rothschild: Hey, everyone. I am Jennifer and just here to help you be and do more than you feel capable of as you're living the "I Can" life of Philippians 4:13. Me and K.C. here in the closet. Been waiting for you all week. We're so glad you're here for this bonus episode. Isn't it fun when we get to pop into your day, into your ears, into your heart? It's just two friends right here, one topic -- we're talking about a movie today -- and zero stress.

But, you know, we're talking about more than a movie. We're talking about being fully devoted to Jesus. And I love the creativity of these guys who are with us today. K.C. loves to go to the movies.

K.C. Wright: I do.

Jennifer Rothschild: In fact, just before the mic went live, I can't remember what -- you were trying to do something on the computer that you were messing up with, and you quoted a movie line. Do it for them. You said -- it was from Forrest Gump, wasn't it?

K.C. Wright: (In Forrest Gump voice) I may not be a smart man, Jenny -- which is great, because you are --

Jennifer Rothschild: Because I am Jenny.

K.C. Wright: (In Forrest Gump voice) I may not be a smart man, Jenny, but I know what love is.

Jennifer Rothschild: See? Well done. It's kind of a Jimmy Cagney meets Forrest Gump. That was well done. I cannot remember any movie lines.

K.C. Wright: Really?

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah. I can remember Scripture, I can remember so many things, but I cannot remember a movie lines.

K.C. Wright: Oh, goodness.

Jennifer Rothschild: I know. Isn't that weird? But I remember how movies make me feel --

K.C. Wright: Mmm, come on.

Jennifer Rothschild: -- which I think is an important takeaway. And I have noticed that that is one of the powers of the Kendrick Brothers' films, you remember how you feel.

K.C. Wright: Yeah.

Jennifer Rothschild: And wow, well done. Because when truth can enter through the door of your emotion and you can feel the experience, you can remember the truth. So I'm so glad we got to talk to the Kendrick Brothers, which -- before I think I've only gotten to speak to Stephen. I got both of them --

K.C. Wright: Wow.

Jennifer Rothschild: -- Alex and Stephen. And by the way, there is a third one. He's just the guy that kind of keeps these boys in line, I think. He's the finance guy. But these are the two that you're most familiar with, so we're going to talk to Stephen and Alex today. And in case you're not sure about who they are, K.C.'s going to give them a very formal 4:13 introduction.

K.C. Wright: Well, you know these guys. I love all of the Kendrick Brothers movies. They've all touched my life, especially War Room.

Jennifer Rothschild: Oh, right? Amen.

K.C. Wright: I mean, come on.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, and that's why you're going to love this one. But I won't spoil it. Go ahead.

K.C. Wright: They're the creators of the number one box office hit The War Room, among others. Well, this movie we're talking about today is The Forge. It's a faith-filled new movie with emotional themes, old friends, and new twists. You've got to go see it. We've got to support clean, family-friendly, life-changing movies.

So quiet on the set, everybody. We're rolling now with Stephen, Alex, and Jennifer.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, it's always a treat to have the Kendrick Brothers. And I got to say, to have both of you all at once makes this day even better. It's like double good right now. So Alex and Stephen, we really are so glad. You're my favorite filmmakers, I can say honestly --

Stephen Kendrick: Aw.

Alex Kendrick: Aw.

Jennifer Rothschild: -- you really are. And I'm excited we get to talk about your newest film. So it's called The Forge. And I want you to give us kind of the elevator pitch, the inside scoop. Of course, no spoilers, right? We want to be able to get the big aha when we go to the theater. But give us an idea what The Forge is about.

Alex Kendrick: Well, The Forge is about an old -- well, he's an older successful businessman who is a follower of Christ. He is investing in a 19-year-old young man in his community that's looking for a job, and he realizes this 19-year-old really needs a relationship with the Lord. The 19-year-old is being raised by his mother, who does know the Lord and is praying for him, and he's facing what is common in today's culture for a young man. And so as he is mentored by the Christian businessman, we see the Christian businessman eventually lead him to Christ and begin taking him through discipleship. And that is quite the journey for him.

And we learn a lot about discipleship, that it comes at a cost. You know, salvation is free with faith in Jesus Christ, but discipleship, Jesus says, will cost you. And Jesus basically says, If you want to be my disciple, you must deny yourself, take up your cross daily and follow me.

