Waking, Outside, Naked [Where to talk to God]

I believe some pretty extraordinary things. 

The first, I believe that you, I and every thing in existence was intentionally created and designed by an intelligent being. Crazy...

The second, I believe that being loves his creation (me and you) and earnestly desires to be in relationship with us... Even crazier, I know...

Daily, feebly, but intentionally I take the offer that stands before me, the offer to commune with the designer of my existence. For my entire life I have done this, sometimes more, sometimes less, but always moving ever so slightly into a deeper connection with God.

Should you want to know your creator, I have listed the three best places I have found to meet, talk, converse, understand, hear, yell, scream, praise, love, admire, feel, and know Him. The places I can feel his presence most, and the places I have found the most freedom to humbly express my honest, raw, feelings to the one who knows me best.

1. Waking 

My eyes open, revealing a gentle light falling across my celling. My mind slowly follows, and now I am awake... So I talk to God. I talk to God now, before I enter the day, before I am faced with the stress, and onslaught of 1,000 worries that come with this thing called life. 

I find when I lift up my worries, fears, requests, and thanks, to God, before the harsh, and unrelenting influences of life reach me, I am better equipped to handle the twists and turns that await me. I am able to make a connection to my creator giving me perspective on the life I am called to live this day.

1. Outside

I look, as far as my eyes can see nothing, nothing but the raw handiwork of God. Nothing man made, or man intended, or man thought. Only the thoughts, intentions and creation of God to surround me. It is here I can breathe deeply, and begin to sever the man-made from the God-made allowing me to directly connect with God as I am in direct connection with his creation. Being here inspires awe, stillness, and intimacy, as if I am in an artists gallery with only the artist and his work. It is here, that in addition to being known, I can know better my creator and allow my soul to draw closer to His.

1. Naked

Having been diagnosed with severe OCD at a young age, I quickly learned the shower is my safe place, my refuge, my sanctuary, a place where continuos cleansing water falls on me taking the “dirtiness” I feel down the drain never to haunt me again. So naturally I found that is was also a perfect place to talk to God. But not for the obvious reason, I found I loved to talk to God there, beneath the rushing water not because I was clean, but instead because I was vulnerable... Interestingly enough, to become clean, either physically, or spiritually, we must allow ourselves to become vulnerable in some way or anther. So the very physical act of becoming naked and cleansing my self, suddenly put my heart in a position to talk to God in a vulnerable, open and raw way. Away from any walls (physical or spiritual) I so often put up. Being naked and open in front of God allowed me to connect more deeply to his heart.

Selling God

Have you ever felt the deep longing to fill the void of something you can't quite explain? Have you ever felt a pain so deep, that would have done anything to take it away? Have you ever looked in the mirror and were scared of what you saw and wondered how you or anyone could ever truly love you if they truly knew who you were? 

If not, congratulations, awesome, now is your cue to move on to the next post...

But if in some way these questions articulate a place you have been before; that means you are not alone. But more importantly In fact, it most likely means you are human. 

But here's another question, have you ever been promised that to live a happy, fulfilling, comfortable life all you have to do is believe in God? And the is the answer to all your confusion, pain and discomfort is accepting him? Then upon following the numbered instructions of "accepting God" (like a business deal) the confusion, pain, and discomfort persisted? Me too...

So what now?

Like the adage goes "There's a God shaped hold in all our hearts" and the things we have done to fill that hole, has left a wasteland of broken people... So what do we do? We keep on looking. And some of us actually find God- but so often even when we do, we find that all along we were really more interested with trying to fill the "God shaped hole" with stuff we want, that wasn't all that "God-ish". We find all of the sudden that this God that fits in our hearts, actually doesn't especially care that we get what we want, but rather cares that we get Him; what we need.

We like God and all, but we maybe thought that when He said he would "fill the void in our heart" it would be with funner stuff, that would make life easy... This is the point, where many of us look straight into the face of our creator and say "Thanks, but no thanks." and go on living our life as if He wasn't the answer, and all of these things we would rather have will do the trick.

