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Outside the door, Michael is reading the paper. He doesn't come in to mingle with the locals; because he plays an outsider in the film, part of getting in character means keeping his distance.

When Taylor decided to make this film, he wanted a big name, somebody with star power to attract producers. Co-writer Ben Pearson suggested Smith, and things were on the way.

While Smith is certainly a music star, he's never considered himself an actor. Arnold said he knew Smith "had the stuff inside him," but could he carry a film? After going out to Smith's house for a reading, Arnold came away convinced the singer/songwriter could pull off the starring role. "Michael took the project seriously," says Arnold. "He worked with an acting coach for six months to prepare."

In many ways, Smith is like Ethan Jenkins, the character he plays. In the story, Ethan lives only 10 miles away in a wealthy, predominantly white suburb. Life here on Jefferson Street is foreign to him; his life story hasn't prepared him to walk the inner city streets and meet people's needs. He's come to minister to drug dealers, gang members and teen mothers, but his designer clothes, not mention his white face, get in the way.

Smith says playing the role is opening his eyes and challenging him personally—not just to give money to help the poor, but to get involved in real ministry.

"I know I'm involved [in things like that]," Smith said outside the God Almighty. "But this movie makes me realize I can do more. At first Ethan is willing to serve God as long as it's safe. Then he realizes there's nothing safe about serving God."

Carr, meanwhile, plays Jake Sanders, an urban minister who takes Ethan on a down-and-dirty journey that scuffs up his shoes and stretches his faith to the breaking point. He discovers that while God's love isn't always pretty, it's real.

And now Taylor calls for a rehearsal. Jeff and Michael run through the scene. When it's time to shoot, Taylor takes a seat in the kitchen where the monitor is set up. Taylor yells "cut" a lot, but not necessarily because his cast is messing up. Things just happen. Someone bumps into a chair: "Cut!" People are laughing too loud outside the open door: "Cut!" And so on.

A producer is ready to move to the next scene, but Taylor won't budge till until he's convinced it's done right. A few more takes, and Taylor seems satisfied. And now the producer's smiling. I take that as a good sign.

In the film, Ethan is a successful musician, basking in the glow of international celebrity. He's flying high—too high, that is. A drug habit lands him in rehab.

Ethan tries to turn his life around, and ultimately ends up on the staff of his father's wealthy suburban church. It's not long before he manages to offend the congregation by allowing Jake, an urban minister with an attitude, to take the pulpit on Mission Sunday. Jake has a short fuse with folks who write checks for missions but never bother to get their own hands dirty. He tells the wealthy Christians to "keep their damn money." People are offended. Things get ugly. And Ethan is exiled to the inner city.

Thus begins the education of Ethan, with street savvy Jake as his teacher. Jake's methods of serving God's people leave Ethan confused and often enraged. The language of poverty, suffering and survival are foreign to his rich white ears. For Ethan, Christ's love does not include giving a bottle back to a drunk or threatening acts of Old Testament violence when confronting drug dealers.

Ethan and Jake are worlds apart—a white world and a black world. Throughout the film, both men are forced to deal with their prejudices …

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