Ally and the 20/20 Vision: Vol. 27

You know you’re doing something right when someone tries to poison you. The girls and I have been here in Chiang Mai with Steve for two weeks now and getting settled. We are finding routines and rhythms in work and school and brushing off our rusty Thai phrases. It is good to be back and to see our teammates and ministry leaders--and especially to be together as a family! We are really missing Samuel, yet we know he is happier to be at UMASS than here in steamy Thailand.

Our arrival has coincided with an extremely busy time for Create. Create’s GCRC (Global Resource & Communications Center) where I now work is getting ready to launch a massive, worldwide campaign to reach many new people groups with media (see 20/20 Vision below). With this increased activity has come a lot of personal and corporate warfare. In this week alone two of Steve’s students were hospitalized, two of Create’s hard drives totally failed and many of the staff have been gripped by a respiratory illness. Rachel, who has a peanut allergy, has been served two unmarked meals filled with peanuts by kitchen staff who should know better. Also, some of Sam’s school funding that we were counting on was inexplicably cancelled by the University.

We remember, however, that we are here by the clear direction of our Heavenly Father, and are making James 4:7 a daily practice: Resist the devil and he will flee from you. After all, like I told Rachel, you know you’re doing something right when someone tries to poison you!

School of Frontier Media Outreach

The awesome lecture phase is over and amazing outreach has started. Every year the School of Frontier Media travels to an unreached people group and produces evangelistic media tools for that people. This year, the school is going to a very sensitive area. The girls and I have been asked not to go to limit the number of westerners this time. That means we will be in Chiang Mai for about three weeks without Steve, who really knows this area better than we do. Steve is currently working on the script for the film he will co-direct with Jason, a Create veteran. Please pray for:

• the right actors, locations and helpers for production
• continued good heath and proper food for Steve’s diabetes
• energy and focus for the long days
• unity and joy for the team
• physical and spiritual protection
• wisdom to carefully declare God’s glory in a place where his name is not known.

20/20 Vision

The Lord has led Create International to launch a new program called the 20/20 Vision. There are over 160 people groups worldwide with over a million people who are completely unreached. Since most of these groups do not have the scriptures in their language, and large portions of their populations are illiterate, media tools are extremely powerful in communicating the gospel--especially films made specifically in their heart-language and culture. Create is now partnering with ministries, churches and Christian media professionals in Hollywood willing to commit to making two films a year for the next eight years. In this way, by the year 2020, every single unreached mega people group will have an evangelistic film in their own language. Already film professionals are making plans to come to Chiang Mai for training in cross-cultural film-making next year. We have been asked to be serve in key roles as part of this important initiative. Exciting!

Call2All Global Congress

The Lord has opened a door to get the word out about the 20/20 Vision to a large number of international ministries and professionals. We have been invited to present at the Call2All Global Congress in Los Angeles in late November. The Call2All is an annual partnership of hundreds of international organizations working to complete the Great Commission in our generation. Create will be running the Congress’ first ever Media Track, with seminars and workshops every day teaching missions workers how to effectively utilize media and evangelistic film-making. Because we are heavily involved with the 20/20 Vision planning and with training in future cross-cultural film programs, our presence at the Call2All is vital. A welcome secondary benefit is that we will also be able to see Samuel for Christmas and Steve will be able to see his primary care physician. Regarding the 20/20 Vision and Call2All please pray:

• that the Lord would continue to bring more partners to see the unreached world reached with the gospel
• for our finances. Our registration fees are now covered, but we need to pay our airline tickets, rental car, meals and accommodations in LA.

Lately, new supporters have been filling in the gaps left by those unable to continue their support. Consequently, we are holding steady at about 76% of our support as we have been for about a year. Unfortunately, the largest area of funding not covered by our regular support is travel costs for special projects. Our current need is for $7000 to come in over the next two weeks and another $3000 to come in before mid-November. Will you prayerfully consider providing a special project contribution for the Call2All event? Perhaps you have been waiting for an opportunity to provide a timely special contribution?

We would love to see several new partners and churches cover the $1500 short fall in our monthly budget which would also allow us to save for these special projects that come up each year. Regardless, God has assured us that as he leads he also provides for you as well as us. Thanks for joining us on this journey! We pray that God will continue to remind you of how extraordinarily blessed you are to be in His service.

Directions to Donate

1. Please make your check out to "YWAM"

2.) Please do not write our names anywhere on the check. IRS regulations require that they return the check to the donor if a name is written on it.

