'Invite the Holy Spirit': Hollywood Actress Reveals Bible Story That Inspired Her Bold Christian Faith

By the world’s metrics, Jen Lilley is a sure success — but she’s not measuring her accomplishments in accolades and awards; she cares what God thinks of her.

“The Holy Spirit is my very best friend,” Lilley said, tears in her eyes, on a recent episode of CBN’s “Faith vs. Culture.”

It would be easy to dismiss her words as overly saccharine, but that’s not the case for Lilley. Her faith is genuine — an authentic relationship with God that began in earnest when she was just nine years old.

Listen to the latest episode of “Quick Start”

At the time, Lilley’s parents were Catholic, but had become disenchanted with their church. Knowing she was searching, Lilley’s mother’s optometrist told her about his church, an Episcopalian congregation. The family attended the Protestant church and Lilley went to Sunday school, where she learned about the Old Testament story of Elijah and the widow, found in 1 Kings 17.

The “Days of Our Lives” star recalled going home, grabbing her children’s Bible and a yellow crayon, and beginning to read.

Discovering the truths of Scripture in 1 Kings was a profound moment for Lilley, who, alongside CBN’s Billy Hallowell, is co-hosting “Into the Supernatural,” a podcast about miracles and the supernatural realm. The show is debuting Friday.

“I can tell you exactly where I was in my parents’ house when I was reading,” she remembered. “I would go down in this basement, sit in this black chair with my little crayon and, every time I read a line, I would highlight it so that was like my bookmark of where I had read.”

Lilley went on to say she spent a lot of time in prayer, even as a little kid, encouraging believers now to spend time in prayer to God.

“I try to do it every morning or remember when I’m reading my Bible,” she said. “Invite the Holy Spirit to teach you, because that’s His role: He’s a counselor, He’s a teacher. And if you ask Him for understanding, He’ll give it to you.”

You can watch our full conversation in the video below:

Please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.