So this young man over the course of this movie, which takes place over a year, he learns what that means. What does it mean to truly devote yourself to Jesus Christ? So by the end of the film, you see this transformation in this young man. And we believe and are praying that the audience watching the movie will leave the theater thinking about if they need to be discipling someone else or need to be discipled. And it's got a very inspirational ending, lots of twists and turns. But the screenings are going so well and we can't wait for the audience to see it.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, you know, I talked to someone yesterday who watched one of the screenings. And I asked her her favorite scene -- which I will not expose, because I just thought, oh, I kind of get the feel now of what you guys are doing. There is just a really cool aha moment she had in the movie. And what I love is you really are telling so many people's story in this one story.

And in a minute I want us to talk more about this discipleship thing. But can I just say, I love the parallel and contrast of salvation being free, but discipleship comes at a cost. We're going to talk about that in a sec. But I want to know if there was any certain inspiration for this story that you all are -- you know, have just done.

Alex Kendrick: You know, when we finished our last film, we started praying, "God, what direction do you want us to go?" and more and more he made it obvious to focus on discipleship. And so Stephen and I got together and we began -- and we already had an understanding to a degree of discipleship, but this movie even helped us understand so much more --

Stephen Kendrick: Yes.

Alex Kendrick: -- of what it truly means to be devoted to Jesus and to make him the highest priority in your life. And so it impacted us making the film, and we're so grateful for that.

You know, the Lord, when he's taking you deeper, when he's still molding your heart, sometimes he stretches you, but he teaches you in that process. You know, it's kind of like a gym teacher in a weight room adding more weight to the barbell, but he knows it's going to make you stronger as you learn to lift it. And so we love that and we're grateful. And it's what the body of Christ truly needs. You know, we need to learn what does it mean to be truly devoted to Jesus.

Jennifer Rothschild: You know, I'm glad you said that, because many people who have followed Christ for years hear the word "discipleship" and they think, yeah, been there, done that. And so the fact that you all made the film and the Lord took you deeper in your understanding about discipleship is very -- that's a real inspiring thought to me.

And one of the things that's also inspiring, I got to say, is that our girl Priscilla is in this movie.

Alex Kendrick: Yes. Yes.

Stephen Kendrick: She's great.

Jennifer Rothschild: So I'm curious, what was it like for you all to kind of dive back into that War Room universe?

Stephen Kendrick: Well, we realized that the message of this movie fit perfectly in with The War Room world. And Alex had already been talking about Priscilla playing the role of the mother, the praying mother of Isaiah, who's the young 19-year-old young man. And so we were already heading in that direction and -- this is Stephen. I actually was watching War Room again. It'd been a while since I'd pulled it out with my family. And Priscilla in War Room as Elizabeth has multiple conversations with her sister Cynthia on the phone, but we never see Cynthia in the movie.

Jennifer Rothschild: Oh, yeah. Yeah.

Stephen Kendrick: And so we started talking about, well, what if they're twins and what if they are -- that we pick up -- and Cynthia is the mother of Isaiah and we let Priscilla play both roles, kind of like Parent Trap, you know, we just do both of these. And so we called her. She was like, "Yes, yes, yes, please," you know. She got all excited. And we wrote the script and it fit perfectly. Because we wanted Miss Clara -- to bring her back one day, and she fit right into The Forge. So people who have seen War Room and love Miss Clara will get to see her on the screen again. And she's bold and funny and, you know, she's fantastic and so...

But you see in War Room this discipleship between Miss Clara and Elizabeth. In The Forge, it picks up and you see an older man pouring into younger men. And The Forge in the movie is a group of men that have all been discipled and now are wanting to disciple others, and so you see them working together to pour into the next generation. And you see them interacting with these young men and challenging them, praying over them, encouraging them, blessing them. And so we show what it looks like for a Paul to bless a Timothy in this movie, because many people have never seen that. And you also see how a praying mama can have a big impact, even if Dad is not in the home.

Alex Kendrick: Yes.

Stephen Kendrick: Because one of the things that I actually like about the testimony of Paul and Timothy in Scripture is that Timothy had a godly mom and grandmother, but not a godly father, and God sent Paul to be that spiritual father into his life. And not only leading him to Christ, but you see even in the letters, in 1 and 2 Timothy, all the way to the end of Paul's life he's continuing to disciple and pour into Timothy. Who is a pastor when you get to 2 Timothy, you know, and he's still loving on him, encouraging him.

