followHIM - SPECIAL EPISODE - 1st Anniversary Behind-the-scenes Look.

Episode Date: January 17, 2022

Join us for a 1st Anniversary Episode behind-the-scenes look where we consider the dynamic (and high-speed) origins of the followHIM Podcast. The year has brought 52 episodes, over 25 million downloads, world-class scholars, and renewed faith in Jesus Christ. Thank you for being part of followHIM 2021.

Hello, everyone. This is Hank Smith, co-host of the Follow Him podcast with my friend, John, by the way. Today is January 17th, 2022. And we wanted to share with you something that happened on January 17th, 2021. We had just begun our podcast in December of 2020 under the direction of an amazing producer, Steve Sorensen. It was really his idea from the beginning. And Steve and I and Steve's wonderful wife, Shannon, discussed this, brought on an incredible team. And then suddenly we lost Steve on January 17th. Well, what you're about to hear is us, our entire team, about six to eight weeks later, we got together and we wanted to do a little podcast history.

And so we just discussed Steve and his life and what this podcast was doing for us then. And we had no idea what it would do for so many people for that year, 2021. And now we've started even another year in 2022. So I hope that you'll enjoy this little reminiscing and get to know our beloved, wonderful friend, Steve. And we just want to tell his family, his wonderful wife, Shannon, and his children and grandchildren, how much we as a team here at Follow Him love you all. And Steve, we love you. We miss you. We know that you're helping us from the other side. My friends, welcome to a special episode of Follow Him.

You know, we've learned that in section 20 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord says that there needs to be a record kept. So we thought we ought to do a record, a little history of our podcast. So I'm here with my co-host, John, by the way. Welcome, John. Hi, Hank. Thank you. Yep. And we have some new faces that you maybe have never seen before, some new voices you've never heard before. We have our production team here, Lisa Spice, who is incredible and amazing and wonderful. Welcome, Lisa.

And the man who does all the editing of the audio and video, he's a production guru, David Perry. Hi, David. Hello. And we have our director of marketing, Kyle. Welcome. Hello. This is just a part of the team. We don't have our executive producer, Shannon, here. We don't have our social media director, Jamie little bit about him and give a little bit of a memorial to Steve. He passed away unexpectedly on January 17th, and we want to talk a little bit about his vision and his hope for what this podcast could become. So I think, David, you and I were probably most acquainted with Steve out of this group. And I think you more so than me. I've known Steve for about 14 years. In fact, I've become so close to his family. I moved out

to California to be by Steve and assist him with some of his business ventures and family things. And I've just always been so impressed with his commitment to sharing the gospel and studying the gospel. And I've got to know all of his children very well. And as we've talked about, the legacy of Steve is in the power of the word of God. And he's come from a great legacy. His father was David E. Sorenson, who was a general authority, had some great conference talks like don't pedal rattlesnake. Dad grew up on a ranch. And so Steve learned to work really hard as a youth of value work. And his mother was asked by President Hinckley to Torah with him, with her husband, because she was so good with the scriptures. She had this ability to just quote and recite scriptures.

And so Steve grew up in this house of hard work and the word of God. And so he's made it his life passion to do those things. And his focus has been on his family. This podcast was born out of that desire to carry on that legacy and also to bless his children. As we started, he was saying, look, if it just blesses my kids, it's worth it. I got to tell you guys, when he called me, I was in the middle of a really dark, difficult time. I had three members of my family in the hospital. I am just going from hospital to hospital basically every day this and Steve, Steve is so, you know, supportive and kind. And I said, Steve, I'm, I really don't have time for a podcast right now. He said, okay, okay. And

then it wasn't, you know, the next day he called me, I really think we got to do this, right? Like, and it just wasn't like him. It wasn't like him to, to kind of put himself, you know, usually I'm the one trying to call Steve. Usually I'm the one trying to, you know, squeeze into his schedule. And here he was, I knew he was serious about this because he was calling me all the time. And there was a sense of urgency about it. And finally, I think on the third phone call, I said, okay, right. You can't turn the guy down, right. He'll, he's going to find a way to get you involved. And so I, as we started talking details, he said, what's, you know, what do you think? What do you think? And I, I immediately thought of John. One of my favorite parts of life is talking to John about the gospel. We could include a couple

million other people if you, if you want to. So I i told steve let's we got to bring john on um and he was excited about that he thought john brought a lot of credibility just knowledge so that's how john came on and i and then david i don't know when steve you know the same thing hey i want to do a podcast and i was like i don't I want to do a podcast. And I was like, I don't have time to do a podcast before Christmas. You want this done in like in a week and a half. This is crazy. I told them kind of, no, at first I'm like, I just don't have time. But then I really felt pressed upon. I said this, this feeling like I should at least pray about it. You know, at least maybe this is something that God wants me to do. And so I did have a prayer and I felt like I should this, I felt this conviction of like, this needs to happen.

