The movie won't be released until Sept. 30 but is already being screened for Christian leaders. Rick Warren has called it the "best movie of the year." The Courageous trailer, first released in theaters the weekend of Feb. 25 as a trailer for "The Grace Card," can be viewed at www.courageousthemovie.com.
Courageous, made by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga., follows the story of four police officers as they seek to become better fathers. In addition to Fireproof, Sherwood also made "Facing the Giants" and "Flywheel."
Courageous had a $1 million budget -- double that of Fireproof.
GRACE CARD EXPANDING TO MORE CITIES -- "The Grace Card," which had an impressive opening weekend Feb. 25-27 and was made by a church in Memphis, Tenn., will expand to 17 new cities March 18. It has received positive reviews from Baptist Press, Focus on the Family's PluggedinOnline.com, and Christianity Today. Variety -- a mainstream website -- said Grace Card was "blessed with fine performances, credible dialogue and slick production values" and "ranks among the better religious-themed indies released in recent years." The movie spotlights the racial tension between a white cop and a black cop.
The 17 cities are: Anchorage, Alaska; Mobile, Ala.; Lexington, Ky.; Louisville, Ky.; Paducah, Ky.; Baton Rouge, La.; Shreveport, La.; Lansing, Mich.; Tupelo, Miss.; Lincoln, Neb.; Omaha, Neb.; Lima, Ohio; Harrisburg, Pa.; Lubbock, Texas; Odessa, Texas; Tyler, Texas; and Norfolk, Va.
It was made largely by volunteers from Calvary Church, a Nazarene congregation in Memphis.
TWO RIVERS BAPTIST CHANGING NAME -- Two Rivers Baptist Church, a prominent Southern Baptist congregation in Nashville, is changing its name beginning March 20 to the "Fellowship at Two Rivers." The church says the name change was driven by a desire to distance itself from controversies from the past few years that made headlines in local media. The controversy involved church members who were dissatisfied with former pastor Jerry Sutton. Some of them sued. Sutton retired early, telling members in a letter, "Although we have won court cases and church votes, the conflict continues."
The church said in a January letter to members, "The past few years our name and church have been dragged through the sewer. Just do a search online and you will see what we mean. A new beginning and identity is needed. This name communicates that we are different as a church. We are still Baptist. Legally we are still Two Rivers Baptist, but identifying that in the name is not important. People will be drawn to our ministry by our actions and love. That is what matters."
The church said it is not becoming "seeker sensitive." The letter can be read at http://bit.ly/gsv15O.
Michael Foust is associate editor of Baptist Press.
Copyright (c) 2011 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press www.BPNews.net
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