This is the second half of an interview with Karen Covell of the Hollywood Prayer Network. To see the first half, view the "Suggested Links" section on this page.
So with the new mindset of believers in Hollywood, and the exceptional Christian community that can be found here, why hasn't revival occurred? Karen offers her insight:
"My prayer has been to head toward an absolute revival in Hollywood, and I'm just not giving up. This is the world's most influential mission field. This place affects every other culture on the globe. So it's going to have the biggest spiritual battle. That's another thing I learned. I didn't realize--I didn't understand--spiritual battle at all when I first got out here."
Some Christians dismiss the concept of spiritual warfare, preferring to focus on a God of love, compassion and social justice. But the Bible clearly states in Ephesians 6:12 that we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies. There is a spiritual realm that overarches our earthly reality; and despite popular New Age thought, these are not impersonal forces that can be bent to our will with the right alchemy of ingredients. These forces are engineered to demoralize, defeat, and even destroy, the believer. Karen expounds on the expansion in her learning.
"I see this city now, and it's oppressive, the tug of war between good and evil is intense, and I think if we acknowledge the spiritual battle, it's not as hard on us, because we expect it. We're not thrown by it when it happens, we go, 'Ahh, there it goes again,' instead of 'What in the world?'"
Thus, Hollywood Prayer Network's (HPN) continued focus on producing information and opportunities for believers to pray with and for each other. The word "Network" is not just in the organization's name for bells and whistles--it's a part of its DNA. HPN hosts "Prayer and Praise Nights" throughout the year, so that people can come together, and "network" around prayer for Hollywood. But this network reaches beyond Los Angeles.
"We have a monthly email where we send out information on how to be praying for Hollywood. It's for the Christians here to be prayed for, so they can send in prayer requests, or just see what's happening. It's also for the non-Christians around the world to understand the industry more by finding out different issues to pray for."
This is in line with Jesus' final charge to the disciples in Acts 1:8, "you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” It's a progressive reach: first local (Jerusalem), then regional (Judea), then national (Samaria), and finally, global, to the ends of the earth. HPN has 53 local chapters that commit to represent "Prayer for Hollywood and Prayer for the Global Entertainment Industry" in their city, and nine countries are also involved! Some of these cities and countries have local chapter directors that maintain website pages which announce: "If you're in this area and want to pray with us for Hollywood, then join us!"
But most cogent to the heart of the Gospel, is HPN's "I to I" (Interecessor to Intercessor) Prayer Partners. HPN pairs an Intercessor outside of Hollywood with a Christian professional inside of Hollywood, and prays for them as their "Media Missionary." "We have almost 1400 prayer partners now--it's really cool! I want every Christian I know to be prayed for by somebody on the outside."
That's not only wise logistical tactics in terms of the spiritual battle, but it is loving, contributing to the psyche and well-being of a person. It goes a long way toward the spiritual and personal growth of both the Media Missionary and the Intercessor.
"Because it is the world's most influential mission field, I think the enemy would love to have us divided, would love to keep us ineffective with the non-Christian community, would love to have us be marginalized so that we don't have an impact, and would love to get us discouraged and depressed. I see that all around us. The biggest battle with Christians here is not sex, drugs and Rock n' Roll. It's depression, it's discouragement, it's despair--that's where the enemy gets us, and then we're ineffective. "
So what should be the makeup and mindset of a person who feels they are to be a Media Missionary? What type of counsel does Karen give to a young film school graduate from Wisconsin who says they are called to Hollywood?
"We learned years ago that if a Gentile decides to become Jewish, the Jews don't encourage it, they make it as hard as possible for you. They ask you tough questions, they want to grill you to make sure you really want to. They want to discourage you as much as possible. And then, if you still want to do it, that's when they think you're ready. I honestly feel that way here. Weekly, I get emails from Christians who are so naive."
The biggest naivete: the sheer expense of living in Los Angeles, from housing, to food, to automobile expenditures. No matter how much you emphasize someone be prepared for this, they rarely are.
"You've got to come out here with some money, because it is so expensive! Oh my gosh! People come out honestly thinking they have six months of money, and in two months, they're broke--they have no idea how expensive it is, and how it just disappears."
But even more naive is believing that your talent, vision, and your "God connection" will automatically land you a job. "I just got an email last week." Karen paraphrases, "'Could you help me find a job. I'm coming out to Hollywood for six weeks to see if I can make it in the film industy.' I just emailed back that if you're only coming for six weeks, don't come. Don't even bother. It will take you six weeks to find an apartment, let alone a job--at Starbucks! So then, you can start making some money so that you can then spend the next five years trying to find a job in the industry."
Paying dues is important to many industries; but it takes on a whole other form in Hollywood. While there are rare cases of flash-in-the-pan success, this is the exception, not the rule. And just because you have paid them once, doesn't mean you won't be called on to pay them again.
"In the past, I used to be really encouraging; now, I pray with them, but I give them bottom line. I say, I don't want to sound cynical, but I want you to know the truth. So that when you come out here, you're aware of it, and it won't throw you so much that you go into a depression. Because it's really hard.