It's a scary feeling coming to the realization that nothing in this world will give us what we thought we wanted... Not even God. 

We like the idea of God but have found God isn't all that marketable and doesn't come with the "swag" we thought he would... SO, we (I) begin to sell God... Sell to ourselves and others. We sell God, like the rest of the world sells drugs, sex, money. Promising (convincing) ourselves and others, that God will make us "all better", take away all our pain, and make us happy...

But those who have followed Jesus can tell you, this is simply not true. Though its a PR nightmare, the answer to your problems (Jesus/God) is not going, to make you happy, take away all the "hard" stuff, or give you everything you think you want... Instead He is going to give you Himself. 

While this is a hard pill to swallow for some, the reality we come to when we let go of our expectations- is that when we enter in a relationship with our very creator, we actually get more than all of our "wants" could ever begin to conjure up.

We begin to realize that...

When we wanted to have our pain taken away... God gives us the strength to walk through it.

When we wanted a whole new story... God give us the chance to redeem the one we're in.

When we wanted to have our scares disappear... God gives us the chance to turn them into something beautiful.

Jesus, didn't come and live a comfortable life, pain, discomfort, and worry free, he lived a life of hurt, and pain, struggle and ultimately sacrifice. Jesus didn't model for us an easy life, but a beautiful one.

Beautiful is always harder, but always better.

Jesus, does not simply numb, or take our pain away, like that of any drug can promise... But instead Jesus walks with us through our pain and turns it into something beautiful. He takes broken, hurt, discombobulated us and turns us into something beautiful.

-Nathan

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photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/dianaeftaiha/5261952297/">Diana Eftaiha</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">cc</a>

City of Prodigals [first OFFICIAL trailer for Confessions of a Prodigal Son]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtNHYvTW0PE?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

"I can remember coming to LA- poor, passionate, and ready to live my dreams, but what I soon found out was this dream was hard, and didn't come as easy as I thought. I began to look around me and see others, who like me, came here to Hollywood looking for something, but ultimately found disappointment and heartache in not being able to satisfy the hunger in their souls whether they achieved "success" or not. I began to notice how lost and hurt so many around me were, and I began to realize that the city that promised, to so many, the fulfillment of dreams and desires- Was in reality a concentrated gathering of the broken and hurting looking for "more". I realized that instead of living in The City of Angeles, I was living in a City of Prodigals. I had my own long nights, weeks, months, years, when I thought giving up on following god would be easier and maybe it would've been. But as I continued, even through the hardest times to try my best to follow Jesus, I began to find that the dream I had come here to find was slowly being replaced with a bigger and better dream than I ever could have imagined. Until, one morning I woke up, and felt a tug from God on my heart, to get up and write. I didn't know what to write, so I asked him, and like a light coming on above my mind, I realized it had to be the prodigal son story, because Jesus has an interest in bringing the prodigals home. So I sat down and took the story Jesus told from the bible and mixed in with my experience in a modern world and long story short, we will soon have Confessions of a Prodigal Son. A story I hope will touch many, and maybe just maybe, call a few prodigals home."

 

Today is the OFFICIAL release of the first teaser trailer with actual footage from the film! If you believe in the dream that God placed on Nathan's heart to love, redeem, and call the prodigals home- the watch, be inspired and share with others.

 

Make sure to "LIKE" the COAPS Facebook for all the up to date news on the film: https://www.facebook.com/ConfessionsOfAProdigalSon

And Visit the website for more information and materials being posted soon: http://www.confessionsofaprodigalson.com/

I See God In You

We were made in the image of God.

Let that sink in, don't just hear it, then release this truth- ingest and let it become apart of you. The designer of the cosmos who holds galaxies in his hands made you, me, and us in his very image...

When we realize this about our selves, something amazing happens; we begin to see worth and infinite value that we have in been made with, not because we made it so, but because the great Mind designed and gave it to us. Allowing us to share His very image, in heart, soul, mind, and body.

