Inspiration
Through my Christian dating newsletter, I wrote a satirical article about how every woman in church has heard the line “God told me you’re my wife” — but I’d never actually met a man who admitted to saying it. That irony sparked the episode. I wanted to explore where that line came from, how it became folklore in Christian dating, and what it says about how we mix faith and romance. The absurdity and sincerity of it made it the perfect story to launch the Christian Dating Be Hard series.
What It Does
This episode takes one of the most infamous lines in Christian dating culture and reimagines it through a mockumentary lens. It gives viewers permission to laugh at how we sometimes over-spiritualize our love lives — while also recognizing ourselves in the humor. The episode blends satire and sincerity to start conversations about discernment, dating advice, and church culture, all in a format that’s relatable, bite-sized, and hilarious.
How We Built It
As always, I start with the jokes — pushing boundaries as far as I can. My creative process usually goes from writing the scripts to testing the lines with my wife. If she doesn’t question whether I still know Jesus, I know I haven’t gone far enough yet.
From there, I either jump straight into animating the clips using Google VEO or build out the musical atmosphere first. Music and sound are crucial to me as a filmmaker; they elevate the story and shape the comedic timing. For this episode, I finished the clips first and added the soundtrack last — intentionally searching for something that felt like a circus clown show to capture the playful absurdity. I found it on Artlist, and the moment I heard it, I knew it fit.
Challenges We Ran Into
The biggest challenge was tone. It’s a fine line between poking fun at faith and laughing within it. I wanted viewers to see that we can critique ourselves with love — not cynicism. Technically, keeping each clip under eight seconds while still delivering a full joke was another challenge. Every word, pause, and camera angle had to count.
Accomplishments We’re Proud Of
This episode felt like a true documentary piece — we approached it as if we were uncovering the mysterious “originator” of the pickup line. Of all nine episodes we’ve done so far, this one remains my favorite. It set the tone for the entire series and solidified the voice of Christian Dating Be Hard — honest, funny, and uncomfortably real.
What We Learned
You can’t push the limits far enough. Christian humor and Christian filmmaking tend to play it safe, but this project showed me that when honesty meets creativity, powerful (and hilarious) storytelling happens. It reminded me that faith-based art can be bold, weird, and deeply human — all at once.
What’s Next for Christian Dating Be Hard: God Told Me You’re My Wife
In the short term, I plan to submit the full season to film festivals, but this episode will always be my showpiece. It’s the clearest proof of concept for what the series can become — a full show that dives into the chaos, charm, and contradictions of Christian dating. There’s a whole world of humor and truth in that space that hasn’t been explored yet, and I want to be at the forefront of telling those stories.ration
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