3. Include a Post-it or separate note with your check indicating that the check is for Steve & Allyson Baidwin (our name serves as our account number).

4. Mail check and note to:
YWAM (Accounting)

P.O. Box 3000

Garden Valley, TX 75771-3000

Your contributions are tax-deductible and you will receive a receipt from YWAM. If you prefer to give online through automatic deductions, contact us for the necessary forms. Thanks!

Allyson's Imminent Arrival: Vol. 26

In truth, this one should be titled "Allyson, Rachel and Abigail's Imminent Arrival," but that seemed a bit long. Finally, Steve can now count the days until Allyson and the girls leave for Thailand on one hand. Please keep them in your prayers as they pack, prepare, and travel. They will arrive in Chiang Mai on the evening of Wednesday, September 7^th.

In the meantime, Samuel will be starting his sophomore year at UMASS Amherst in early September and Allyson will help move him into his new off-campus apartment this coming weekend. Rachel and Abigail have already successfully started their homeschool program for the year that will allow them flexibility during travel. So far so good! There is a lot to do before they leave and they need a lot of grace to get it all done.

Meanwhile at Create Thailand, the School of Frontier Media lecture phase has been going very well as we wind down and enter our last month. We are now focused on preparing for our film production outreach to our top secret people group here in Asia. Steve will be co-directing this film with the very talented Jason of New York. Presently, there is a lot of project preparation including planning and scriptwriting so we would be most grateful for your prayers. We will share more details closer to departure if we are able.

Steve just celebrated his 44^th birthday with his colleagues at Create Thailand, and he is grateful to report that he is in excellent health despite coping with the dietary restraints of diabetes. He is pictured here with Jaz with whom he shares the same birthday. Thanks for asking about his health and for keeping him in your prayers as he continues to adjust his lifestyle accordingly.

Lastly, we have attached Create International’s latest newsletter full of great stories about the work we are doing here with the ministry (Allyson even contributed to the writing of it). We'd like to call your attention to the page that mentions the Call2All conference http://call2all.org, which is one of the largest missions event on the planet. We have been chosen to help represent Create International at this event in Los Angeles in late November/early December for a week. We are excited for this service opportunity. As a bonus we will back in the States for Christmas to see Samuel and the rest of our family before returning to Thailand by the end of the year. Please pray that we will:

1. have the necessary funding for the roundtrip travel, accommodations, conference expenses, rental car and other necessary expenses above our regular budget

2. be well equipped and prepared to serve God through this ministry at this conference and find favor with many potential future missions partners.

   Go here for a PDF version you can read: http://www.createinternational.com/images/downloads/CREATE_ENEWS2011(low-res).pdf

   If you would like a higher quality version of this newsletter sent to you, let us know and we can email you a copy.

Directions to Donate

1. Please make your check out to "YWAM".

2. Please do not write our names anywhere on the check. IRS regulations require that they return the check to the donor if a name is written on it.

3. Include a Post-it or separate note with your check indicating that the check is for Steve & Allyson Baldwin (our name serves as our account number).



4. Mail check and note to:


YWAM (Accounting)
P.O. Box 3000
Garden Valley, TX 75771-3000

5.) Your contributions are tax-deductible and you will receive a receipt from YWAM.

If you prefer to give online through automatic deductions, contact us for the necessary forms.

Training in Thailand: Vol. 25

Harold Bussell was fond of saying “An expression of gratitude is an expression of dependence.” * It's true. We want to thank you for your faithfulness in reading every word of our newsletters, for praying for us regularly and fervently, and for contributing your hard-earned cash for our ministry work. Without your contributions we would not see our material needs met sufficiently to continue. This year your sacrificial giving has allowed Steve to train Indians in India and to be supported as he serves full-time at Create Thailand. Soon Allyson and the girls will join him there while Samuel remains in college in Massachusetts. Most of all we covet your prayers as the work we do is fraught with challenges that are only resolved spiritually. You are literally sending us to the front lines of a spiritual war, and without good supply lines from back home we would be cut off and defenseless.