And after we realize and see the intrinsic, and intentionally placed value in ourselves, we begin to see it in others. We see the very image of God in EVERYONE around us; be they black or white, rich or poor, man or woman, strong or weak. We suddenly see the value we all were created with by the master creator... It's a value that something like status, money, class, education, race or sex could never hold a candle to when trying to asses someone's true worth... How could they? How could any sum of money match the infinitely-beautiful and powerful image of God that lies upon us all, and is woven in to our very humanity.

The more we know God, the more we know his image, the more we know his image, the more we see it in the ones around us. And as we do things like racism, classism, ageism, sexism, bigotry, and hate slowly disappear, into the recognition of something greater- into the realization and recognition of the image of God is on ALL of us. The separations of the natural, give way to the inclusion of the super-natural, knowing we all bare the image of God.

So go, and begin to see the image of God in you, and the ones around you, the ones you love and the unloveable... For even when you were unlovely, God -the creator of the stars- saw not your brokenness but instead the value he had placed upon you, and gave his life so you could know just how much you are really worth.

The Waiting Room

The air is dry and stale and hangs still in the space, I look around the room I have become all to familiar with; Its cold blank walls stare back at me, and remind me of how long I've been in here. On the other side of the room is the door I wait to enter.

A few scattered chairs lay around, acting as remnants of the people who have come and gone into the next room. I had been under the impression that I was here first, and had my name on the list before the several individuals who have somehow come and gone in before me... But for one reason or another, here I sit, still.

I have been dreaming of what's on the other side of that door for years now, and now I sit so close and yet so far. I am kept from my dreams only by what seems to be a thin door, needing only permission from those in charge to pass through.

I pick up an old magazine and mindlessly flip through it's torn pages, while thinking of the people I have witnessed pass through the door and into the room I so desperately want to be in. I wonder if it's something about them specifically that got them in. Maybe it was their beauty, skill or personality that ushered them into the coveted room. I turn the magazine page to a perfume ad where a very fit couple -making a striking and intimate pose- stare at me from the thin paper. I begin to wonder if it's me, If instead of some people being let it in because of who they are, perhaps I am being kept out because of who I am. Maybe my resume is to small or wasn't formatted correctly, or perhaps they found out about that thing that happened last year I hoped no one ever would, or maybe they inexplicably realized I'm not as good at math as I told them I was. Or maybe they somehow saw who I really am.

Whatever it is, I think it's time to give up. I toss the magazine back onto the table beside me and slowly stand up. I look one more time at the door that now seems so impossible to pass. I put my hands in my pockets and with a final deep breath, turn and begin to walk out.

Then suddenly "Nathan"

Startled, I swing back around, and there next to the door -I had so long waited to open- is another door... It's smaller than the other one and the finish on it looks worn, but there it stands none the less. I don't know how I hadn't noticed it before, perhaps I had been so focused on the entrance I thought I was supposed to go through I hadn't noticed the one right next to it. The new door was cracked open, presumably where the voice came from. I paused shortly, then answered.

"Yes?"

"Where are you going?"

"I uh... I have just been..."

"Come on in"

I hesitate briefly, looking back at the door I had been so sure I was supposed to go through, then look back at the open door beside it.

Why Aren't You Living The Story You Were Made To Tell

God has not placed dreams, passions and gifts on your heart to be ignored. He has placed them on your heart to be realized.

God has a story to tell, God has a story for YOU to tell! You need only let Him.

But the unfortunate thing is, so many will live and die never having known the sweet, fulfilling, beautiful-taste, of living the destiny God has for them. 

How can this be? How can God have individually designed each of us with loves, passions and gifts for so many to miss the story they were designed to tell.

Could it be because all to often we say things like...

"If I had enough money, I would..."

"It would take a LOT of work and dedication, and I just don't know it I am ready to commit..."

"I'm scared"

"What if I fail?"

"What would other people think"

"That's not what normal people do"

Whether you have said these things out loud, or heard them whispered in the back of your mind. You must silence the noise and hear only the voice of God ready to narrate the story he has created you to tell. But to hear his voice, you must listen.

7 Simple Ways To Live A Healthy Life And Still Be Happy (Yes You Can Have Both)

If you are anything at all like me, you have big dreams and huge visions of an amazing life; little of which includes counting the hours until your next low calorie meal of dried Kale, just so you can reach some number on a scale that a random website said you should be at.

