Actress Jodi Benson, finest recognized for voicing Ariel in Disney’s animated traditional The Little Mermaid, just lately spoke out about her expertise with the movie and what religion classes she’s discovered alongside the way in which.

“It has been life-changing over the past 35-plus years now, being a part of this movie and creating this character,” Benson informed CBN’s Faithwire in a recent interview. “It has been an unbelievable journey.”

She added that she is “extremely blessed and grateful” that the Little Mermaid, which was launched in 1989, continues to be well-liked as we speak regardless of acknowledging that it was presupposed to be a “one-and-done job.”

On the time of the movie’s launch, Benson famous that Disney’s animation arm was struggling and that a lot was using on the film’s success.

“We weren’t conscious of the stress and the whole lot that was put upon this movie and what the expectations had been,” she mentioned.

In keeping with Faithwire, Benson shared that she realized that she needed to get into musical theater when she was about 8 or 9 years outdated.

“I simply had one thing inside me that was like, ‘I wish to give this a attempt to see what occurs,'” she recalled. “I did not know if I used to be any good.”

Years later, she landed roles in varied initiatives, together with The Little Mermaid, Toy Story, and the animated Disney TV sequence Sofia the First.

“It is simply really been an unbelievable religion stroll,” Benson mentioned. “Clearly, God knew that He had my profession lined up 10,000 steps forward of me.”

Regardless of rising up in a non secular house, Benson shared that she didn’t notice that she might talk with God straight till she was older.

“After I met my husband whereas I used to be 18 … he is like, ‘You recognize you possibly can have that non-public relationship,’ and I knew that I had that, so it was simply the belief of: It is not a faith,” the actress mentioned. “It actually is that this ongoing, 24-seven relationship that I can name out and discuss to any time of the day or evening.”

When requested what her largest religion lesson was, Benson mentioned it was realizing that her life is in God’s palms.

“He is in management, and I am not, and that is the important thing,” she mentioned. “He is not solely God of my life, however He is director, He is casting director, He is Producer, He is the whole lot.”

“I simply have to stroll within the room. I simply have to do my finest and throw it on the market and let it go,” she continued. “As a result of I will be a part of the issues I am presupposed to be a part of, after which I am not going to be a part of issues I am not presupposed to be a part of.”

Final week, Benson launched her new e-book, Part of My World: What I’ve Learned from The Little Mermaid About Love, Faith, and Finding My Voice, by which she shares some behind-the-scenes tales and hopes to encourage those that learn it.

“Perhaps they’d learn a narrative, and it could make them take into consideration one thing they’ve by no means considered earlier than,” she mentioned. “Whether or not it is eager about, ‘Is there the next energy?’ ‘What does that appear to be?’ ‘Am I all that there’s?'”

A live-action model of The Little Mermaid is about to be launched in 2023. It stars singer and actress Halle Bailey as Ariel.

Photograph courtesy: ©Getty Photographs/Kevork Djansezian/Stringer

Milton Quintanilla is a contract author. He’s additionally the co-hosts of the For Your Soul podcast, which seeks to equip the church with biblical fact and sound doctrine. Go to his weblog Blessed Are The Forgiven.