"I say, you've got to be strong spiritually, you've got to understand that this is not easy. I don't want anybody to not pursue their dream and then regret, but I want them to follow their dream with realistic expectations."
Karen and Jim are raising two sons (Christopher, 20, and Cameron, 16), who now aspire to join the family business.
"We've found that most missionaries that we know were missionary kids. It's very common to pass that down, because that's the lifestyle that you are used to. So now our boys are both going into the entertainment industry, and both consider themselves marketplace missionaries! We didn't want them to be or plan for them to be, but I think it's just kind of the mindset that we've all had. It's the next generation!"
But many Christian entertainment professionals who happily live in Hollywood while they are childless, suddenly find Hollywood a scary place after they have children. Karen address this.
"I challenge people who say, 'Oh, we have to leave, we can't raise kids here.' I ask two questions: Is it God's way of telling you that you really aren't meant to be here? Then, that's fine--but don't blame the city on that--just realize it's not the right place for you. Or are you running in fear from something that God may want to keep you here for? Cause I don't think any decision out of fear is good."
It is an American Christian illusion that a "safe" environment means that all will be well; so we seek out pristine comfort zones and Christian subcultures in which to live our lives and raise our children. Often we discover that this has little to do with whether a child chooses good or evil. Christian children raised in the best of environments turn out to be drug addicts, alcoholics and sexually promiscuous; so environment is no guarantee.
"People think the environment is going to negatively impact their kids, if you're in a neighborhood where there are gang kids, your kid is going to become a gang member. I think it comes from within the home. Your home can be in Columbine, Colorado where you think it's really nice and safe, and then suddenly everyone is blown to death in school. Or it can be in Hollywood, where it looks really scary, but we're in our home, we love each other, and we're learning God's principles. We pray for each other, and so we prepare them for the world. I think we shouldn't be afraid to raise our kids anywhere.
"My kids love God. Our friends love God. They grew up with people who love God. We love raising our kids here! We've had so much fun, and we still have so much fun with them. I just think it's prayer, and not being afraid."
So it is no surprise that training children about how to pray for Hollywood is a key piece of the HPN outreach. "We have a Kid's Prayer Calendar, that they can download. The calendar lists people on Nikolodeon, Disney, and some of the shows and movies that kids watch. So that kids start praying at an early age for the media, instead of just mass consuming it. This way, they start to become smarter to not idolize a Britney Spears, but to understand that she needs prayer. And if they can start young, then they can also impact the parents and the pastors--and it's so subversive! So that's been popular."
This is positive encouragement, but doesn't discount that juggling ministry, vocation and family can be a struggle.
"I'm awful! I'm awful! I don't show up to appointments because I had too much on my brain and I forgot. I feel guilty when I'm at work 'cause I should be with my kids, I feel guilty when I'm with my kids 'cause I should be at work, I mean, it's a joke, it's just funny. I don't think it's any different in other industries. I think anybody who is trying to raise kids, and make a living, have a ministry, and support a husband feels the same--I just think it's crazy.
"That's one reason why we pray everyday. We've been married 26 years, even when I travel we call each other, we pray--just because. It's the Lord who gets me through, helps me make decisions on what to do, and what to let go of."
While Karen does smaller projects and produces the DVDs for HPN, she set aside being a full-time producer when her sons were young. "I actually quit my job, my favorite job, because my son stopped wanting to talk to me on the phone. I kept calling him on the phone because I was never home, I was working like mad. And he said, 'I don't want to talk to you, you like those people better than me.' And I just went in and I quit my job. I just said, 'What am I doing?'
It was a hard decision, and at the time, I knew I was giving up something. Now, I wouldn't do anything differently. You have another person in this world whose going to then impact the world, and that's how I saw it. I thought, Oh my gosh, I want a Christian child to be a leader in the world and make a difference!. And if I don't pour into them, it's not going to happen. So I had to die to my goals. It took a while, but I wouldn't change it for nothing."
Any call, whether it is raising a family, working as a secretary, or as a marketplace minister, requires sacrifice and self-denial. Jesus gave the same prerequisites for following him: leaving our selfish ways, carrying a cross, losing our perception of our lives in order to find what our life is truly about.
"It's totally changed our definition of success. Making lots of money, having a good title, having a career that everybody thinks is pretty cool, honesty means nothing to me now. I used to be so ambitious. I wanted to run a studio--I was gonna to do it! And now, I get thankful when I get a little $100 dollar job. Because it's not going to define me. That's a good thing that's come out of it--it's making us better people."
Karen's journey and essential Hollywood work reflects the sacrifice, transformation, and discovery of the riches at the center of God's will.
"I don't think money is ultimately what blessing is. I think God has blessed me with such joy, that I've made a choice that I think is right for me, and he's confirmed that with circumstances, not with money. For me a blessing is people, and relationships, the qualities of personality and integrity--those type of things."
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