Since I believe in God...

I believe our creator is an amazing artist, who created food to be a wonderful, life-giving experience, meant to be savored and filling!

AND I believe he created human bodies to be beautiful, healthy, balanced, able to help us experience pleasure as we interact with the world God has crafted while carrying our the work we were made to do.

The unfortunate part, is we live in a fallen world, where we have disease, sickness, addiction and an array of other human shortcomings that seem to make the above two statements mutually exclusive. 

It is easy to sometimes feel like to be healthy, we must be miserable; eating things that just aren’t fun, and spending hours in a cold, damp place (the gym) surrounded by silent sweaty people and the sounds of clanking metal as we grow more and more self conscious, to gain a body the magazines say we need.

But then on the other hand, it’s not hard to find your self in a place where you take the enjoy life and food and drink mantra, only to find yourself in a constant place of guilt, and if not guilt simply unhealthy habits, that have very real consequences for your health and safety.

So what are we to do? 

Wait for Heaven until we can down as many bags of chips we want- and still have the perfect bod? 

Or is there a way to start moving towards the life of health that honors the creators creation- WHILE still praising God by partaking in the wondrous culinary artistry he has put upon this earth?

A lot of people know me either as the actor, or writer or hollywood guy. But what some of you may not know is that I am also an avid health food junkie and a certified-nutritionist! When I first began my journey into studying nutrition and health I began to see some easy and amazing ways to stay healthy while still loving life! Here are my top 7!

1. Water, Water, Water... This is probably the most important and simply just easiest way to stay and get healthy, in fact if you just stopped reading the rest of this post and changed nothing, but started drinking the recommended amount of water a day you would already start seeing amazing health results -cleansing, weight loss, appetite control, increased energy, and a plethora of more benefits- I know soda is good, but hey... Drink water, just do it!
2. Give Up Soda... I know, I know it’s good! But research has shown that people can weigh 10 pounds less, by changing nothing else and simply giving up soft drinks. And besides you never know what you might be missing! There are some amazing drinks (not even green ones) that are good and will make you feel awesome; like TEA- hot or iced!
3. Go Whole Wheat... If you are anything like me, when someone suggests to give up bread, (or carbs all together) it’s all you can do to not throw their kale shake in their and their ridiculous opinions face. I can’t live without my sandwiches, but making a simple change at the grocery store to 100% whole wheat bread can change you entire body. Where white bread will turn straight to fat, slowing you down... The wheat and bran of whole wheat grains will naturally cleanse your body.
4. Move! Just get up. If you are not a gym person, you don’t need to make your self one, just get up and do something, your body was made to move and dance and walk! Even just 15 min a day can drastically improve your health!
5. Go Natural... I know you’ve heard it before... But you have to, your body is MADE to eat and enjoy foods of all kinds and flavors, NOT chemicals and weird gooey lab stuff. SO just by making a choice to eat mostly “Natural” food, you will see a HUGE change in how you feel and your body will better be able to help you be your best self by working well!
6. Eat More Veggies & Fruits... We all know this already, but think of it this way, I am giving you license to eat more! You can eat as many greens and fruits as you want! BUT no cheating and frying, pouring ranch all over them. I promise after just a little while of putting some of natures veggie and fruit delights into your diet, you will start to CRAVE them!
7. Power UP! So I have always dreamed of being a superhero, so when I heard there was a list of something called the “Superfood's” I was all about them. Some of my favorites are Avocados, blueberries, mushrooms, kale, knew, Adding a few of these into your everyday, will supercharge your body and help it work the way God designed it to, not to mention will give you super strength and the ability to fly ;)

So there you have it! 7 simple ways to health that won’t make you hate life.

Try these every day and overtime I promise they will help you become the best you can be!

What Happened When I Said I Didn't Know If I Believed In God

I waited with a worried heart and a furrowed brow for my parents to come and say goodnight. Usually it was a quick prayer and quick “love you goodnight!”- but tonight I had something to tell them that had been burning a hole in my heart.