As a staff-person on the School of Frontier Media (SFM) Steve is serving as a confidant, coach, facilitator, teacher, trainer, correspondent, videographer, editor, scriptwriter, encourager, gopher, mediator, and chief bottle-washer. That's a lot of hats. This intense six-month program officially began on July 1^st and it's been full speed ahead ever since. Steve is hard at work on long days ensuring the international students have a positive learning experience. Our hope for this program is to train and equip other missionaries with media skills and knowledge that helps them to better proclaim the Gospel to others. Mostly we expect to encourage people who will share God's heart for the peoples of the world, and be willing to go to the ends of the earth to obey God's call on their lives. To paraphrase Ralph Winter, we could try to put out the raging fire by ourselves with a small bucket of water, or we could go recruit a hundred firemen. This SFM is part of how Create International recruits more firemen to put out the fires for those who have not heard the Good News. Consequently, your prayers and contributions are helping to multiply the power and effectiveness of this media ministry around the world.

The students this year are literally from four different continents. Adewole is from Nigeria, Africa; Martha is from Egypt, Middle East; Angelica is from Columbia, South America, Trifena is from Indonesia, Asia; Aman is from India, South Asia; and Angela is from New Zealand, Oceania. Our experienced and amiable school leader Sameh is also originally from Egypt. In fact, Steve is the only one involved in this training program from North America. Please pray for Steve as he will be teaching on story-building and scriptwriting for evangelistic films from August 1^st through the 5^th. He is motivated to provide the best, most relevant teaching he can in a short time.

Pray also that these students will make the most of their time here and get a bigger picture of what God has for them in the future. Your dollars and prayers have made it possible for Steve to be serving these students right now, helping to equip and train them for their missions service. You are making an eternal impact on both their lives and the others with whom they will share the gospel in four corners of the world. What could be better than that?

In the meantime, Allyson is holding the fort on Cape Cod, getting prepared to move to Thailand, and setting Samuel up with an apartment near his university. Everyone is looking forward to the next stage and excited to start with homeschool and Thai language study. Allyson and the girls depart for Thailand on September 5^th.

Looking ahead to later this year, we'd love to tell you the specifics about our upcoming outreach location, but we can't. For the safety of our staff and students, the project partners, and the people group in the film we need to keep all mention of it quiet until production is completed. We can let you know that it is in Asia and it is a people group with whom Create has been praying to work with for over twenty years. The time has come and we are very excited to be involved. Please keep us in your prayers regularly and often as we approach our departure later this year. We need all of your prayers for safety and the success of this top secret mission.

Our transition in accounting services from Ripe for Harvest to YWAM has regrettably not gone as smoothly as we would have hoped. This has resulted in a several months of diminished income since March. We have also noticed that many contributors checks were returned because our names were written in the memo rather than on an enclosed note or Post-It. Please see additional details below when sending contributions.

Contributions above your regular giving that you send now will be used to make up the present deficit, help get Allyson and the girls to Thailand, and saved for our upcoming outreach film project. We also welcome any special contributions to help us furnish our new home, provide a car in Thailand, and toward the upcoming outreach costs.

Thanks for joining us in this special mission. This newsletter will self-destruct in thirty seconds.

* Lord, I Can Resist Anything but Temptation, page 156.

Directions to Donate

1. Please make your check out to "YWAM".

2. Please do not write our names anywhere on the check. IRS regulations require that they return the check to the donor if a name is written on it.

3. Include a Post-it or separate note with your check indicating that the check is for Steve & Allyson Baldwin (our name serves as our account number).



4. Mail check and note to:


YWAM (Accounting)
P.O. Box 3000
Garden Valley, TX 75771-3000

5.) Your contributions are tax-deductible and you will receive a receipt from YWAM.

If you prefer to give online through automatic deductions, contact us for the necessary forms.

Vol. 24: Steve Leaves for Thailand

Depending on when you read this, Steve is perhaps driving to Logan airport, boarding a plane for London, or in transit to Thailand. The British Airways flight leaves Wednesday, June 8th at 7:05 pm and after a seven hour flight, Steve will enjoy a fifteen hour layover in London. Then it's back up and over in an eleven plus hour flight to Bangkok, and another hour flight up to Chiang Mai, arriving finally in the early evening of Friday, June 10th. Training in preparation for the School of Frontier Media commences on Monday the 13th—coincidently also Allyson's birthday!

Steve had a physical last week, and we were a bit surprised to learn that he is diabetic (Type II) and hyperglycemic. Whereas this creates a significant challenge during this transition, we feel the call to do God's work at this time takes precedence. Nevertheless, this will create some special prayer concerns that are addressed below.

