Award-winning Christian singer Anne Wilson isn't backing down from one of the Bible's toughest messages. Instead, she's putting it front and center in her new book, arguing that Christians should expect opposition if they choose to follow Jesus faithfully.
Fresh off receiving the Book Impact Award at the 2026 K-LOVE Fan Awards for her devotional Hey Girl, Wilson is turning the page with Rebel: Following Jesus When the World Walks the Other Way, a book she hopes will encourage believers-especially young Christians-to stand firm in an increasingly skeptical culture.
"When you believe in God and when you walk with Jesus, the world will hate you. That's what it says in Scripture," Wilson said in an interview with ChurchLeaders. "I want people to be bold in their faith after reading this book. Especially my generation."
The idea for Rebel began long before the manuscript. Wilson said it grew out of the songs she wrote for her 2024 album of the same name, as she realized the themes deserved a deeper conversation.
"I remember writing that record and thinking there was more than just these songs," she explained. "The Lord was just giving me all these ideas. It was so cool to see God making a way for this book to come to fruition."
Wilson stressed that living as a "rebel" for Christ goes far beyond simply identifying as a Christian or attending church.
"I think Christians can label themselves as a Christian, go to church, do what's good, but not actually walk with Jesus. That's a very different thing," she said.
"When you truly decide, 'I want to obey God. I want to walk with God. I want to follow him. I want to hear from him. I want to hear his voice. I want to have a relationship with Christ how we're meant to be,' there's going to be a level of sacrifice," she continued. "There's going to be a level of something that you have to be willing to give up and step out of your comfort zone and be bold and proclaim the gospel."
That message comes from personal experience. As Wilson's career has expanded beyond Christian venues to country festivals and mainstream audiences-including opening shows for Morgan Wallen-she says she's learned what it truly means to speak openly about her faith, even when it's not warmly received.
"It's definitely hard sometimes to go out there and be the light when you can tell the crowd might not be into it or interested in talking about Jesus all the time," she admitted. "But it's also grown me a lot."
Wilson believes many Christians hesitate to share their beliefs because they're afraid of how others will react.
"I don't think that Christians do a good job of being bold in their faith all the time," she said. "The world-and the enemy-makes us feel like we can't share it. We tend to be more shy about our faith instead of going into our communities, sharing the gospel in love, and being the hands and feet of Jesus."
She urged young believers not to keep the hope they have found in Christ to themselves.
"When you have something that's good and you've experienced it, you don't want to keep it for yourself. You want to share it with other people and invite them into it," Wilson said. "Just be bold to share the gospel. Go out there and share the love of Jesus with people. You never know what seeds you're planting and you never know what could end up coming from all that."
The interview also offered fans a glimpse at what's next. Wilson's expanded album, Stars: Blue Hour Deluxe, arrives July 10 and features a new version of "Still Do" with Cole Swindell, "Maker's Mark" with Drew Baldridge, a live recording of "God Story," and a deeply personal new song, "Me and Jesus."
Wilson revealed that "Me and Jesus" was written after the death of a close friend earlier this year.
"I wrote it after a friend of mine passed away in February, and that song is very, very special to me," she said.
She also reflected on her late brother, Jacob, whose death became the turning point that launched both her faith journey and music ministry. Asked what he would think of everything that's happened since, Wilson smiled.
"I think he would be proud of me," she said. "He was so supportive and he was such an encourager. I'm sure he would be like, 'It's so cool to see what God is doing through that.'"
For Wilson, Rebel isn't simply a book title-it's a challenge to move beyond cultural Christianity, embrace the cost of following Jesus, and boldly live out a faith that's impossible to keep hidden.