I could feel knots in my ten year old stomach, while I unknowingly wrapped my fingers tighter and tighter around my sheets.

On the walls around me hung pictures and poster of heroes and great figures standing tall representing the strength a young man’s heart longs for, but tonight I didn’t feel strong or brave, as yet another distressing wave of doubt came over me.

The door swung open and my parents entered ready to send me off to bed as they prepared to end their day. After a short prayer and a pat on the leg they began to leave when suddenly I said “stop, I need to tell you something”.

Gently concerned, they turned back around and asked me what was on my mind. A bit of fear welled within me mixed with a twinge of shame as I took a breath and let it come out “I don’t know if I believe in God.” The words hung in the air, and the silence was almost more than I could bare. Then I felt the gentle hand of my mother rest again on my leg as the worry left her eyes and a sleight smile came over her face, “That’s okay.”

Astonished that my mother -the most godly woman I have ever known- so nonchalantly took in stride my doubt of God, I replied puzzled… “It is?”

“Of course” She said “Every true believer will have doubts and questions about God, that’s very normal, when I first met Jesus, I know I did. You are a great boy Nathan, and I have no doubt you’ll be a great man.” And with one more “Goodnight I love you”, my parents gently left the room taking the weight of the world I had been carrying, with them.

That night my parents gave me something amazing, through their allowance of my doubts they gave me the ability to know God on a greater scale than I could have ever known him while having a faux faith forced upon me.

From that night on whenever I would have doubts- having felt the freedom to communicate with my parents about them, I would share my struggles and thoughts. And consistently I would leave empowered in my fight. My mom would tell me “Don’t worry Nathan you remind me of the great biblical hero Jacob, who wrestled God”, “I do” I would ask wondering how? “Yes” she would say “And that’s a great thing, because wrestling is a full contact sport and when we wrestle with God we are in communion with him, which is ALWAYS a good thing.”

The song below was written years after that night in my bedroom, hundreds of miles away from my parents, in a small apartment in Hollywood. I had been going through a time of doubt and struggle with God, not unlike the struggle I faced when I was ten. I wanted to put all my fears and doubts into a song but felt a pause thinking maybe, I shouldn’t doubt God and just pretended to be okay. But then suddenly I could again hear my mother’s words echoing through the confines of my minds memories “Wrestling with God is a GOOD thing, wrestling is a full contact sport, and as long as we are in contact with God you have nothing to worry about.”

So with a pure heart, I wrote an honest song to God that ultimately brought me even closer to my creator.

That night in my bedroom, my parents gave me a gift. They gave me the gift of allowing me to doubt, struggle and fight, because they knew that is who God had created me to be. And because they allowed me to wrestle with God, they by default allowed me to be in full contact with him.

I encourage you, wrestle with God, doubt, struggle and be brutally honest with Him, He can take it, and doesn’t mind at all- when you do this you just might find that engaging in the full contact sport with your creator will bring you closer to God than you ever might have thought.

This is the song I wrote that night-

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBZu8Y3NwD4&w=560&h=315]

Get the song on iTunes here

Get the song on Amazon here

You Long For Another World Whether You Know It Or Not

In the wake of the tragic events of a fellow actor and beloved artist (in what appears to be) taking his own life, at the behest of a lethal addiction- I watch the reaction of the world around me; I read in the status's of peers, expressing sadness and remorse for the loss of such a bright life. But in doing so, I also see something else- Many of those commenting on the tragic events seem to think the reason for this loss of life was because of the individuals fame, career and a life of being known by many and the pressures that came with that. At first glance, I mentally okay the logic and scroll on, but then I feel a catch in my mind.

It suddenly occurs to me... How many overdoses are there every year we will never hear about because the individuals involved are not famous, well known, or in blockbuster movies- But each having just as much or more "pressure" in there family, personal, or professional life as any celebrity we know?

After coming upon this realization, I am forced to maybe think that maybe the tragic events of us humans losing the fight to addictions, or even taking our own lives; fall upon something so much more serious than a job description.

