'Fireproof' Continues to Generate Heat

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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- You don't find many churches making theatrical films. You especially don't find many churches making films starring Kirk Cameron about a firefighter in a crumbling marriage addicted to online porn.

Kirk Cameron stars in "Fireproof," a film he was attracted to for its many themes, he said.

But that's the case for Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia. In fact, the film, "Fireproof," was the church's third movie.

It was also an unexpected hit. In September it debuted at No. 4 at the box office, eventually bringing in $33.5 million and spawning two books: a novelization, also called "Fireproof," which is in The New York Times' best-seller list's Top 20; and a companion journal to the movie, "The Love Dare," which has sold more than 2 million copies.

Last week "Fireproof" debuted on DVD and climbed to No. 3 on Billboard's DVD chart, beating out "The Hulk" and "Saw V," among others.

"You don't often see movies made by churches do big numbers," said Billboard's Anthony Colombo. "Having [distributor] Sony behind it helps. Having Kirk Cameron helps, but for it to come out and do 136,000 pieces [DVDs] in its first week is pretty impressive."

"It should not be working," said Alex Kendrick, one of the pastors behind the film. "All I can say is we prayed for months and asked for it to honor God."

Kendrick said that Sherwood's pastors gathered for prayer two years ago and asked God to give them an idea for their next movie. They were just coming off making "Facing the Giants," a movie shot entirely in Albany on a $100,000 budget. It starred no professional actors -- just members of their church -- but made $10.2 million at the box office and sold 250,000 copies on DVD, launching the church into the national spotlight.

The church leaders lit upon the idea of troubled relationships. "Families and marriages are crumbing and we want to do something about it," said Kendrick, recalling the idea's genesis.

"God give us the idea. We had no clue what would happen with it."