Episode 6: A conversation with Russell Dietrich about creativity, learning, and mentorship.

Russell and I talk about learning, being inquisitive, and art. He’s a young, dynamic, creative leader. You can find him (when you can travel again) in Urbana IL somewhere near the University of Illinois. He’s also active on Twitter @russdie or on Instagram @russdie

I hope you enjoy this episode. It’s good to be back!

Show Notes:

The Ride of a Lifetime Book

https://www.amazon.com/Ride-Lifetime-Lessons-Learned-Company/dp/B07QW2LHN4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=disney+ceo&qid=1586225105&s=books&sr=1-1

Russell’s Podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/film-lovers-podcast/id1335389147

They Say Hope is the Last Thing to Go

My mother told me those words when she found out she had Stage 4 liver cancer. I thought it was the dumbest thing I’d heard in the long time. First of all, who are they? And…and I thought hearing was the last thing to go. That’s what DOCTORS say. I thought those two thoughts but told my mom, “That’s good Mom. Hold onto hope.” I learned over the course of the next two months that my mom was right!

She knew better than me…her son who is a pastor.

You see nobody hopes for something they already have in full. We hope for something we don’t yet possess. This is true for every Christian. The other thing about hope is that it will never put us to shame. Romans 5:5 tells us that. The old NIV Bible says, “does not disappoint” us. I told my Mom, you won’t open your eyes that side of the grave and wake up and say, “It’s not as good as I thought it would be!” That will never and has never happened for any Christian!! So in those last moments for every Christian, including my Mom, we go from death to life. We go from hoping to possessing in full. We go from sort of knowing to full knowledge. We go from hope to full assurance. And you living for God now…in the here and now… in the end will not cause you to wonder if you wasted your life. You won’t be put to shame as if you’ve been tricked. You will possess all the Lord has in store for all of us…and I for one… plan to have hope be the last thing to go from my life! Thanks Mom for teaching me that lesson with cancer in your liver. I look forward to seeing her again!

Go Forward in the Name of Jesus

My Dad loved saying those words to me when we would talk in the morning. I think it was his way of blessing me and championing me onward in the faith on a daily basis. He didn’t come to faith in Christ until his 40s, but those last few decades he lived for Jesus. He was sick most of my life and struggled through life in a wheelchair, left arm paralyzed, and left leg amputated above the knee. I grew up with a sick dad, but he never seemed to let those ailments keep him down. As he aged, his struggles increased, but again he fought until the end.

I remember the first time I heard him praying for me and our family. He was visiting me at my college apartment in Austin Texas. He went to bed in my room and before he fell asleep he spent time praying for each of his family members by name. His list was long, and his words were many, and he prayed through every member of our family…extended family included. That night left a profound mark on my life. Here was a man with every reason to complain, but instead he prayed. Here was a man who could have only thought of his needs, but he prayed nightly for everyone else.

My Dad went on to live about 13 more years, and I’m sure he prayed daily for me and my family. His family.

So I’ve taken his words and made them my own. We shared a name. We shared a purpose. And now his words are mine…and I offer them to you. I’m confident if you met my Dad, he would tell you, “Go forward in the name of Jesus.”