While I don't pretend to know all the factors that played a part in these tragic events that happened over this past weekend. What I can speak to are the relationships around me and the tragedies I have witnessed first hand in lives of those whom I love and loved. I think it so often comes down to simply this. We live in a broken world, and no matter what this world tries to promise us this world does not fill the void we forever long for. No matter the amount of money, fame, respect (all the things we think would satisfy us) we were made for something else, that until we realize, we cannot find peace.

Someone once said

“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

Another wise person noted "There is a God shaped hole in all our hearts." The poor and the rich... The famous and the unknown.

We will never know what we were created for until we know who we were created by. We can never fill the void we feel in the depths of our souls until we invite the one who created them, in.

Created You Were

Remember today that you were designed- Intentionally and beautifully.

You were not carelessly just thrown here, you are not the result of a random molecular happening, or a thoughtless mass of cells.

Instead realize this

You were made, designed and created with passion and love, you were given a purpose and will, your life has meaning, and you have the ability to live fully the story you were MADE to tell.

Let this effect you today, let this inspire you to know your creator more and find the purpose encoded on your heart.

YOU

photo taken by my extremely talented roommate Ben Moen

Remember this today.

You are not an accident, you are not some random collection of cells wandering life aimlessly. NO, you are "fearfully and wonderfully made" designed by the master artist with purpose and intent. You are LOVED SO much, that no matter what your past holds or your present feels like or your future threatens you are NEVER to late to find redemption and live a beautiful story that was made JUST for you. Know that today, TODAY you have a creator (think on that for a second, you were CREATED) that has given his life just so you could have a personal connection -a RELATIONSHIP- with the one who powerfully holds the galaxies, masterfully engineered the atom, beautifully spins (at a perfect balance) all of nature and with passion and love created..... You.

Looking over

What a beautiful site to see tonight in the Hollywood hills. If you look to the far left you can see the Hollywood sign looking out over the city where so many come looking for meaning and lose their way. But if you look to the far right you'll see a cross looking over the whole of the city as a symbol to God's unfailing presence and willingness to become apart of our world, save us and bring the prodigals home.

My interview with MasterWorks Website - About life, dreams and prodigal me

Claire: What's going on in your life this year? (Family, work/career, etc.)

Nathan: Hmm, well, a lot actually! I just got back from speaking at two of my family's conferences, showing a promotional trailer, raising funds, and getting the word out about a new film that I wrote! It was a lot of fun and is really encouraging to get positive feedback. And as always, it was so nice to still be involved with my family as they continue to use their lives in ministering to other people!

Claire: When and how did you get interested in acting?

Nathan: To be honest I feel like I have always been acting, whether it was as a boy pretending to be Superman or dressing up as one of my favorite historical figures, I have always loved falling into characters and telling stories. Hearing/reading/watching stories was what lit my heart on fire since I was young, so it was only natural that I would grow up and search for ways to tell stories with my life. Somewhere in the middle of high school, I realized that I also loved people, and I saw what an impact the movies and stories had on all of us—shaping our decisions and feelings by inspiring, connecting, sympathizing, and moving us. So, I decided I wanted to be a part of the movement that was telling the stories that connected with my generation. In high school I attended MasterWorks, where I began to realize I could use my passion and natural gifts for God’s purposes. A little after high school I attended an acting/music commutation called AMTC (Actor Models Talent for Christ) where I was invited to attend The New York Film Academy. And the rest, I guess, is history!

Claire: What about your experience at MasterWorks most influenced you?

Nathan: I think the thing that so inspired and influenced me about MasterWorks was seeing and getting to take part in this amazing community of people who had realized they had been given amazing gifts and had decided they were going to use them for a bigger purpose than simply acclaim, fame, money or recognition. They had decided to use their God-given gifts to praise our Creator and bring people closer to Him. I think it is so rare for people to see their gifts and talents as something given by God and for God. Being at MasterWorks set the foundation for how I could use my God-given gifts.

Claire: You wear many different hats: writer, actor, film producer/director, musician, son of two popular speakers/writers… As a result, have you found it difficult for you to determine who you are as a person? Who or what defines you? Describe that journey of finding your identity.

