Darren Wilson
9 min read ⭑
“Just because I make films and shows that highlight the love of God and have changed so many lives around the world, people automatically think I must have some deep-seated holiness that is different from them. The truth is, like almost everyone, deep down I’m a train wreck. ”
QUESTION #1: ACQUAINT
There's much more to a meal than palate and preference. How does your go-to order at your favorite hometown restaurant reveal the true you behind the web bio?
I grew up in Monroe, Michigan, which is about as typical of a small town as you can get in the Midwest. Our only claim to fame was being the hometown of General George Custer, which, depending on how you look at it, is kind of a dubious thing to be famous for.
Needless to say, southeastern Michigan isn't really a foodie capital, so my culinary experiences were pretty basic. I have a feeling that this very basic beginning of my life has made me far more interested in experiencing new things and new foods than what I'm used to—and probably has also fed into my wanderlust that comes out in my films.
I want to see the world while I'm filming God doing God things, probably because I grew up near blue-collar, no-nonsense Detroit and going to a bar and grill was considered a big-time night out!
QUESTION #2: REVEAL
We’ve all got quirky proclivities and out-of-the way interests, but we tend to hide them. What do you love doing that might surprise (or shock) people?
I am a self-described hobbit. If I had my way, I would be happy to stay home most of the time watching sports, playing the occasional video game (sports games only, hard stop), reading, writing, and developing films and TV shows. I love to travel, but only as a vacation.
What I am not built to do internally is to go to wild, unique, or problematic places around the world to take radical chances and film God in action. I'm not an evangelist, I'm not an extrovert. The only reason this hobbit ever leaves his home to do radical things is because, every once in awhile, Gandalf shows up and compels me to go on an adventure with him. When these adventures on film are done, I'm always happy I said yes to God and my faith continues to grow as a result of them, but I am beyond happy to get back to my little hobbit hole. That is, until Gandalf shows up again.
QUESTION #3: CONFESS
Every superhero has a weakness. Every human too. We're just good at faking it. But who are we kidding? We’re broken and in this thing together. So, what’s your kryptonite and how do you hide it?
You want to know my weaknesses? How much time do you have? I can say with total confidence that I have never struggled with judging others because I am fully aware of my own weaknesses. I take seriously Matthew 7:1-2 when Jesus says, "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
It's always strange to me that, just because I make films and shows that highlight the love of God and have changed so many lives around the world, people automatically think I must have some deep-seated holiness that is different from them. The truth is, like almost everyone, deep down I'm a train wreck. I don't love others very well. I'll almost never pray for someone unless I feel a strong urge from the Lord, and even then, I do it reluctantly. I'm not a healthy eater, nor do I want to be (even though I actually do want to be). People are work for me. I love the Lord intensely, but I also tend to get lazy with Him. This list could go on and on, but I think you get the point.
I'm convinced that, if you are truly honest with yourself and your weaknesses, you'll never judge others again, because you are always aware that no one needs a savior more than you.
Darren Wilson
QUESTION #4: FIRE UP
Tell us about your toil. How are you investing your professional time right now? What’s your obsession? And why should it be ours?
I started my film career asking questions. Does God still do miracles today (Finger of God)? What does God's love actually look like (Furious Love)? What is the nature and character of the Father (Father of Lights)? What is the nature and character of the Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost and Holy Ghost Reborn)?
For 14 years I've observed and wrestled with God. My newest book, Chasing a God You Don't Want to Catch, encapsulates an entire life of asking big questions about God and the Bible, and truly wrestling with loving a God who I didn't always find very lovable. If you want blunt honesty toward God from someone who grew up in the church, that's the book for you.
That being said, I've experienced too much in my life to ever say that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, are not who they say they are. As a result, I'm currently working on my next feature film, The God Man. The point of this movie is to explore and present the Jesus I have learned to love and trust to a world that is desperate for Him, even if they don't realize it.
I've traversed the charismatic world pretty thoroughly over the last 14 years, and what I've learned on the backside of that journey is, at the end of the day, it all comes back to Jesus. The gifts of the Spirit, the love of the Father, all of it flows through Jesus Christ. Because of this, I am very aware that The God Man is the most important film I will ever make.
QUESTION #5: BOOST
Cashiers, CEOs, contractors, or customer service reps, we all need grace flowing into us and back out into the world. How does the Holy Spirit invigorate your work? And how do you know it's God when it happens?
All of my work, for the most part, centers on God. I have spent a lifetime wrestling with Him and, in the process, have learned what it means to have a true, actual friendship with Him. That being said, He's invisible, which really bugs me. A relationship with God is like a master class in subtlety. Is that thought I just had from Him or me? Is that event that just happened Him trying to tell me something, or is it just something that happened?
Friendship with God straddles a fine line between walking in close relationship with the living God and being a religious nut. I've definitely done both.
But as an artist, inviting God into my work has been the most rewarding—and terrifying—experience of my life. I made two movies, for instance, Holy Ghost and Holy Ghost Reborn, where there was no plan, no script, nothing planned beforehand. I wanted to try to make the first movies in history that were, as much as possible, completely led by the Holy Spirit. It was an exercise in walking a tight rope, hoping you were hearing God correctly, taking massive financial chances on seemingly a whim, and just 7 months of pure terror mixed with spiritual excitement.
