Plot of new movie “The Forge”  hits close to home for actress Priscilla Shirer

Author, speaker, and actress Priscilla Shirer credits discipleship with transforming her life. “Seeing someone from the next generation who can encourage you, because they’ve already been there and done that that right there, is priceless in keeping your mind fixed on the journey ahead,” she says.

Shirer stars in “The Forge,” a new film from the Kendrick brothers focusing on issues close to her heart — prayer, mentorship and biblical family dynamics. The movie will open in theaters on August 23. The story follows Isaiah Wright, a troubled young man just out of high school with no plans for his future His mother, played by Shirer, challenges him to chart a better course for his life.

Some are saying it is the best film the brothers have released to date.

“Through the prayers of his mother and biblical discipleship from his new mentor, Isaiah begins to discover God’s purpose for his life is so much more than he could hope for or imagine,” the film’s description said.

Shirer calls the film a “beautiful picture of the grace of God,” and that making the film brought her joy.

“The Kendrick brothers have such integrity,” Shirer said. “When they present a project to me, I know it will honor God; that’s going to be the basis of it. They’re not going to sugarcoat Jesus; they’re not going to try to water down or make it more palatable by making less plain the message of scripture or the gospel or whatever the theme is. I also know that the film is going to be entertaining. I know that it’s going to have technical excellence. That really does make the film watchable for audiences so they can lean in and hear the message of the storyline.”

“The Forge” also addresses the countercultural concept of male leadership within the household, a theme Shirer believes is crucial despite its declining popularity in mainstream media depictions of the family.

“It’s important, and it is the design that the Lord had in mind when he created family,” she told the Christian Post. “Obviously, we live in a broken world, and so there are so many parents who are doing it by themselves and are doing an amazing job. But this is where the body of Christ comes in, where there are surrogate parents and surrogate aunties and uncles and people that fill in the gaps in all of our children’s lives.”

The actress says she enjoyed working with her husband. “The other films I’ve had the opportunity to do with the Kendrick brothers, my family was with me on set, but this time around…my husband is one of those men [in the movie and he’s standing next to our youngest son, Jude — just being able to do this project together is remarkable that the Lord would organize that,” she told Movie Guide in June.

Shirer continued, “Isn’t this a beautiful picture of that grace of God, that He would allow us to do something just so fun together?”

Film director Alex Kendrick says that joy came through. “She is an inspiration to be around. And her joy for the Lord and for others impacts the entire set.”

Along with the film, Shirer is releasing a book, “I Surrender All,” which delves further into the essence of discipleship and probes into the nature of personal idols — elements that may not inherently be harmful but have taken precedence over one’s devotion to God. The book challenges readers to fully commit to their faith, mirroring the message of “The Forge.”

There’s also a Bible study available for the movie.

–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice