Phil Vischer: Letting Go of Your Dream, and Asking “What’s Next?”

Creator of the beloved series VeggieTales Phil Vischer, whose influence impacted generations of children, joins The Pivot to talk about what happens when you build something incredible, only to watch it fall apart. Phil opens up about what to do when you discover that you’re not as important as you think you are, how to let God save you from your own ambition, and how to cope with devastating failure in order to turn around and build the life you were meant for—free from what others might think.

Thought-Provoking Quotes:

“All I wanted to do was make films and I wanted to be one of the good guys. And then I thought, Well, maybe I’m more than just a good guy who makes films. Maybe I’m like the next Walt Disney.” - Phil Vischer

“I don’t like leading people. Which is a bad thing to discover after you’ve hired a whole bunch of people. So my management style tended to be, find the most competent person who liked to be in charge and make them in charge of all the people.” - Phil Vischer

“You make a huge mistake when you decide that God needs you. Bad things happen.” - Phil Vischer

“[I felt like] I wasn’t doing big things for God if I was curtailing my ambition, not expanding it. I had such a view of evangelical workaholism.” - Phil Vischer

“The model I grew up with was if you’re enjoying life, you’re not trying hard enough. If you’re happy, you’re not doing it right. And finally, God got tired of watching me be that way.” - Phil Vischer

“I wrote 80% of every line that came out of a vegetable’s mouth for ten years. So you become somewhat personally attached to the characters you’ve created and are bringing to life with your writing. And then, someone says ‘We don’t need you to write them anymore.’” - Phil Vischer

“I realized that God was saving me from my ambition, that I was pushing a rock up a hill that He never asked me to push.” - Phil Vischer

“What’s your life’s work going to look like? Who’s the model for your life’s work? We pick almost every model in the world except Jesus.” - Phil Vischer

“We always talk about our successes in the church. We never talk about our failures.” - Phil Vischer

“We’re trying to help a generation stay connected to their faith. To throw out the bathwater, but hang on to baby Jesus.” - Phil Vischer

“I think a lot of people that have gone through what Phil has gone through could be bitter and angry, and I’m sure he had his moments. But I don’t get that from him now. I get a lot of wisdom and compassion and definitely curiosity and a sense of ‘What’s next?’” - Andrew Osenga

Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:

VeggieTales

The Holy Post

Walt Disney

Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby

Biola University

Billy Graham

Disneyland

Willow Creek Community Church

Christianity Today

Moody Publishers

Skye Jethani

K-Love

Jars of Clay

Sixpence None the Richer

U2

Wheaton College Radio

Switchfoot

The Ed Sullivan Show

Larry Norman

Randy Stonehill

Keith Green

Angel Studios

John Irwin

Mike Nawrocki

The Dead Sea Squirrels

The Toy That Saved Christmas

Blender

The Apple Dumpling Gang

Time Bandits

Coen Brothers

Wes Anderson

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

The Hudsucker Proxy

Slumdog Millionaire

*Watch this interview on Andrew’s YouTube channel!

*All episode music is by Andrew Osenga.

Guest’s Links:

Phil Vischer’s website

Phil Vischer’s Facebook

Phil Vischer’s Instagram

Phil Vischer’s X

Phil Vischer’s YouTube

Connect with Andrew:

Website

YouTube

Substack

Spotify

Facebook

Instagram

How to Remember by Andrew Osenga

Hold the Light by Andrew Osenga

*The Pivot is produced in conjunction with Four Eyes Media.