Nathan: Being in LA, each day I see a city looking for identity: everyone scrambling, chasing, and doing almost anything thinkable to find themselves, to discover purpose, and to create their identity. And because of that, everyday I see people wrapping up their entire identity in such temporal and fading things, whether it's their talent, their ‘art,’ their sexuality, or even their popularity and money. I see people building their foundations of identity on things that will surely disappoint or disappear eventually. I have even found myself falling into the trap of finding my identity in things of this world, like my acting, music, writing, and even my family! But somewhere along the way, after I had been brought to my knees by the humbling process of failed acting jobs, losing friends, and a career with nothing to show, God found me and has been leading me down a path of finding my worth and identity in Him. This is the most life-changing, freeing experience I could ever feel, because He is the one thing that will NEVER fail. Even if everything else does, I know my worth is found in Him!

Claire: You recently wrote a modern-retelling of the Prodigal Son, and now you are in the process of raising funds to make this into movie. What inspired this, and what is the message that you want to portray through this project?

Nathan: Awhile back when I was going through one of my hardest times, I randomly found myself reading the story of the Prodigal Son, and little did I know what a powerful, recurring tale it would be in my life. In the months to come, I found myself trying to follow God but often getting lost in my own desires and foolish decisions, wondering what I was supposed to do. BUT, every time I found my head in my hands as a result of my decisions, I felt God’s loving arms holding me and His voice calling me back to the man I was made to be—just like the Prodigal. So, as I began to look, I realized I lived in a city and really, a world of prodigals, not bad or evil people—just people looking for meaning, purpose and love. Often, letting the deep desire we all have for those things led them into places, situations, and answers that too often turn out to be false, temporary, or even destructive.

I decided I wanted to be more intentional about what kinds of projects I would be in, which led me to look for projects that intended to bring light to a dark world! But unfortunately, I found out quickly that projects with the messages I desired to tell, messages I had been brought up to tell, were few and far between. So, one morning, I woke up and felt a gentle stirring in my heart to write a screenplay (something I had never done) with the messages I truly believe the world needs to hear. Long story short, a month later I had a script that had been written as a modern retelling of the prodigal son entitled Confessions of a Prodigal Son. Shortly after, some amazing people and I shot a trailer (in one day) for raising funds... and here I am!

Claire: You have a desire to use film and acting to influence the world for Christ. What needs do you see in the Hollywood scene, and what would you say are effective ways to accomplish this goal?

Nathan: I would love to see more people truly realizing the knowledge that God has created us individually with love and care to use our gifts to praise Him, and in doing so, bringing other people closer to Him as well. Hollywood needs people with a vision bigger than themselves, but one of eternity with a passion to create quality reflections of God’s amazing love through whatever medium possible.

Claire: What challenges have you faced as an actor in the professional world? How has your faith influenced how you live?

Nathan:

1. This might sound cliche, but I still deal with the pain of rejection and feeling not good enough, but that’s where finding my identity in God helps.
2. The feeling of loneliness, when you decide to follow your dreams. Oftentimes the way you can get the most discouraged is by feeling like you are always doing things on your own—every trial, every doubt—but that is why I made a choice a while ago to get involved in an amazing church, and that really helps me navigate this crazy thing called life.
3. Having to say "no" when "yes" would be so much easier. It is such an amazing feeling to find who you are and who you are called to be. But, with that comes who you are NOT called to be, and sometimes you have offers or situations come up, where, with just a little bit of compromise you can make money, get seen, or just feel important. This often makes saying "no" extremely hard, even if it’s clear I should. However, every time I have made the hard decisions to turn down roles/jobs/places I know aren’t a part of who I have been called to be, I see God lead me down His path into things 100 times better that what I could have imagined. It’s not always in my timing or the way I thought I wanted it, but it’s always amazing and better than what I could have done myself.

Claire: What are your long-term goals/dreams (acting or otherwise)?

Nathan: To be honest, I would just love living a life that brings light to a dark world and shows God’s amazing love for me and everyone with whatever I am doing! Though, making and acting in films that do that would be super awesome!