And so I think there's a lot of single moms out there who love their sons and are praying, God, please send -- if their dad isn't in the picture or isn't following the Lord, Lord, send a Paul. You know, send someone into his life. And you see that played out in The Forge, and you see the mama's prayers being answered and God working in the process. So it's -- we love it.

Jennifer Rothschild: Wow. It's so inspiring. And, you know, there's so many listening right now who are single mamas, who have prayed, feeling like they're just alone in this thing. And what an inspiration and what an encouragement, not only to the mamas who are longing for that prayer to be answered, but what an encouragement to the men of God. Step up and step into these situations.

Stephen Kendrick: Yes.

Alex Kendrick: Yes.

Jennifer Rothschild: That's what we need as the family. We are family. We are brothers and sisters and we need to do this for and with each other. So good word.

And can I just say, I am a giant Miss Clara fan also, so I'm so happy that Karen Abercrombie is back in The Forge. Okay, guys, here's another question for you. And by the way, I did not know that Priscilla is playing her twin sister That is going to be so cool to see, you guys. I love that. I love it. Way to go, Prissy.

All right. So here's my question. I'm curious about -- your movies, they're very entertaining. Okay? So how do you strike this great balance, because you do it, of the entertainment value with, you know, just showing these deeper spiritual truths? You don't compromise the spiritual truth, but you also don't feel like you're watching a Sunday school film. So how is it that you manage and maintain that balance of entertainment and spiritual depth?

Alex Kendrick: Well, that's a great question. And we actually beg the Lord, would you give us creative ideas, would you give us good humor, would you give us things that people can relate to and laugh at. And we love taking people on the type of journey where there is emotion. You do laugh out loud, you do shed a tear, you do wonder, you know, what's going to happen next, and along with things that are being taught in the film. And so we want that type of journey when we watch a film. But at the end, we want you to feel fulfilled and enriched and not just, well, I saw a bunch of cotton candy and it was -- you know, it tasted sweet, but it's not really good for me, and you walk out of the theater going, I don't know that I'm better. But we want people to be edified when they walk out of the theater. So, yes, we're trying to find that balance, as you said, of both an engaging experience and a story that really draws you in while also trying to edify you. So that is intentionally what we pray for and what we walk toward.

And we also admit -- when we're shooting the film, though we have a script, Stephen and I give a fair amount of freedom to the people that are helping us make the film. So if Priscilla comes up with an idea -- if Priscilla says, you know, I would say this like this instead of this, or this is funnier than this -- you know, we have scenes in a women's salon in this movie where Isaiah's mother works, Priscilla's character Cynthia works, and their interactions are hilarious. So all of their banter, we let them speak into those things. So we had the plot in place -- and the plot didn't change, but in the manner in which things are expressed or presented, if they had a better idea, that's what we go with. And so it was fun doing this -- like a collaboration and pulling in -- because they know the Lord. Our cast knows and is walking with the Lord.

Matter of fact -- I meant to say this earlier -- the title The Forge is connected to the group of men -- it's about seven men that are discipling young men. And our Christian businessman that we follow, who's pouring into our main character, Isaiah, he takes him to The Forge and he meets all these other men. And he's thinking, I've never seen anything like this. I've never seen a group of men doing this. And so they call that group "The Forge." And, of course, a forge is when you make something stronger or form something, a sword, a knife, an arrow, a tool of some sort, with heat and pressure. And so that's the level of accountability and truth. These men say we're going to embrace this in our lives, even if it's hard to go through, and we're going to teach it to the younger generation.

So that group that meets on occasion, Isaiah gets to go in there, and they meet and he joins this group. And when he comes to Christ, he -- they keep each other accountable and edify one another. And that group that they nicknamed "The Forge" is really instrumental in his life. And we did that because we wanted people to see at least an example on the screen and then say, I need to be doing this in my life, we need to be doing this in our church, things like that.

So the whole thing was a collaboration. Even though Stephen and I did write the script, we said, hey, if you got an idea and it works, let's go with it.

Stephen Kendrick: And I just thought of something, Jennifer, I don't think we've ever shared, that I would -- while Alex was talking. There's a verse we have quoted many times in the filmmaking process. It's Psalm 12:6. It says, "The words of the Lord are pure words, as silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times." So when God says something, it's perfect the first time it comes out of his mouth. They're pure. You and I, though, have to purify it seven times on earth when we're dealing with things. And we talk about how the script keeps getting renovated and changed and redone, the edit of the movie. We go through multiple edits of the movie.