Praise God for:

* courage and enthusiasm to be returning to Thailand

* Samuel finding both a job and an internship for the Summer after a successful freshmen year at UMASS Amherst

* an exceedingly successful year of school and activities for the girls and a wonderful part-time job for Allyson to help meet our expenses that has greatly blessed our furlough

* the funding to provide one-way flights to Thailand

* a timely diagnosis of diabetes

* a beautiful season of church deputation and presentations

* God's abundant grace during this challenging time of transition.

Please pray for:

* safe and uneventful travel that includes the arrival of both Steve and his gear in Chiang Mai on Friday night

* wisdom and perseverance to cope with significant dietary and lifestyle changes

* Steve to find a great doctor in Chiang Mai knowledgeable about diabetes and able to help with the various blood tests and ongoing treatment

* access to the appropriate prescriptions and pending overseas medical insurance

* Allyson and the family during their ongoing furlough in Falmouth

* an increase in funding both ongoing and for special needs such as the homeschool tuition, media outreach in the Fall, and roundtrip flights at Christmas to come back and see Steve's doctor and Samuel who will remain here in MA to pursue his education

* focus and humility to serve with God's power in the School of Frontier Media to the glory of God.

Lastly, thanks for your faithful prayers and contributions. You can see that your prayers are needed now more than ever to ensure our ongoing success in this ministry. We are so honored to contribute to God's pioneering work in media for missions. With great gratitude, we also thank you for your contributions that have allowed us to continue the work we love and long to do for our Lord.

May these lyrics from the Charles Wesley hymn “O, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing” (1780) help inspire you as they have us to keep on falling in love with Jesus.

O, for a thousand tongues to sing

My great Redeemer’s praise

The glories of my God and King

The triumphs of His grace

My gracious Master and my God

Assist me to proclaim

To spread through all the earth abroad

The honors of Thy name

So come on and sing out

Let our anthem grow loud

There is one great love Jesus

Jesus, the name that charms our fears

That bids our sorrows cease

‘Tis music in the sinner’s ears

‘Tis life and health and peace...

Vol. 23: Time of Transition to Thailand

The fact that 86% of the Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists of the world do not even know a Christian, simply must change. What are you doing to help that change? asks Greg H. Parsons, Global Director, U.S. Center for World Mission. We want to thank you for your partnership with us that makes it possible to contribute to this great global task together.

In that spirit, Steve recently had the privilege of returning to Indi* where he taught the basics of video production to students eager to apply their media knowledge to missions activities in Indi*. Working closely with dear friends on the Create Indi* staff, Steve also acquired additional footage needed for the M*rw*ri evangelistic film. Please pray that the M*rw*ri voice-overs needed for the important puppet show segment can be acquired soon to complete this project.

Steve also had the privilege of traveling with Dave Sweet of Hamilton and working with his colleagues Ajay and Sunil who contribute video to Good News for Indi*. While in Bhop*l, Steve, Dave and Sunil collaborated on a video portraying the Parable of the Ten Virgins, which you can see online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vphPuZG5e4. This video will be used as an evangelistic and a teaching tool by local churches. Pray that the Christians in Indi* with these ministries will not grow weary or faint in proclaiming the gospel to their neighbors. 

Our deputation is rapidly winding down and we are returning to Thailand this summer. Steve will return in early June to serve as a staff person in the School of Frontier Media training program with Create in Thailand. Allyson and the girls will remain in Falmouth, MA with Samuel and the Orfitelli's for the summer and then join Steve in Thailand in early September. Three month separations are never desirable, so please pray for grace during this time apart for the whole family. Please also pray for the necessary funding to make this big transition to living in Thailand for the next couple of years.

Samuel will be enjoying his summer break as he prepares to return to UMASS Amherst in the fall as a sophomore. Samuel has secured an off-campus apartment and an on-campus job in the college's IT department. He is currently looking for an internship or employment for the summer break. Lord willing, we will see Samuel at Christmas time for a brief family reunion. The hardest part of our journey is not having him close by. Please pray for all of us that God would bless our separation from Samuel and his pursuit of a degree in Computer Systems Engineering and Linguistics.

Meanwhile, our support development continues at a breakneck pace. We have never seen the inside of so many churches, and are really grateful for the reception from congregations in the Northeast. Thanks to everyone who welcomed us and attended our presentations and film screenings. We had so much fun seeing you at these events.

