Have you ever been tempted to start your own business? First read this cautionary tale, especially if you think your ideas come from God.
Phil VischerThe messages our kids receive from teachers, coaches--and even, with the best intentions, from us - can push them toward pride or despair...toward self-righteousness or self-hatred.
Phil VischerI realized I’m not supposed to be pursuing impact, I’m supposed to be pursuing God. And when I pursue God I will have exactly as much impact as He wants me to have.
Phil VischerThe most important thing is not the work I can do for God. The most important thing is to make God the most important thing.
Phil VischerIt is pretty clear in the Bible story that the whale swallowing Jonah wasn't meant as a punishment from God, it was God saving him from drowning. So it was actually provision to give him a second chance. The whale itself was the start of Jonah's second chance.
Phil VischerI think it is valuable to be poked at and I think - and this is obviously where things are headed. It's going to be much harder to be a Christian in America ... which means to be a Christian you actually have to think it's worth it. You actually have to think it through, you actually have to process it.
Phil VischerI looked back at the previous 10 years and realized I had spent 10 years trying to convince kids to behave Christianly without actually teaching them Christianity. And that was a pretty serious conviction. You can say, 'Hey kids, be more forgiving because the Bible says so,' or, 'Hey kids, be more kind because the Bible says so!' But that isn't Christianity, it's morality.
Phil VischerVeggieTales is something that, on paper, makes no sense at all. It is a series of children's videos where limbless, talking vegetables act out Bible stories. Try raising money with that pitch.
Phil VischerIf God gives you a dream, and the dream comes to life and God shows up in it, and then the dream dies, it may be that God wants to see what is more important to you - the dream or him.
Phil VischerThe world doesn't learn about God by watching Christian movies. The world learns about God by watching Christians.
Phil VischerTelling the complete story of VeggieTales would require much more time than we have before us tonight. Since this is Yale, I decided to craft a shorter version of the story, using very large words. Remembering though that I was kicked out of Bible College before I'd had a chance to learn many very large words, I concluded that my only remaining option was to tell the story simply, using simple words, and chance the consequences.
Phil Vischer