Alex Kendrick: We're on the seventh edit, actually.

Stephen Kendrick: Are we really?

Alex Kendrick: That's the one that's in the theaters.

Stephen Kendrick: Ah.

Jennifer Rothschild: Wow.

Stephen Kendrick: Perfect.

Alex Kendrick: I didn't even think about that. But, yeah, we're on the seventh edit.

Stephen Kendrick: But the process, though, is we know going in, with humor -- a lot of times we'll put a whole lot of jokes in, and some of them don't fly. We'll show it to an audience and they're laughing at some stuff, and they won't laugh at other things. But we'll go back and take it out if it's not working.

And then there's times when we'll put all kinds of biblical principles or messages or conversations in the movie and we'll realize these are the most important. And some of these other ones, it's too much syrup on your pancakes, you know, we got to back off from this. But that whole process of purification that we go through really at the scriptwriting process, we're changing things on set, and we're doing in the edit as well, and it's laid out in Scripture, but it -- the movie kind of goes through a forge in a sense.

Alex Kendrick: Yeah.

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah, it sounds like it.

Stephen Kendrick: It goes through the fire multiple times. And God purifies us with His Word. And as we are receiving His Word -- and he'll take us through the fire, Scripture communicates, and he'll discipline his children because he delights and loves in us. But he will not abandon us in it. And I heard -- our pastor used to say, "God keeps his eye on the clock and his hand on the temperature gauge." He knows exactly how long that we need to be in the kiln or in the fire before he pulls us out so that we'll ultimately look like Jesus.

Jennifer Rothschild: Amen.

Alex Kendrick: Hey, Jennifer, I need to say this. Stephen and I quote you. You were --

Stephen Kendrick: Yes, we do.

Alex Kendrick: Yeah, we --

Stephen Kendrick: We quote Jennifer.

Jennifer Rothschild: Oh, my gosh.

Alex Kendrick: We got to spend time with you when we did that Fathom event a few years ago. And Stephen and I have often quoted -- Jennifer Rothschild said -- when you were talking about what you're going through in this life and what's to come, that Jennifer said, "Earth is short and heaven is long."

Stephen Kendrick: Yes.

Alex Kendrick: And so keep your eyes on what's coming, don't put all your focus on this earthly life. Jesus said, you know, set your treasures in heaven, and that is the wiser thing to focus on. And Stephen and I have even both said the first thing Jennifer will see is what you would want to see the most --

Jennifer Rothschild: Yes. Right?

Stephen Kendrick: The face of Jesus.

Alex Kendrick: Oh, yeah.

Jennifer Rothschild: The face of -- nothing else.

Alex Kendrick: Yeah, so we have quoted you a number of times.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, okay. I just got to say --

Stephen Kendrick: We're fans. We're fans.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, right back at you. Here's what I love about that too, you guys. I am just publishing a Bible study on heaven that comes out in January of '25 because of that reality, earth is short, heaven is long, so we want to know our forever home.

But can I also say this about the process. And I hope that -- because I know we've got some perfectionists listening right now. And perfectionists tend to be impatient with the process. And so what you just described shows why we have need for endurance, why we persevere, because of the perfecting process of what God is doing in us, through us, so that what we produce for his glory will reflect his image. And that's a beautiful picture.

So to those of you out there who are impatient procrastinators or impatient perfectionists, or whatever it is you do because you just want it to be perfect, just know it's going to take some time for it to become what God wants it to be. And that's what we want it to be also.

Stephen Kendrick: That's right.

Alex Kendrick: Absolutely.

Jennifer Rothschild: So I'm glad you shared that, because that's such a good example for all of us. Not that I know anything about being a perfectionist. I'm just talking to all those other people out there.

Alex Kendrick: Right.

Stephen Kendrick: Right. On behalf of a friend.

Jennifer Rothschild: On behalf of a friend. I know a friend. I have a friend.

Okay, here's a question for you, though. And this might be a hard question to answer because I really don't want you to give anything important away. But do you have a favorite scene from the movie? Anything that you were just like, oh, I didn't expect that and I love that?

