Hollywood actor Shia LaBeouf becomes a Christian at his darkest hour. He recalls having a gun on the table and not wanting to be ‘here’ anymore.
As he remembered the darkest days of his life he said, “I had a gun on the table. I was out of here. I didn’t want to be alive anymore when all this happened, shame like I had never experienced before – the kind of shame that you forget how to breathe, you don’t know where to go. You can’t go outside and get, like, a taco. But I was also in this deep desire to hold on.”
Before becoming a Christian, Shia LaBeouf says he grew up in the Jewish culture. But his parents weren’t committed to the faith, and neither was he. Yet, God, in his infinite patience and deep love, presented him with an incredible opportunity where he said “Yes” to Jesus.
He agreed to be a part of the film Padre Pio, where he played an Italian saint who lived in the 20th century. This was the moment where his struggles, doubts, and God all intersected. As he learned to play the role of a saint, his pain and God’s love opened his eyes.
In the midst of preparing for the role, he realized, “My pain made me willing” to seek out the love of Christ. Before this moment, he thought Jesus was a “soft meek” idea that turned him away from God. But then, he had nowhere to go other than the arms of God.
After that dark, ominous night with the gun on the table, he realized God was “This was the last stop on the train. There was nowhere else to go – in every sense.”
As Shia LaBeouf prepared for the Christian role of playing a friar, he needed to immerse himself in the lifestyle of being a friar. He stayed with the Franciscan Capuchin friary of California. During the days at the friary, he was surrounded by God’s presence, and it was then he surrendered his life to Jesus.
Shia knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God led him to this place to encounter his savior. More than anything, this role of a lifetime has given him freedom in Christ and a purpose to shine for God’s glory.
It is unbelievable how God will wait until we are ready to meet him. For many, it’s when we’re standing in our darkest hour, but that shows how our darkest hour is God’s greatest victory.