Cooper’s prayer for the album is that it will “speak hope to people who are hurting.” He encouraged Christians not to shy away but to “speak truth into the problems that our society is facing. Don’t remain silent for the fear that people will think that you don’t love them.”
For example, Cooper said,
Many Christians in our society say, “We love them so much. We’re not going to speak against evil. We love them so much. We’re not going to say, hey, you can’t shut my church down while you keep the strip club open. We love them so much that we’re not going to say, hey, you can’t teach young school children radical gender theory. You can’t let boys in girls restrooms just because they identify as girls. Or we love them so much, we’re just going to let everybody do whatever they want.”
“It’s truth that sets people free,” Cooper stated.
John Cooper Says, ‘I’m Not Saying We Shouldn’t Be Polite’
Cooper clarified, “I’m not saying we need to be rude. I’m not saying we shouldn’t be polite. We should be, but the reason we should speak the truths of the Bible is because God’s ways work.”
If Christians “want to see things change in our society, then we have to explain to these young people that the reason they are depressed is because they’ve been told there is no truth, there’s nothing to live for—there’s no hope,” said Cooper. “They’re being told that you can know your own truth based on your feelings.”
“Yes, Christian, be polite. Yes, love people,” he added. “Love demands an action, which is speaking the truth. Live the truth. Speak against evil in the most loving, understanding way that you can.”
Cooper told ChurchLeaders that he is excited for fans to hear the new songs “Showtime” and “Not Afraid” off the new album.
He described “Showtime” as a “fun” but “very Skillet” sounding song that he thinks fans are going to love. “I don’t know if we’d quite done one like it before,” he said.
Cooper said the song “Not Afraid” will remind fans of “old Skillet” because it will remind them of the band’s song “Whispers in the Dark.”