I remember my last day of filming those movies. We were at the southernmost tip of Africa, just outside of Cape Town, and we were just finishing things up, getting some b-roll. The moment I said to my crew, "That's a wrap," I immediately burst into tears and sobbed for 10 minutes. I had never been more relieved in my life. And I think that's kind of a microcosm for faith in God, and especially if you're trying to partner with Him in any meaningful way. He's not necessarily going to make it easy on you, but because of that, what you wind up experiencing with Him is infinitely more valuable.
QUESTION #6: inspire
Some people divide things sacred and things secular. But you know, God can surprise us in unlikely places. How do you find spiritual renewal in so-called "nonspiritual" activities?
My most refreshing moments with God come through music, but not necessarily worship music. Worship music has its place, and I love it, but I find it much more exciting to find God in things that aren't necessarily meant to be spiritual, or if they are, they are very, very subtle about it. That's my kind of art.
I grew up in an artist’s home (my dad was a potter), so from an early age, I was always quite comfortable finding the sacred in the secular. I remember going to some pretty intense Christian camps as a teenager where they would tell us that rock music is of the devil and all my friends would come home and burn their music collection in the name of piety. I thought that was the dumbest thing ever.
I remember driving and listening to AC DC's “Highway to Hell,” and I'd simply change one lyric and turn it into a song to God. Instead of singing, "I'm on the highway to hell," I'd belt out, "Not on the highway to hell." It was my weak attempt at a Christian middle finger to the devil.
The artist Marc Chagall once said that "art must be elusive if it is to find its true identity." It's that elusiveness of the Spirit in art, often made by non-believers no less, that I love finding, and it keeps me on my spiritual toes.
QUESTION #7: FOCUS
Our email subscribers get free ebooks featuring our favorite resources—lots of things that have truly impacted our faith. But you know about some really great stuff too. What are three of your favorite resources?
I am a U2 fanatic. You have no idea. I think the reason I like them so much is that I so closely relate to their wrestling match with God and how it comes out in their music over and over again. Their coffee table-size band biography, U2 by U2, is not only a wonderful look into their career and work, but it is also dripping with references (mostly by Bono) of their walk with God, their struggle with faith, and ultimately their steadfast love of God.
A book I've read recently that just blew me away (and answered a lot of questions about God that I've had my whole life), is Greg Boyd's book, Cross Vision. If you've ever struggled with trying to reconcile the seemingly violent, authoritarian God of the Old Testament with the loving, grace-filled Jesus of the New Testament, then this book is your jam.
Finally, Kingdom, Grace, Judgement by Robert Farrar Capon. This book takes a deep dive into the parables of Jesus and unlocks the true genius of Jesus. Growing up, I thought Jesus' parables were just quaint, short stories to explain a simple truth. Nope. They are so much more.
We all have things we cling to in order to survive (or thrive) in tough times. Name one resource you’ve found indispensable in this current season—and tell us what it's done for you.
I can't get out of the Passion Translation of the Bible. Anything that brings the Bible back alive for me is an absolute win. I always wanted to like the Message Bible more than I actually did, because I'm a plain-language kind of guy. But something about that version felt a little too plain. For me, the Passion finds that perfect balance of staying true to the Word but in a way that reaches me emotionally.
QUESTION #8: dream
God is continually stirring new things in each of us. So, give us the scoop! What’s beginning to stir in you but not yet fully awakened? What can we expect from you in the future?
I'm in an interesting place in my creative life at the moment, because on the one hand, something is coming to an end but hasn't yet, and I'm about to step into something amazing, but it hasn't started yet. It's like a creative ellipse connecting the old to the new, and I'm stuck in the middle.
I will soon be stepping away from the company I built, WP Films, and into something that is much, much bigger. Unfortunately, I can't talk about it publicly yet, but it will allow me to continue making films and shows and content (with proper budgets no less) and also oversee a wide variety of other projects on a producer level (both documentary and narrative films).
In the meantime, I'll be filming and completing my latest film, The God Man.
Did Darren’s words convict you as much as they convicted us? He said, “I'm convinced that, if you are truly honest with yourself and your weaknesses, you'll never judge others again because you are always aware that no one needs a savior more than you.”
When we judge others, it’s often because we’re trying to hide the shame we feel. Maybe there’s a secret sin we don’t want others to know about, or maybe we have a sin-ridden past we still feel guilty about. When we judge others, we’re deflecting the attention from our own behavior onto theirs.
But in Christ, there’s no more shame. There’s no more condemnation. And because of that, there’s no more room for judgment toward others, either. We can trade the time we spend judging others for time enjoying God’s forgiveness. Is there any better way to live?
Darren Wilson is the founder of WP Films and Darren Wilson Productions, both of which are film/television production companies that focus on creating media that creatively and powerfully advances the kingdom of God around the world. He’s also an author and a speaker. Darren’s films have been seen by millions around the world and have helped change the spiritual climate of the worldwide church. In addition to his films and television work, Darren is the author of 4 books and speaks as often as his busy schedule allows. Find out more about Darren and his work at wpfilm.com.
