By Kayla DeKraker
I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 has been an inspirational hit, but there was a deep process of prayer and supernatural inspiration behind the creation of the movie.
“I give God all the glory in heaven and on earth,” producer Cindy Bond told CBN News. “And, also, I give [singers] Bart Millard and Tim Timmons huge gratitude and thanks.”
I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2, the sequel to 2018’s I CAN ONLY IMAGINE, continues to tell MercyMe frontman Bart Millard’s story, taking inspiration, in part, from one of the band’s hit songs.
“Bart Millard (John Michael Finley) is living the dream — sold-out arenas, a devoted fan base, and a thriving career. But behind the spotlight, Bart’s past threatens the family he’s built, especially the fragile bond with his son, Sam (Sammy Dell),” a synopsis reads. “When hopeful newcomer Tim Timmons (Milo Ventimiglia) joins the band for their biggest tour yet, he unknowingly brings a renewed gratitude to Bart’s life through their unlikely friendship.”
Bond explained how a moment with God led her to create the movie.
Related: I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 Cast Explains How Movie Explores ‘Grief, Gratitude’
“I had this — I wanted to call it a Holy Spirit epiphany. I was just, I’m just a vessel. I’m a media missionary and I just got…like a still, small voice of God hitting me when I was listening to the song ‘Even If,’ and I was weeping,” she explained. “It just meant so much to me, and right then and there, that little, still small voice…it was clear that, ‘You, Cindy, need to make a movie using this song as the foundation.’”
She experienced something similar when God first called her into creating faith-based movies.
“I literally had a Holy Spirit epiphany to make a series of iconic movies based on iconic Christian songs to replicate that anointed worship experience that we have in church, but instead inside a movie theater. That was the basis,” she said.
Ultimately, her heart behind these movies is to bless people.
“[I] want to bless people abundantly with this movie, which I know it will the first one did, and this one will even more,” Bond said. “The first one, certainly based on the song, ‘I Can Only Imagine,’ is about the experience we’re going to have when we see Christ someday after we’re with him. But the song, ‘Even If,’ you know, that’s the lyrics in that song were born out of true-life experiences that Bart and Tim lived.”
She continued, “To apply into our lives as we’re living on earth today, the hills and the valleys, trials and tribulations we all go through, and how to manage through them. That God is in the fire. God is in the storm. He never leaves us. He never forsakes us and that whatever we’re going through which we all do.”
Deuteronomy 31:28 says, “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
Movieguide® gave I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 a +4, the highest a movie can receive. The review reads, “I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 is a beautiful, powerful, wonderfully acted movie of faith and family. The movie has many dramatic, emotional, uplifting moments. The musical interludes beautifully portray the story’s high points, character arcs and spiritual themes. All these elements reflect a strong Christian, moral worldview.”
I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 is in theaters now.
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