Claire: How can we be praying for you?

Nathan: I would love prayer for wisdom in every situation I come across as well as the continued ability to use my passions and gifts to connect with people!

Claire: What is your favorite movie, style of music, food, and place to travel?

Nathan:

• Movie: There are so many! But apart from all my favorite trilogies, I would have to say The Truman Show...Sooo amazing.
• Style of music: I love EVERY style of music (I know, SO cliche). Lately, I have been coming to an appreciation for pop music. I think that when it is done the right way, it has the ability to connect with someone and leave a message that will continue to play in their mind while using minimal time and potentially sharing deep personal messages in a non time-consuming format. And when you think about that, it’s kind of a beautiful idea!
• Food: Oh my, I am kind of a foodie. My classic is either a Caesar salad or a good grilled chickensandwich.
• Place to travel: Oh—I love all of Europe. My parents were missionaries there when they were young, so they have taken me back across the amazing countries! I am almost fully English and would someday love to go and explore England and maybe even find some of my history!

Prodigal You?

The Prodigal Son: A story that undoubtedly strikes fear into the hearts of mothers and fathers everywhere, and lights memories in the minds of sons and daughters who remember it's tale.

 It’s the story of a wayward son who demands his inheritance early, and ends up leaving his home and squandering his money on everything from sex to gambling.

The prodigal son eventually finds himself broke and in the dirt with memories of home running through his mind, which is when he decides to return home and beg for forgiveness and maybe just a job as a servant in his fathers household.

But, upon his arrival, instead of bowed heads of disappointment, he finds the loving embrace of his parent.

 I think this story is one we can all relate to, whether we are the prodigal or know someone who is. 

It is a story that has, or will become, a common theme as we observe life.

 Different people focus on different aspects of the story: 

 -As parents, I’m sure the immediate inclination is to ensure that it never becomes a reality for their children.

 -As pastors and teachers, I’m sure there is a need to show the detriment of selfish desires and sinful living.

 -But as a son, who has been a prodigal once or twice in his life, my interest lays in what pulls the Prodigal home.

 What is the voice inside when the Prodigal is the most down and out calls him home, and why did he listen to it?

Why is the wayward son suddenly willing to humble himself to the lowest position just for a chance to be back in his parents care?

 I can remember times in my life when I found myself surrounded by the consequences of my poor choices and willful rebellion. 

And the thing that ended up pulling me home, the driving force to my return to the straight and narrow, wasn’t the facts or opinions on rebellious living I had heard a thousand times in church. 

It wasn’t the countless warnings of sin (now too late to be applied, anyway).

Instead, it was something so much more personal, real and tangible.

It was the song of my home that would play in my ears, as I would sit head in my hands, trying to find the light in a dark situation. 

It was remembering the warm embrace of a loving family and an inviting home. 

It was the grace I knew my mistakes would always be met with. 

It was the warm meals, good conversation and the personal connection I missed with the ones I loved. 

Essentially, my reason for choosing to leave my prodigal tendencies in the past and return home to my loved ones was having loved ones and a home worth returning to.

 There is a Biblical picture for this that God paints masterfully throughout the bible. After all humanity (you and I) decided to live its own way and rebel against the way life was meant to be lived (as Prodigals). God first decides that instead of just getting rid of us, He wants us to have a chance at redemption by forgiving us.

Pretty amazing! 

But he doesn’t stop there. The way God redeems us and shows us forgiveness is giving us a chance at a personal relationship with God! 

But THEN He goes on and creates place for us to come home to, a beautiful perfect place where there will be “No more tears”.

God looks down on you and me, after our display of rebellious independence, and calls us home with to a loving embrace of a parent and a perfect vision of home...Heaven.

Hands On My Life

We can talk all day about the existence of God, or the proof of a creator. That is a conversation I would love to have with you!

But everyday I see his hands so clearly leading and taking care of me that I can't do anything BUT believe in a loving, active God.

If I could I would do anything so you could experience the joy and freedom that our creator has made available to any who answer his gentle call.

-Nathan