How Chynna Phillips Chose Christ Amid Marriage Struggles
By Movieguide® Contributor
Singer and actress Chynna Phillips recently opened up about how her choice to follow Christ impacted her marriage with actor Billy Baldwin.
“It’s a primary relationship and when that relationship starts to feel ruptured or damaged, or it starts to feel a little uneasy, that can be terrifying,” she told YouTube followers on Saturday.
Movieguide® reported how the actress came to Christ in her thirties:
“I think there was a part of me that felt like if God truly loved me, all of those horrible things wouldn’t have happened to me,” Phillips explained “On some subconscious level I just said, I tried Jesus and that didn’t work.”
However, after her brother-in-law and his wife prayed over her, Phillips said she felt Jesus in her heart. Phillips is married to Billy Baldwin, and Stephen Baldwin is her brother-in-law.
“The Holy Spirit has a way of just immediately cracking your heart open,” she said. “I don’t remember what they prayed over me but then I stood straight up and said, it’s Jesus from this day forward, only Jesus. I live for Him, He’s my life, He’s my purpose, He’s my reason and I will live from this day forward to serve Him. He’s my God.”
While Phillips believes her marriage is good now, she acknowledges that the couple had a rough few years. But she doesn’t regret her choice to give her life to God.
Phillips said, “I’ve been with Billy for 32 years. But we definitely had the hardest couple years of our lives…These past couple of years have been a real struggle. And I think it’s because, you know, I just took the deep dive into Jesus, and I think that he didn’t quite know what to do with that, because it was kind of all Jesus, all the time.”
“The 55-year-old, who shares three children with Baldwin, emphasized that she is ‘changing’ and ‘growing’ from when she met the FAIR GAME star in her early 20s,” Page Six reported.
“I know that the Bible says that we’re supposed to submit, and they’re the head, and that’s all true…But it also says that the man is supposed to treat the wife like the church and all of that. So I think that I was just struggling with like, ‘Dude, I am not 23 years old anymore…I’m growing, I’m changing, I’m not the same person I was 30 years ago. And I refuse to have the same marriage we had 30 years ago. It’s time for us to mature and grow,’” she said.
US Weekly reported that the couple split for six months, though Phillips never revealed when it happened. They almost divorced in 2010, but Phillips withdrew the divorce papers a few days after she signed them.
“When Billy and I separated for six months and he was out of the house, I was holding on to anger and resentment because I felt it made me justified,” Phillips said.
The couple came to value their relationship enough to stay together. Now, they realize that they need to share a similar passion.
“We did a couple things together… but we’ve never really found that one thing that the two of us can latch on to and do together as a team. And so I’m praying in 2024 that we’re going to find that one thing that the two of us can do together, that feels really fulfilling and that is greater than us,” she said.
“But I think that, you know, for him, it was also like, ‘Well, you’re not into the things that I’m into… You’re not into politics, you’re not into wrestling, you’re not into the philanthropy thing that I do,” the singer shared.
Phillip remains hopeful they can find a way to pour into others and enjoy it together.
“It’s bigger than just date night, or going on some trip,” she clarified. “We really hope to find something that we can do in philanthropy that is going to help other people,” she added. “That’s a beautiful goal that we have.”
Baldwin supports numerous charities—Action Against Hunger, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Padres Contra el Cancer and several more. It’s possible Phillips will help him support these organizations, or the couple will find or create a new philanthropic foundation to help people in need in 2024.
