Have you ever been tempted to start your own business? First read this cautionary tale, especially if you think your ideas come from God.

Telling 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.

The 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.

Fairly early in life, I noticed my brain was weird. By that I mean that I noticed it had a way of looking at normal things from a slightly twisted angle - just twisted enough that it often made me chuckle.

The most important thing is not the work I can do for God. The most important thing is to make God the most important thing.

It 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.

VeggieTales 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.