Christian singer-songwriter and worship leader Brandon Lake—the recording artist behind songs like “Gratitude” and “Graves Into Gardens”—said “The Chosen” left an indelible mark on him and his wife.
“‘The Chosen’ changed my life,” Lake told CBN Digital in an interview with series creator Dallas Jenkins, going on to recall watching the very first episode of the show chronicling the earthly ministry of Jesus as told in the New Testament. “I remember me and my wife watching it, about to turn in for the night and, when He enters the scene, it was as if Jesus walked into our bedroom. The glory of God filled our bedroom in such a crazy way, through the TV.”
“I remember being speechless for probably 10 minutes; it felt like an hour,” the singer continued. “[I] didn’t say a thing and it was like bringing the Word from black and white into full color.”
Lake’s connection to “The Chosen” has continued to evolve. In fact, much of the success of his hit worship song “Gratitude” can be credited to the Angel Original series.
In December 2021, Jenkins released “Christmas with The Chosen: The Messengers,” a holiday special that debuted in theaters. The film featured an exclusive performance of “Gratitude” by Lake.
“‘Gratitude’ just went to the top of the charts,” the singer-songwriter said. “And God has just been breathing on it ever since, and I get to tour this song and sing it with thousands of people and it’s just really cool that ‘The Chosen’ had such a huge part to play in really just one of the main worship songs that the nation is singing now.”
It was ultimately “The Chosen”—and Jenkins himself—who convinced Lake of the song’s importance, and it’s why he’s collaborating with the series again for its upcoming Christmas special, “The Chosen: Holy Night,” featuring new performances by Lake and Andrea and Matteo Bocelli.
“I didn’t think it was necessarily a really special song or a big song,” the worship leader said of “Gratitude.” “But sometimes God brings other people into your life that see things that you don’t yourself, and that is the story of this song. Dallas saw something in this song.”
Lake even recalled a conversation with Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in the hit Bible series. The actor described Lake’s performance of “Gratitude” in the 2021 Christmas special as a “stand out, set apart moment.”
Jenkins, for his part, said he reached out to Lake specifically because “Gratitude” ministered to him.
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Reprinted with permission from cbn.com. Copyright © 2023 The Christian Broadcasting Network Inc. All rights reserved.
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Troy Anderson 