Alex Kendrick: I honestly have about five favorite scenes. But, you know, people love -- and what we love is seeing legitimate transformation in a character. And so when I see a character that I identify with in some way, and then I see that character go through the type of transformation that I know I need in my own life, that is just very impactful. And so when we see some of those moments where the young man Isaiah, the 19-year-old Isaiah -- and we see him age a year, year and a half in the movie. But when we see him making some of those difficult but needed choices in his devotion to Jesus, when he says, "Lord, is there anything in my life that I need to get out of the way to make you first?" And so the Lord, you know, kind of prompts him to get rid of some things that are not even necessarily evil, but they shouldn't be as high a priority in his life as they are. And so he learns to move some things out of the way, or at least lower down the priority list, and elevate his time with the Lord and elevate his desire to honor the Lord, and we see the difference that makes in his life.

And that's what the Lord has taught me a number of times, and continues to take me deeper in that regard, Alex, you know, your priority list for your life can be seen by other people. What is most important to you? Then that's also going to be a type of reflection of your walk with God. And so I have to ask myself, Lord, what place do you have in my heart?

So my life verse, 1 Peter 3:15, says, "In your heart set apart Christ as Lord." He's more important than anything. "Always be ready to give an answer for the hope that you have to anyone that asks you, but do this with gentleness and respect." So that's 1 Peter 3:15. And so that verse hit me a long time ago and I realized, man, Alex, you choose your priorities, and you need to choose them wisely. And so the deeper I go with the Lord, the more I realize, man, this even -- and in the movie you see that when he deals with -- well, video games aren't necessarily evil, but if they're too high a priority, that's going to impact everything else. So he realizes some of the things in his life he needs to either get rid of or lower the priority list and elevate the Lord. And so I'm hoping when people watch this movie, they think, I need to be doing the exact same thing.

Jennifer Rothschild: All right, good word. What about you, Stephen? Did you have a favorite?

Stephen Kendrick: Well, I was thinking -- and I'm going to kind of give away something here, if that's okay, but --

Jennifer Rothschild: Sure.

Stephen Kendrick: But in the movie, Priscilla's character Cynthia, the mother, she's been praying for Isaiah for years. And she actually is burdened for him. And you see her gathering at her salon. And it's kind of funny initially, but they're getting after it in prayer. I mean, they're asking the Lord to work in Isaiah's life. Well, what she doesn't know is that Isaiah, as he's being mentored by this older man, Joshua, that Isaiah hears the Gospel. He ends up reading through something that has the Gospel on it, and he's at home in his bedroom and he gives his life to Christ.

And so when she comes home, he walks in and he says, "What have you been doing?" She says, "Well, we were praying." And then he says, "Well, I've been praying too." And she looks over at him like, What? And then he says -- she said, "What were you praying about?" And then he basically says, "I realize I needed Jesus and asked him to forgive me and save me and come into my life." And she -- this is the moment she -- like, totally unexpectedly, and she drops what she's holding, doesn't know what to say, and just walks over and embraces him and starts to cry.

Jennifer Rothschild: Wow.

Stephen Kendrick: And it's just a very sweet moment. When we were watching it in the edit, Priscilla does a fantastic job in that scene --

Alex Kendrick: Yes.

Stephen Kendrick: -- because she has sons that she loves that are in this season of life, you know, and she has a heart for evangelism for the Gospel. And so it's kind of one of those moments where she doesn't really have to act. It's like how would I be responding in this same situation with my sons as they're making decisions for the Lord? But she walks over and embraces her son, because he's just come to know Christ, and she says, "Do you realize how long I've been praying for this?" And it's a very sweet, tender scene. And it's about -- is it midway, Alex, in the movie? Where is that?

Alex Kendrick: Yeah. It's almost halfway through the movie, yeah.

Stephen Kendrick: So anyway, that's just -- every time that scene comes on, I get excited about watching it again because it's so good.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, it gives me chills. And here's the thing. That's not really -- you're not spoiling anything because we kind of were hoping Isaiah would come to Christ. Like, kind of that is a no-brainer.

Stephen Kendrick: They've been praying for him on your podcast since we started.

Jennifer Rothschild: Right? We need the young man to come to Jesus. Okay. Otherwise, yes, it wouldn't be a very hopeful film.

