Chris Pratt, God-Fearing Actor, Shares Instagram Inspiration for Anyone Discouraged

Jan 31, 2016 03:57 PM EST

While riding down an Atlanta, Ga., freeway as a passenger at 3:20 a.m. Wednesday, Christian conservative actor Chris Pratt wrote a quick "don't give up" note meant for downtrodden people, after working nearly 80 hours on the movie set of Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and upcoming film in 2016, Passengers.

Both films, Pratt said in an Atlanta Channel 11 report, were being filmed in Atlanta at Pinewood Studios. And while that means some crazy long hours, Pratt said he's doing what he loves. "It doesn't feel like work. Even though it is."

Pratt shared he's having fun with his career and "overcome with joy and gratitude."

He then shared a special message for those out there still chasing their dreams.

"Fifteen years ago, I felt the same passion I feel today, but I had very little opportunity," he stated. "I had to hustle hard and go hungry. I had to eat sardines and figure out how to get gas money. And I never had a plan B."

Pratt encouraged those following their passion to keep going. "Don't give up. Apply constant pressure for as long as it takes," he said. "It will break before you do. Go get it."

Pratt is a Christian, who previously stated the birth of his preterm son, Jack, in August 2013 "restored my faith in God, not that it needed to be restored, but it really defined it," after both he and his wife "prayed a lot" as they were initially afraid of the baby's prognosis.

Pratt appears to have applied his own advice in his life, given his starring roles in several top-grossing films, including 2014's "Guardians of the Galaxy" and 2015's "Jurassic World."

At a recent charity screening of Guardians of the Galaxy, Pratt interacted with 250 children and their families, and before leaving, stuck around to impart some inspiring words to the kids, many who come from underprivileged backgrounds.

"Take it from a kid who grew up having no money. If you stick to your path, and you believe in yourself and you be courageous enough to be yourself you can grow up, you can be your own Star-Lord," Pratt said.

Pratt consistently makes his views of Christianity, and value placed on family, a part of interviews. Pratt told Esquire, "I gave my soul to Jesus" at age 19 after an encounter outside a liquor store in Hawaii with a man who told him, "I stopped because Jesus told me to stop and talk to you. He said to tell you you're destined for great things." A month later, Pratt was spotted by a director who helped get him a part in a horror movie, and his Hollywood career had begun. Raised Lutheran, he now considers himself "a free agent for God." Every night before going to sleep, he prays, "Now I lay me down to sleep ..."