We still need to broaden our partner base and significantly increase our support in a short-time. We are asking you to pray specifically for us and work with us to help us meet our goals. We are praying for people who would willingly serve as our advocates while we are serving overseas. Will you pray faithfully and regularly for us? Would you be willing to keep our ministry visible before your local churches? How about introducing us to new friends to help us broaden our support team? Pray that God will raise up more advocates and active partners for us as we continue our support development.

With our remaining time we are sending out hundreds of letters to everyone we know with our prayer card and an invitation to partner with us in prayer and financial giving as people are lead. If you have not yet received this new prayer card (as featured here), it may be that we do not have your current address. Please contact us and we'd be happy to send one to you. Please prayerfully consider how can you be involved with us and our work to see the Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists of the world not only get to know some Christians, but to truly know Christ as Savior and Lord. Hallelujah!

The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become 

the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah,
and he will reign for ever and ever.” - Revelations 11:15

Please note both our new website and our new sending agency to process our financial support. 

Spring Prayer Requests

Monday, March 28^th, Steve will be flying to India (with Dave Sweet of Hamilton) to train Indians in Jaipur for Create India and to acquire the last bits of footage needed to complete the film the team started shooting there last year. Please pray for:

- safe and uneventful travel (particularly with some tricky timing on the trip home)

- that all equipment will arrive safely and in one piece

- focus and energy for long, hot days teaching and shooting

- our ability to be a blessing to our Indian brothers & sisters

- favor getting everything in the field to finish the film

- health, wellness and proper hydration

- for joy in the Lord and strength to serve Him as he sees fit on this trip.

***

Thanks, team! We are so grateful to have you praying for this trip. Additional ongoing prayer requests can be found at http://7Lampstands.org/pray

"Retaliate with Love" coming to North Shore

North Shore churches have united to provide an engaging evening of evangelistic video. Both First Congregational Church of Hamilton and Middleton Congregational Church are pleased to announce a screening of Create International's most recent evangelistic drama “Retaliate with Love.” This powerful example of Create's work is a film in the Shan language, featuring Shan actors, and subtitled in English. It was shot in 2009 in Northern Thailand and the Sh*n State of Burm*/My*nm*r.

"Retaliate with Love" is an exciting evangelistic drama made for a specific group of people in Southeast Asia and used by ministries there to share the gospel with these historically oppressed people. The story centers on a young man who undergoes a hazardous journey from Northern Thailand into Brma to discover the whereabouts of his missing older brother.

Two Screenings:

Friday, March 18 at 7 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Middleton, 68 Maple Street, Middleton, MA 01949 - www.middleton.org

Sunday, March 20 at 6 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Hamilton, 624 Bay Road, So. Hamilton, MA 01982 - www.fcchamilton.org


Filmmakers Steve & Allyson B*ldwin now serve with a YWAM ministry called Create International in Chi*ng M*i, Th*iland producing evangelistic films in the language and culture of unreached peoples worldwide. Most recently they were producing a film in Indi*.

This engaging presentation will demonstrate how film and videos are being used to reach illiterate and unreached peoples with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A short documentary in English about the Southeast Asian people will also be presented. A Q&A about the film, process and the ministry behind it will follow the presentation.

What are people saying about the film?

“A powerful and moving film! It's wonderful to see how God is working in other countries to change people's lives!” - Tom S, Creative Director

"I loved it. I thought it was well made and had lots of heart and passion and a really good story wrapped around the gospel message. I loved your actors. They were very authentic and you can tell were divinely appointed.” - Jason R, filmmaker

“I appreciate all the work missionaries do nowadays trying to figure out how to let the gospel be born into the culture they are seeking to reach. You obviously succeeded with Retaliate with Love.” - Alynne M, Science with a Mission, www.sciencewithamission.org

"We saw Retaliate with Love last Thursday and were totally amazed. We were able to see first hand another culture, another country, and the unique way the Gospel is presented there. We got to experience on the screen the reality of lives and hearts changed as they trusted Christ as Savior. It was an absolutely powerful story of the love of God in action. It leaves you with an unforgettable memory. Thank you for making the film.” - John & Nancy T

“What an amazingly, culturally appropriate film (I see great potential for this film with Thai subtitles). Having lived a number of years in North West Thailand, the film made us homesick. Trusting this film will continue to show God's glory and life-changing power among people groups still waiting to hear.”- Harry & Audrey B, Veteran Missionaries, Northern Thailand

Please help us spread the word about this event using the link to this blog post. Thanks!