Okay. Speaking of hopeful films -- we are going to have to end here, so I want us to end with some hope. Okay? So this is going to be the last question. Because y'all mentioned early on the power of discipleship. And most people listening know exactly what discipleship is. Some people are intimidated by the word when they know what it is. So I want us -- because this movie illustrates it and just shows us what the reality and the accessibility of it is, I want us to end with you guys just describing what a discipleship relationship really is. Is it formal? Is it informal? What is it? And then how can someone who's listening right now even begin to start that discipleship relationship?

Stephen Kendrick: Yes. So the word disciple means follower. And so back in Jesus' day, a rabbi or teacher would intentionally pick someone and invite them to hang out with them and basically be their apprentice. And it's a step-for-step relationship where you take a step and you model something and then you let them follow and put their footprint in your footprint and step right after you. So it's not just follow my words, it's follow my example also.

So when Jesus was discipling, he didn't just say, "Follow my teaching," he said that -- the pharisees taught things, but they didn't model it. They were hypocrites. But Jesus said, "Follow me." And he said, Come hang out with me, spend time with me, and let me teach you about God, how to walk with God, how to serve God, how to come to know God. And Jesus is God, and so he would invite them to come to know him.

Today, modern day, we've kind of changed what discipleship is. It's now a six-week course on Sunday morning, you know, in a formal environment, and the people teaching a lot of times are not modeling what they're teaching. And so it is very important that pastors preach the Gospel and that we're communicating biblical truth to people. So that's spot on.

But Jesus also had the 12 who were -- the Bible says they were with him. They saw him day in and day out. And so true discipleship is when we invite people -- and we do it in prayer. You know, Jesus prayed all night before he chose his 12 disciples. But we say, Lord, who do you want me to invest in? And so we invite them to coffee, to breakfast, to come over to our house, it could be at work in the break room, wherever it is, and they're hanging out with you. And that's fun. That could be just a great environment. And you not only are saying, How are you doing and how can I pray for you, but you're teaching them to open up their Bible and read it and follow Jesus. He is the ultimate example in all circumstances. But also we're saying, as I'm following Christ, I want to provide an example living in front of you, so it becomes follow me as I follow Christ at the same time.

So I would tell people, please, please, please use The Forge in your church to ignite a passion for discipleship. Because this generation, we've become so digital. You know, Covid now, people are -- their pastor is on YouTube rather than in front of them, you know. And thank God for all the people that are communicating truth online. But I would say we really, really need to show a loving example relationally with people, where we're looking in their eyes, we're talking to them, we're answering their questions. We're praying for them, serving, comforting, loving, and we're saying to them, Follow me as I follow Jesus. And let me show you how I have a quiet time, let me show you how I pray. Let me show you how I share my faith, let me show you how I repent. And we're providing the example that we're talking about that we see in the Scriptures.

K.C. Wright: Take a step, model it, then invite others to follow you as you follow Jesus.

Jennifer Rothschild: Mmm, good. True discipleship, like they said, it's just inviting people into a relationship with you and with Jesus. So pray first, Who is it, Lord, that you want me to invest in? And then invite them. And then do the investing. And you imitate Christ, and they're going to learn to imitate you as you imitate Jesus. That's discipleship right there.

K.C. Wright: And you can get a copy of their devotional, "Devoted to Jesus," even now while you're waiting for the movie to hit theaters. You can simply enter to win it @jennrothschild on Instagram.

And, of course, everything you need will be at the Show Notes at 413podcast.com/Forge, F-o-r-g-e. There we can link you right to where the film is showing in your area so you can get your tickets and bring all your peoples. Yeah.

Jennifer Rothschild: That's right.

K.C. Wright: That's a date night, I'm telling you.

Jennifer Rothschild: Oh, it's a great night. All right. August 23rd is when The Forge releases. So let's fill the theaters. We can. Well, you know what I'm going to say. You can do all things through Christ who gives you strength. So do the thing, my people. I can.

K.C. Wright: I can.

Jennifer Rothschild: And you can.

K.C. Wright: You can.

Jennifer Rothschild: Okay. Even though I can't remember movie lines, I do remember one. And it's the most random one.

K.C. Wright: Yeah.

Jennifer Rothschild: What About Bob, Siggy is this adolescent who's just, you know, obsessed with death and dying. And he's in there with Bob Wiley and he says, "I'm going to die. You're going to die. There's nothing we can do about it. What else is there to be afraid of?" Now, why I can remember that, I do not know. But I remember that.