And so when he contacted me the next time, I'm like, yep, let's do it. And I'm excited. And so then things just started going at hyper speed because we, we had to like, come up with the name, come up with the logo, create a podcast. We had to like create an account on YouTube. We had to create a website and then film it and edit it and have it online all within like a week and a half, which is, it was crazy. Yeah. I remember approaching John about it because I knew John didn't have time. And I'm like, John, do you want to do this? And you could tell he's like, can I give up other projects in lieu of this? I said, oh, by the way, we need to get our first one filmed now. Lisa has been my assistant for, golly, has it been two and a half years, almost three years? Three years. I talked to her about it and your initial, you were excited.

I've been dying to get a podcast, especially with you. And then you added John and I didn't know that we needed another come follow me podcast. I think he said his vision was that we could tell the prophet that we were doing it. If we sat across the table from the prophet, he said, how's your family doing? Come follow me. And I remember thinking, well, I don't know. Right. I mean, I have adult kids. Am I doing it well enough? I don't know. He said, you know, there's kids. Am I doing it well enough? I don't know. He said, you know, there's guys like me. This is Steve talking.

He said, there's guys like me who want come follow me to come alive. They want it to come alive. They want it to fulfill the prophet's vision. But when they sit down to do come follow me, they got nothing. It just doesn't happen. And he said, we can help. He said, if people start listening to this one, they might be able to look the prophet in the eye and go, I'm doing it.

And he sent out a letter to some of the guests with his vision of what he wanted to happen on the podcast. It says, we're hoping to have Helaman 3, 29 through 30 as the promise or expectation for this podcast, which reads, Yea, we see that whosoever will may lay hold upon the word of God, which is quick and powerful, which shall divide asunder all the cunning and the snares and the wiles of the devil, and lead the man of Christ in a straight and narrow course across that everlasting gulf of misery, which is prepared to engulf the wicked. And land their souls, yea, their immortal souls, at the right hand of God in the kingdom of heaven, to sit down with Abraham and Isaac and with Jacob and with all our holy fathers to go no more out. And Steve goes on. So that's our challenge to you.

Please help us find the power in the words of this week's Come Follow Me curriculum. I remember talking with Lisa about it too, and just our excitement that we are going to get content out in a manner that people can consume it how they normally do, right off their devices. And typically when clients come to me and they tell me these things that they're going to do, I just say, this is great. Let's move forward. But usually, I'm pushing them to move the ball forward. I'm following up with them. But it was the opposite. Steve was definitely pushing and making it happen. And the fact that it actually launched at the start of January,

it blew my mind. I mean, there was a website up, the things were moving, and I was totally surprised that he could actually get it going in a matter of a week, 10 days. It was amazing. I remember telling Steve, I'd like to bring on a guest every time. Just because I would like that. I would like the variety. John and I would love to be able to, you know, throw stuff in, but I would love to hear from someone who really has studied this particular, you know, subject, First Vision, Book of Mormon, whatever, as their life's work. And Steve really, he was excited about that idea. And so I think, John, Lisa, I don't remember the date that we interviewed Anthony. I found out about the podcast, I think on the 17th.

And we recorded on the 23rd. And then we did our second one on the 28th. So that was pretty fast. I have a text here on December 17th after we had discussed some things. Get ready to start your engines. David Perry will be the showrunner. He says, launch the first show across multiple channels. Unleash Kyle.

That's what he said. Unleash Kyle and then ready? Question mark, question mark, question mark, question mark, question mark. He says, I'm still tossing around easy but powerful URLs. Follow him is the shortest, most impactful leader at the moment. This is going to be amazing. I want to be the iPhone 12 pro max of podcasts. We're building something special. Those texts are part of the record that that's really nice to have. I was thinking last night about how all this came about. And Hank, interestingly, you were dealing with some family tragedy of your own. My mom passed away on December 19th.

We had like a day's warning, come and say goodbye. And that was, I remember that first podcast trying to compartmentalize a little bit. I was thinking last night about, I think it's Stephen Covey that talks about every person needs to live, to love, to learn, and to leave a legacy. And that leave a legacy part is, I hope what we can do to honor Steve and his vision. And as you've all said, using his resources. He had so many things going, but he had this one thing that he had to do before he passed away. He had that urgency to get it started. And I don't know if he had passed away even a week earlier, if we would have been rolling well enough to keep going.

Yeah, I think you're exactly right there. The urgency was not, I mean, he's definitely urgent about things. He was definitely a go-getter about things, but the urgency to get this going in a matter of weeks was, it was even uncharacteristic of Steve, knowing that we're all, it's the holidays and we're all busy people. People dying, but there was an urgency. I know David and I stayed up many nights. I had a real spiritual experience on our first, our first podcast. We kind of just jumped into it, not really having a plan. We're like, okay, let's go. And we kind of just winged it. And so we got back several hours of footage. It's kind of all over the place. And so we had to like kind of piece it together to pull that off, stayed up all night editing that. And it's like three in the morning and I'm exhausted this long week. And I just was like, oh, wow, this is pretty overwhelming. And I just got on my knees and said, Lord, you know, this is really tough.

