Skillet frontman John Cooper recently opened up about a profound faith crisis that nearly derailed his music career. He shared deeply personal details about his mother’s final days and the spiritual conflict that followed. Cooper made these revelations during an interview on Allie Beth Stuckey.
The musician discussed how his calling to Christian music was challenged by disturbing visions his dying mother reportedly had about his future ministry.
“I remember I got very serious in my relationship with the Lord when I was 18. And I really believed it with all my heart — I believed God was calling me to play music. It was hard because on my mom’s deathbed, my mom had gotten very into word of faith before she died,” Cooper said. “So we were Southern Baptist, but she kind of was looking for that miracle. She kind of went Kenneth Copeland-ish [American televangelist associated with the charismatic movement], went to some of those things.”
Cooper revealed the painful circumstances surrounding his mother’s final weeks and how her faith beliefs prevented him from saying goodbye.
“And so for the last three weeks that my mom was alive, I didn’t get to say bye to her because she didn’t want us to lose faith. She was gonna be healed. She was in the hospital, didn’t want us to lose faith seeing her like that. And if we came to say bye, that would be an admission of not having faith,” he continued.
The most troubling aspect of Cooper’s crisis came from reports of his mother’s deathbed visions about his musical calling.
“And again, I am never disparaging about my mom; she’s the reason I’m walking with the Lord. So that’s not disparaging; that’s a sad piece of this story. But I knew in my heart I was supposed to be playing music, but I had been told — by people that love me dearly — that on my mom’s deathbed, she’s pumped full of all sorts of morphine or whatever it is that they give to you when you’re in that sort of agony at the end, she was having visions and dreams and whatever, and part of those visions were that one of her sons — me — I was going to lead people to hell through Christian music,” Cooper explained.
Cooper ultimately chose to follow what he believed was his divine calling despite these disturbing reports.
“I was gonna play Christian music and the devil was gonna use me to lead people to hell, and things like that. So that was also kind of over me — it was hanging over me — but I just knew God had called me to it. And I just was, like, I’m 18. This is one of those things, are you going to do what God’s called you to do? Or are you going to — I don’t know. I don’t know if I’m stretching to say this, but it kind of felt like let the dead bury their own dead, kind of a thing. Not that she was dead, but almost, like, I can’t live with that over my life. I know God’s called me to this. And I don’t believe it was real. I just think there were really godly people that were wrong about something,” he concluded.
Cooper’s decision to pursue his musical calling despite these spiritual doubts ultimately led to Skillet becoming one of Christian rock’s most successful bands.
This deeply personal revelation provides new insight into the formative experiences that shaped Cooper’s unwavering commitment to defending traditional Christian beliefs throughout his career.
Movieguide reported that Cooper’s mother passed away from cancer when he was just 15 years old. This event deepened his faith despite leading to dark family struggles, including fights with his father. This tragic loss occurred even earlier than the spiritual crisis he described at age 18. The timeline suggests that Cooper’s faith journey was marked by multiple challenging periods during his formative years.
The early trauma of losing his mother appears to have strengthened Cooper’s resolve to defend biblical truth against what he perceives as threats to traditional Christianity. Relevant Magazine documented that Cooper has become increasingly vocal about his opposition to faith “deconstruction,” which he has called a false religion in public statements. In 2022, he declared, “It is time that we declare war against this deconstruction Christian movement.”
Cooper’s stance against questioning traditional faith practices reflects his own experience of choosing certainty over doubt during his mother’s final days. The Christian Post noted that around 2012, Cooper began noticing changes in the Christian music world. He observed his peers increasingly drifting away from traditional beliefs. This observation likely reinforced his commitment to maintaining the unwavering faith he chose as a teenager.
The band’s willingness to speak boldly about faith in secular spaces has made them both influential and controversial in the music industry. Baptist News Global highlighted that Cooper’s approach to ministry through music continues to reflect the decisive moment when he chose to follow his calling despite the spiritual doubts surrounding his mother’s deathbed visions.
