DeVon Franklin - The Hollywood Commandments

This book is dedicated to everyone who wants to be free.

Free to be who God created you to be and

do everything you were created to do.

To those who want to go further than you ever thought possible in achieving your God-ordained destiny.

To those who are tired of living beneath your potential and crave the success you know is within your grasp.

To those who want peace in the depths of your spirit... this book is for you.

I was basking in the afterglow of one the biggest successes of my career when God spoke to me and told me it was time to get out of the boat. It was the spring of 2014, and the movie Heaven Is for Real, starring Greg Kinnear, had just shocked Hollywood by making almost $30 million in its first five days. I was senior vice president of production for Columbia Pictures, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, where I had been an executive for nearly ten years, and I staked my career on my belief that Heaven Is for Real would be a box office hit.

I came to Hollywood because I wanted to be a producer and make entertainment filled with faith and hopeentertainment that could inspire the world like Heaven Is for Real. I wanted to do that by running my own production company. I never had the desire to work long-term as a studio executive, and in that moment, I realized that God had been using my time as an executive to prepare me to run my own company one day. Apparently, that day had come sooner than I thought! As I felt that nudge in my spirit to get out of the boat, I knew what it meant: I had to quit my job.

In the book of Matthew in the New Testament, theres a famous story that has always inspired me. Its the story of Peter getting out of the boat to walk on water to Jesus. Jesus had sent his disciples out on a boat to sail the Sea of Galilee after they had finished ministering and while he went up to the mountaintop to pray. When he finished praying, it was the middle of the night, and he walked on water toward the disciples boat. When they saw Jesus walking on water, it scared them so much they thought he was a ghost. Jesus said (Matthew 14:2729, NLT), Dont be afraid... take courage. I am here. But Peter was the only disciple to speak up and challenge this claim, saying, Lord, if its really you, tell me to come to you, walking on water. Jesus said, Yes, come. In that moment, Peter got out of the boat and did the impossible: he stepped onto the water and walked toward Jesus.

This story was the perfect metaphor for what I was feeling because I was constantly praying, Lord, do you have more for me? Is the dream you gave me ever going to happen? In this moment, it was as if Jesus was saying, Come. But it also stopped me in my tracks. I realized that my studio executive job was the boat, and Jesus was my dream. In order for me to reach my dream, I was going to have to step completely out of my job. I was going to have to risk everything.

Thats the scariest thing about the story of Peter walking on water: he had no guarantee that the water would hold him. He risked drowning. He had to have faith that if Jesus was calling him to do this, somehow the water would transform underneath his feet into a firm surface he could walk on and not drown. But he wouldnt know until he stepped out of the boat onto it. Peter had to make a leap of faith. In the same way, I wouldnt know if I would fail or succeed until I had the faith to step out of my own boat and quit.

CALLED TO DO MORE

Have you been there? Felt like God was calling you to something more, something maybe a little scary and unfamiliar but that would take you a step further into your purpose, your destiny? We all have at one time or another. Its always unexpected, and it can be confusing. Theres no manual or set of rules that tells you what to do when God taps you on the shoulder and whispers, Its time to make a move. You might feel fear, exhilaration, or both at the same time. I know, because thats how I felt. So, believe me, I get it.

On Easter Sunday, I got an email from the chairman of Sony Pictures, Amy Pascal, that read, I hope youre feeling great! I was. It was the second email she sent me over the weekend congratulating me on the success of Heaven Is for Real. I felt something stir in my spirit when I got this email, and thats when I heard God say, loudly and clearly, Its time to go, youve got to get out of the boat.

So instead of just replying back to Amys email by saying, Yes, Im feeling great, I took this opportunity to seize the moment. I asked her if we could have a meeting. She replied, Yes, definitely.

On the day of the meeting, I nervously walked down to Amys office and waited for her to finish a call. Then her assistant said, Amy is ready to see you, and my heart was beating out of my chest. Amy is a force of nature, one of the most successful people in the history of Hollywood. She greeted me warmly and congratulated me again on the success of the movie. I sat down on the couch, mustered as much courage as I could, and said, I love you and love Sony, but its time for me to go.

Surprised, she said, What do you mean?

Its been a blessing to be here and help create value for the company for almost ten years, I said. However, I cant keep creating value that Im unable to participate in. I came to Hollywood to start my own production company, and I know now is the time to do it.

There was a beat of silence, and I knew it was my chance to add the kicker:

And I want Sony to fund it. I want you to give me a first-look deal so I can start my own company.

Whew! Scripture says, So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God (Hebrews 4:16, NLT). God gives us the authority to come before Him boldly to ask for what we need, so why be afraid to go boldly before a man or woman to ask for what we need? In other words, step up and ask! So, I did.

Amy looked at me for a long moment, and finally she said, Well, okay. Yes, Ill do it! We value the contributions youve made to this company, and we dont want you leaving this studio. So, well give you a deal under one condition: you cant negotiate with anybody else.

I quickly replied, Okay, as long as the deal is good. She laughed, we hugged, and I walked out of her office practically walking on water myself.

DESTINATION: DESTINY

Talk about stepping out on faith! I had no idea whether it was going to work or whether Amy would say yes. But I wasnt concerned. It was time. Too often we ignore the alarm that goes off in our spirit when its time to make a career or life move; instead, we keep hitting the snooze button. How many people have snoozed away their destiny? I refuse to be less than I was created to be, and I endeavor every day to discover who I really am and to achieve the destiny God has promised me. I also felt the way everyone feelsthe way you feelwhen youre stuck in a job that doesnt fulfill you. You know you can be more and do more, but youre afraid. Theres the mortgage and the car and the kids and the uncertainty... and before long, practicality suffocates your purpose.

When those choices confront us, we have to ask ourselves a question. Do we want our gravestone to read, Lived a properly practical life, or Lived a life of passionate purpose? I know what I want carved on mine. When you decide that following your purpose passionately is the most important thing, you break out every skill, every bit of wisdom, and every character strength at your disposal, and you go for it.

During this time, I realized something revelatory. The skill set, knowledge, and wisdom that I was relying on to enable my transformation into a film and TV producerindustry understanding, creative competency, marketing and publicity knowledge, political maneuvering, contract negotiationwere not qualities that I had developed in church! Even though Ive been a Christian all my life and grown up in the church, a place that shaped my character, my worldview, and my faith, I didnt learn those lessons there. I learned them in Hollywood, in what some people would call the belly of the beast. Yet those Hollywood-honed skills were what would help me achieve my destiny and live according to Gods will.