And I felt like the early saints when the church was first, you know, kind of starting and they didn't know what they were doing. They're just like, okay, we know this is important. We know we're being led and we know we're human. And so we're not doing it perfectly, but I felt the fire of the cause. And I just had this great peace come upon me. And I had this feeling that this podcast is going to make a significant difference. It's going to touch people in a way that normally could not be touched. I read the Book of Mormon every day, and I can get through it usually maybe twice a year or so. I don't make any markings because I try and let the Spirit teach me what's important. And last year as I was reading,

there was a particular scripture that really jumped out to me and has been with me really for a year. And it's the only scripture that I have bookmarked in my gospel library. And I've really pondered and thought about it over the last year. And it's the scripture that David read, Elam in 329 talking about the word of God and how powerful it is. And those who, who will or who may, they, they can lay hold on that word of God. And, you know,

I've thought about that and thought about, you know, how, how do we spread the word of God and, and what does it mean that it's quick and powerful and, you know, quick means it's alive and it's powerful and it's, you know, so to me, that was, that was really touching when I heard David read that. And to know that the word through the podcast is being spread so that those who want to lay hold upon the word of God can, because it's getting out to them now in their language, on their terms, because of this podcast and because of what Steve set in motion. In fact, some of our first sections, three or four of them started with that idea of a sword and a two-edged sword that Helaman mentions. And at first it's talking about cutting joint and

marrow, which sounds like a physical sword, but the one that Helaman mentions cuts through the snares and wiles and the stratagems of the devil. And boy, that is so latter day. That's what we need right now. The podcast, I really want it to be a lot like Steve and Steve was very, very much a come with me, come enjoy. Come take part in this. I'm not going to judge you. I'm not going to condemn you. Come enjoy this. Come be uplifted. That's why I felt there's definitely a sense of gathering, right? President Nelson talks about gathering every time. And there's something about the podcast. That's definitely that feeling, not just the people working on it, but the people who visit

and the people who download it and comment. It's like puzzle pieces coming together. Like it's really important. Like we're gathering important people everywhere. I sometimes picture him in the spirit world. Do you hear about the podcast? David, I don't want to leave you hanging. Anything? President Ballard spoke at his funeral. I thought I'd share a little clip of that. And death comes when it comes. And then we don't try to think about why. We don't worry about trying to analyze why some die fairly young and others linger a long time like me. I'm not anxious to die but I don't mind when it comes. So it's just part of the great plan of happiness and this way we ought to look at it.

In a lot of ways, this is a celebration. He's made this transition with his head held high. And his enthusiasm for whatever was going to happen in life would be the same, I think, the day that parents, whom he honors, and very significantly, the Lord Jesus Christ. So we say farewell for a season. And it'll be relatively short. I just want to, on behalf of our entire team, I want to thank the entire Sorenson family, Steve's mother, Verla, of course, his late father, Elder David E. Sorenson, Steve's siblings,

and his incredible wife, Shannon. Shannon and I have been talking a little bit, and she texted me something the other day that I want to share with you all. I mean, in the middle of this tragedy, she is bearing this up. And I can't imagine the difficulty of this. And as we were texting back and forth, I asked her a question about the last week. I said, how's the last week been given the circumstances? She said, it's been up and down.

But then she just made a quick statement. She said, I am determined to be strong and not waver. She's allowing herself to mourn, of course, but that to me is the Sorenson way. I am determined to be strong and not waver. And we want to thank, of course, Shannon, and then each of Steve's incredible children. We want to pay tribute to them. Jennifer, Angela, Charlotte, Jacob, Benjamin, Peter, Annabelle, Juliet, Steve's grandchildren as well. On behalf of our Follow Him team, we want to thank you for sharing your husband, your father, and your grandfather with us.

And we hope that we can live up, just like you're hoping to do, we can live up to his legacy. Not just what the podcast would become, but what we would become as individuals. And we plan on living up to that so we too can see him in the next life and high five him. And, you know, I want to hear him say again, Brother Hank, it's got to be a win-win, right? Here we go. It's got to be a win-win. The Lord's moving forward. We want to be part of it.

Let's move. Let's jump. I can't wait for that day. And we hope that you know that we have a love for you and we mourn with you. We want to do something special here to remember your husband, your father, and your grandfather. Because that's why this works.

It has way more to do with you than it does with me. It has way more to do with personal achievement, personal success, personal freedom than it does with me. And it's extraordinary. And every time I get to have that conversation with somebody, man, it makes me tingle. And it makes me think, who would be proud? My father. And when I see him, which I will, I want him to pat me on the head and high-five me for giving it my best, right? So we are going to do that.