In the 1995 film The Neon Bible, a small-town congregation gathers beneath a tent to sing “The Old Rugged Cross,” a hymn about clinging to faith through suffering and surrender. During filming, our own Ian Max Eyre (who played one of the extras in the scene) found himself swept up in a moment of genuine worship, singing every verse of the old hymn with conviction. Though the finished film would later take a skeptical view of faith, something divine still broke through the performance that day and moved him.

That’s the paradox and beauty of film. Even when a story wrestles with belief, it can still reveal it. Maybe that’s what keeps drawing us back to the movies. When the lights go down in the theater, something almost sacred happens. We gather as strangers but leave connected — all changed by the same glow of the silver screen.

In those moments, a theater becomes more than a room of seats and screens; it becomes a sanctuary of story, where disbelief is suspended and, for a moment, something meaningful is shared. As a result, this simple, human experience brings us together to take part in something larger than the story itself.

When a frustrated man accuses God of running the world poorly, he’s granted divine authority and learns that real power isn’t about control — it’s about compassion and serving others. The film turns a high-concept comedy into a surprisingly sincere reflection on surrender, humility, and grace. It’s proof that even a mainstream movie can whisper truth... starting with a punchline and ending with a prayer.

WHERE TO WATCH →

After escaping Egypt, Moses and the Hebrews discover that freedom can feel a lot like running a start-up — full of doubt, bickering, and divine deadlines. Modeled after The Office, this Angel Studios comedy series turns the wilderness years into a sharp and surprisingly sincere look at faith and perseverance. It’s proof that laughter can lead us somewhere holy.

WHERE TO WATCH →

When director Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air) said that Los Angeles’ historic Village Theater was “a cathedral,” he probably didn’t mean it literally. Still, the comment hints at something real: audiences today are often more eager to absorb a film’s worldview than step inside a church. In many ways, the movie theater has become the modern gathering place — where stories shape belief, one showing at a time.

That’s why the Church’s presence in entertainment matters. Movies don’t have to preach to have purpose; they can plant something meaningful simply by being honest, thought-provoking, or even just joyful. As Christian filmmaker Marcus Pittman reminds us, sometimes it’s enough to have fun with no message at all.

After all, laughter can be its own kind of light — which makes this week’s “Funding Watch” pick, That’s Not How You Christian, a fitting reminder that humor may be one of faith’s best storytellers.

The results are in! 75% of you voted I love fantasy when it points to truth in last week’s poll: When it comes to stories filled with magic, monsters, or make-believe, where do you draw the line?

Currently raising funds for its next slate of sketches, That’s Not How You Christian turns faith-based comedy on its head, mixing satire, sincerity, and Sunday-school nostalgia. Through quick sketches, offbeat reflections, and animated bits of biblical truth, the series invites believers to laugh with their faith instead of at it.

It’s clever, self-aware, and refreshingly human — a reminder that humor, when handled with grace, can be its own form of ministry.

_{*Plumb News is not affiliated with this project and does not receive compensation for featuring it. We’re highlighting it because we believe stories like this deserve support.}

“For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” - Matthew 18:20 (ESV)

When we gather, whether in a chapel, a theater, or around a story, something almost holy happens. Jesus’s earliest invitations weren’t to join an institution, but to enter a Kingdom. Before the word church (from ecclesia) ever appeared, He said, “Come and see” (John 1:39). It was about being close before believing… about drawing near to the light before fully understanding it.

At Plumb News, we believe faith-filled storytelling never has to just preach. Sometimes it simply needs to gather us, to ignite conversation — around the glow of a screen, a shared laugh, a quiet truth — and remind us that every story can be a step toward the divine.

Because when we meet each other in those spaces of wonder and reflection, faith begins to grow... not by instruction, but by invitation.

Until next time,

THE PLUMB NEWS TEAM