Most people probably don’t know that Denzel Washington has a Father who was a pastor! He grew up in a world where none of his friends had fathers so right away he realized how fortunate he was to not only have a father but a father who was a good man. Today Denzel Washington is very involved in serving others. He is a spokesperson for Boys and Girls Club, and an Honorary Chairperson for Save Africa’s Children, a Lifetime Founder Member of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund amongst many other things.
His parents ended up getting divorced when Denzel was 14 but that didn’t change the effect that his dad had on him. Even Denzel has wondered if it’s time to stop making his action-packed-one-liner filled movies and become a preacher like his father! His mother was a Gospel singer as well as a beautician. One day while in the salon, a customer saw Denzel Washington and instantly wrote on a piece of paper that one day he was going to grow up and speak to millions. He kept the note in his wallet. I think she was on to something.
Even though he’s won 2 Oscars and been nominated for 5, he still lives by the quote, “Don’t aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference”. He hasn’t always been rooted in his faith though. Like most teens he struggled with doubt which lead him to rebel until one life-changing day during a worship service.
“The minister was preaching, ‘Just let it go,’” Denzel recalled. He said to himself, “‘I’m going to go with it.’ And I had this tremendous physical and spiritual experience. It frightened me,” he stated. “I was slobbering, crying, sweating. My cheeks blew up. I was purging. It was too intense.” Naturally, this scared Denzel who went straight home to call his mother.
“It almost drove me away. I called my mother, and she said I was being filled with the Holy Spirit. “I was like, ‘Does that mean I can never have wine again?’”
Never wanting to lose his heart for Jesus, Denzel started a daily tradition to remind himself to go to God.
“Put your slippers way under your bed so when you get up in the morning, you have to get on your knees to find them. And while you’re down there, start your day with prayer. Ask for wisdom. Ask for understanding,” he said. “Don’t aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference.”
