It’s not always easy being a Christian in Hollywood, but actress Emily Rose is approaching the challenge with a strong sense of purpose.
“I have just been working at integrating my faith in my art the entire time, and just asking the Lord, ‘Okay, where would you have me? And where would you send me?’ -- just like a mission field,” Rose said in a recent interview.
Like many Christian entertainers, Rose made the decision long ago to only take roles that align with her values, but those projects are sometimes few and far between.
“Choosing to live a little bit of a separate life and way in your art can have its financial consequences,” Rose said. “But it really helps with your spiritual formation. It's like: What is this life about?”
Thankfully, Rose’s latest project, the new Great American Pure Flix original series, “Destination Heaven,” is the perfect opportunity for the 43-year-old mom of three to bring her faith to the forefront of her work. The six-part series follows people of all types and from all walks of life who meet God (played by Harry Lennix) face-to-face, and are ultimately challenged, encouraged, and changed in the most unexpected ways.
“I was like, ‘Wait, they're talking to God? How are you going to do this? This can be kind of cheesy,’” Rose recalled. “But I was so thrilled when I saw that Harry was playing God, and it helped me want to join on because I knew it would be a really great anchored, grounded performance, which is so important when addressing this kind of material where you're legit having conversations with God.”
Rose guest stars in the first episode alongside Great American Pure Flix fan favorite Kevin Sorbo. She plays a successful businesswoman named Jenna, whose work often prevents her from slowing down and caring for those that God puts in her path. When God challenges her to help a homeless man who she passes every day, Jenna learns an unexpected lesson about herself.
“I think what people can expect from watching ‘Destination Heaven’ is to be enjoying the ride of a story of a character that maybe they can identify with, and then you know, being able to kind of softly ask themselves some challenging questions,” Rose said. “My hope is that it will have a ripple effect, you know, how many of these Jennas do we know in our life who are just trying to keep it all together, but really, at the end of the day, when you ask the Lord, ‘What is mine to do?’ it’s about those deeper things—it’s about people. It’s not about our to-do list. It’s about our people lists I guess you could say.”
“Destination Heaven” is now streaming exclusively on Great American Pure Flix, with new episodes dropping every Thursday through June 20.
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