Alongside my husband, Eric, and my two older kids, Elise and Casey, I walked out of the dimly lit theater and into the warm radiance of a sunny afternoon. What I’d just experienced was one of the most beautiful odes to motherhood I’d ever seen. I was overwhelmed with emotion, streams of tears running down my cheeks. Elise noticed I was crying and asked me why. “It’s a happy cry,” I told her. The honest truth was, as a mother, I finally felt seen.

This scene is what took place at the Van Wert Cinema directly after we watched the movie Unsung Hero, which tells the true story of the Smallbone family when they moved from Australia to the United States in the early 1990s. If you’re not familiar, the Smallbone family includes three Grammy-award-winning Christian artists, For King & Country (brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone) and Rebecca St. James (their sister).

If you haven’t seen the movie yet, I HIGHLY recommend it! Among the incredible cast are Joel Smallbone himself (portraying his own father, David), executive producer Candace Cameron Bure (DJ Tanner of Full House fame), and a wildly talented supporting cast of both seasoned and rising actors. I don’t want to give away any spoilers in this blog, so instead, I’ll share what I took away from the movie.

Co-Creating with The Creator

There is a distinct difference between merely creating on your own and co-creating with The Creator. What I mean by that is that it’s obvious when a creative work has been inspired by and created in partnership with God – put simply, it’s just better.

In an interview with Joel about the making of Unsung Hero, he described it as “the epitome of a passion project.” Producing the movie was truly a family affair, with each immediate member of the Smallbone family making a cameo appearance on screen and contributing in several other ways off-screen.

“I don’t know how to do life any other way than together with my family,” he said. “We’ve always subscribed to the notion that the closer one gets to their own heart and creativity, the further it reaches out into yours.”

I believe it was this authenticity and ultimately, the filmmakers’ motivation to rely on and glorify God, that has led to this movie striking a chord with thousands of moviegoers – and it’s only just the beginning! In its opening weekend, beginning on April 26, Unsung Hero was the #2 movie in the United States, and on Mother’s Day weekend 2024, it held its own at the #3 spot.

But for the team behind the movie, it’s not about the stats or the profits – it’s about expressing gratitude to their family, especially their mother, and to God for providing for their needs in a time of uncertainty, struggle and dashed hopes.

God Sees the Unseen

This is the theme that resonated so deeply with me. As a mother, I often feel that much of what I spend my time doing every day doesn’t matter much. I often feel overlooked and underappreciated. Sometimes, just surviving another day or figuratively keeping my head above water is just about all I can manage. Helen Smallbone, the real-life inspiration behind Unsung Hero, beautifully articulates that, in God’s eyes, this is not the case.

Spot on, Helen! Couldn’t have put it any better myself. It also brings to mind 2 Corinthians 4:18: So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Closing Thoughts

I am so thankful that the Smallbone family created such a lovely tribute for their “mum” Helen. It is truly one of the best movies I’ve ever watched! What a beautiful gift and reward for all those years of sacrifice and unconditional love on this side of heaven.

BUT at the same time, I want you – yes, YOU, the person reading this – to know that every time you do something, big or small, to share God’s love with others, you are storing up your treasures in heaven, as Jesus told us in Matthew 6:20. No amount of money, fame or power in this life can hold a candle to these eternal rewards you will receive someday, by the grace of God. It is all worth it.