Donnie Wahlberg used to think Christianity was a list of rules. Now the BOSTON BLUE star says giving his life to Christ is the single most important thing he’s ever done — more important, even, than raising two sons he’s proud of.
Over the past year, Wahlberg has talked more openly about his faith than at almost any other point in his career, crediting a deepening relationship with Jesus for changing how he sees his marriage, his career and himself. He’s shared it on Instagram, on podcasts, and even in a rap verse. Here are 21 times he put that faith into his own words.
1. On his greatest accomplishment
“So of all the things I did in my life, just in the last year, I gave my life to Christ and that’s the most important thing of all the things I did,” Wahlberg told a young fan at a Forrest Frank concert.
2. On what matters more than fatherhood
“So I’m a dad, and that’s important, and I raised my sons, and they’re good men, and I’m proud of a lot of things I did, but it doesn’t matter as much as giving my life to Jesus, like you did, right?” he continued in that same exchange.
3. On why he believes he’s going to heaven
“Why am I going to heaven? I pray that I am,” Wahlberg said on George Janko’s podcast. “I hope that I am, but I would only say because Jesus Christ is my Lord and savior and it’s by his grace.”
4. On watching THE CHOSEN
“In THE CHOSEN, you know, we’re watching, and it’s like, I’m crying at this moment, and I’m crying at this moment, and I read this in the Bible, and now I’m watching it play out, and I’m like, ‘Oh my…I know this moment,’” he said of the show.
5. On how Jesus taught, rather than answered
Wahlberg said watching the apostles doubt reframed something for him: “He’ll give them something to think about. He’ll give them a question so they can grow, right? Not just feed them the answer.”
6. On seeing himself in the doubting disciples
“I started to see it, see the whole thing in a different way, the whole series,” he said. “They’re us. They’re us. And I never knew that. I never knew that.”
7. On his deeper commitment this past year
“It’s really in the last year that I really have committed myself on a deeper level,” Wahlberg said, per Hello! Magazine.
Related: Donnie Wahlberg Calls Wife Jenny McCarthy His ‘Cheerleader’
8. On feeling empty despite success
“I felt at the bottom…everything to the outside world looks perfect and I was empty,” he admitted. “I can’t do it anymore without Him. I’m missing something in my life.”
9. On how faith has changed him
Asked what his faith has done for him, Wahlberg said simply, “It doesn’t make me not me. It makes me a better me.”
10. On church as a kid
“Church as a kid didn’t help me plug in, right,” Wahlberg told Janko. “I could go to church and feel good. I would be happy when I went to church, but I felt like I was performing a good deed, you know. I wasn’t going there and truly understanding.”
11. On what Christianity actually is
“Religion in my life…is about rules, restrictions, regulations, right?” he said. “And I think Christianity in itself is faith, obedience, right?”
12. On obedience as a “joyous sacrifice”
“But I think that obedience comes… it’s a joyous sacrifice. It’s not a rule, like, you will never listen to this again. It just kind of happens. Because I want to build the relationship,” he explained.
13. On his Sunday prayer for strangers
“Happy Sunday!” he captioned an Instagram video. “Heavenly Father, thank you for your love, your grace, your faithfulness and your goodness! Thank you for every person who sees (or hears) this. Whomever they are, whatever they are going through or struggling with, may they know that they are not alone. In Jesus name, Amen!”
14. On reminding fans they’re not alone
The voice-over in that same video reminds viewers, “God is with you. God is for you. God sees you. God hears you. God knows you. God cares about you. God loves you.”
15. On the Bible’s most repeated command
“There is one phrase in the Bible that’s repeated 365 times. Do you know what it is?” Wahlberg shared on Instagram. “‘Do not be afraid!’”
16. On sharing that verse with strangers
“To whomever is struggling with fear today, I know a 15-second reel may not change your life,” he wrote. “I also know that it’s not easy to live without fear, worry or anxiety.”
17. On renewing his faith daily
“Every day can be a season,” Wahlberg said. “We have to choose…[to] wake up and be renewed. And if you don’t in that day, it’s kind of a struggle.”
18. On feeling the Holy Spirit
“I guess what I would say is that there are times when I’m, like — I’m learning, I’m connecting, I feel the Holy Spirit, I know it’s in me, and everything is good,” he said.
19. On the wonder of being renewed in Christ
Wahlberg summed up his walk with God this way: “Renewing in Him is wonderful.”
20. On rapping about Jesus
Jumping into Forrest Frank’s Open Verse Challenge, Wahlberg rapped: “And he’s coming back! How could you ignore the math? Jesus washed every sin in my past, He just cleared every step on my path, So I must do everything that He asks, Obey the Son so I don’t feel the wrath. His love is the best so I pray and I fast, Read scripts when I act, read Scripture like Acts facts — YO!”
21. On date nights built around THE CHOSEN
“Date night for us though typically looks like…we make a big plan, we’re about to get ready, and then we say, ‘Ah, let’s stay in and watch THE CHOSEN,’” Wahlberg told Fox News Digital of nights in with wife Jenny McCarthy. “And then we watch THE CHOSEN. That’s kind of like date nights nowadays.”
Movieguide® has covered Wahlberg’s faith journey closely over the past year, from his Forrest Frank concert testimony to his emotional response to THE CHOSEN. Whatever comes next for the BOSTON BLUE star, he’s made clear that Jesus, not Hollywood, is now at the center of his story.
Read Next: 9 Faith Facts About Mark Wahlberg, in His Own Words
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