Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
Click on the image to open our 2019 Year in Review pdf or download it and view it later. Then, Zoom in to look closer at the individual images. It’s a large file, but we hope you’ll find it worthwhile!

Happy New Year!
Click on the image to open our 2018 Year in Review pdf.
Zoom in to look closer at the individual images or download it and view it on your device.

The Syrian Refugee Film Project

We would like to invite you to join us in making an evangelistic film for Syrian refugees this coming summer in Sweden.

Who Are We?

We are a team of international filmmakers serving with a ministry of Youth with a Mission. Our ministry is a frontier-mission ministry that has been in existence for over 25 years. We produce evangelistic media in the heart language and cultural style of the least evangelized people groups in the world. God has provided our ministry with many skilled and creative individuals who use media and art to strategically make His message known among the nations. Our vision is to communicate the message of Jesus Christ in creative ways that people can understand from their cultural and linguistic background, using media that can be widely distributed, such as dramatic films. We are also trainers who are using this experience to help students learn how to make exciting, cross-cultural evangelistic films.

What is this film about?

Our film is inspired by the true stories of Syrian refugee families who have escaped the horrors of war by fleeing to Sweden to begin a new life. It is a film about two Syrian refugee women and their journey toward redemption, based on the Book of Ruth from the Hebrew Scriptures. But modernized and set in present day Sweden, home to many of the Syrian refugees in exile from their homeland. It’s a story of faith, miracles and redemption. It’s about starting life again, in a new land, full of hope!

Why is this film a good idea?

There are a number of well-made documentaries out there about the plight of the Syrian people. What we are proposing is not a film about the Syrian people for the world to watch, but a movie about Syrian people, for
Syrian people to watch! This is their story we will tell back to them.

By partnering with the Syrian people we can tell a powerful story about God’s redemption, even in the challenges of resettlement – of being lost and then found. It will be an inspirational movie that will share the Good News of Jesus and give them hope for a better tomorrow.

Along with caring for their physical and emotional needs, the Body of Christ also needs to share the Good News of Christ in a way that Syrians can understand and embrace as their own. Our film will be culturally relevant, tailored just for them. The language will be Syrian Arabic. And the actors themselves will be Syrian!

This film will provide all Syrians the opportunity to open their hearts, find restoration from their broken past, and encounter a true and living God!

How can you help this film succeed?

You can help support the project practically:

Because our cast and crew are all volunteers, we are very much hoping to have help local. This will help keep our film production costs more reasonable.

* Network with our local representatives to help open doors to people willing to help

* Identify local Syrian-Arabic speaking actors to be in the movie

* Provide locations where we can shoot the movie

* Serve some of our meals for our small cast and crew during production (15 to 30 people)

Distribute the completed film to Syrians.

You can also help us financially.

Because making a good film costs money, we and our Swedish team members researched how much it would cost to produce the film in Sweden. We have set a reasonable budget of $25,000USD.

The money will cover costs for:

Actors’ fees

Meals & housing for crew while in country

Transportation for cast & crew to and from locations

Location fees & permits

Props

Post production

Scholarships for Syrian refugees to receive training on our filmmaking seminar (see below)

We’re also offering scholarships to Syrian Refugees

The Syrian Refugee Film Project will include scholarships for our six-week filmmaking seminar where we will train students in the basics of cross-cultural filmmaking. The students will then serve as production assistants on the film. They will have the opportunity to learn practical movie-making skills that could help them secure jobs, in the industry, in the future, and to use media effectively in their ministries.

When & Where?

The entire project will take place from 28 May to 8 July in the Gothenburg and Ljungskile areas on the west coast of Sweden.

Conclusion

We invite you to join us in this effort to bring hope to the Syrian people. We believe your generosity today will make a lasting impact on Syrian refugees’ lives forever. We want to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with them by telling this Syrian refugee story, a story that can inspire change, testify to God’s grace, and
encourage hope for a better future.

Can we count on you to partner with us by giving towards the costs of this film? You can contact us anytime via email rob@gmail.com or telephone +66 82-392-3788. We will be happy to help you start the
process. Perhaps you’re very busy, but already know that you want to donate. You can send funds directly to this bank account.

We look forward to seeing you on our team!

Yours in Christ,

Rob

 

No doubt, you have heard about the auspicious film we plan to make this summer in Sweden? If you haven’t then you need to eat more Kebab, Falafel, and Syrian meatballs! I assume these are all foods found in Syria. My team and I are gearing up for setting the stage, if you will, to rub shoulders with real Syrian people – refugees mostly – to make a film that will bring hope and healing to a people who have needed it for a long time.

Much of the talk about Syria centres around terrible events like the civil war, the Assad regime or a bunch of countries arguing over how we will stop the madness. But, tucked away on a back shelf of dreams flickers a little light, which is being shaped into a full-fledged film script. When the script is done, it will not be just another news report. Nor will it be the 50 kubillionth eye-witness documentary. It will, in fact, be a drama film made for Syrians, with Syrians and by Syrians.

I am impressed with the level of expertise and commitment of our team members. Firstly, we represent seven different nations; this helps keep our cultural perspective broad. Secondly, most of us have lived at least several years outside our own countries; this helps keep our attitudes toward other cultures humble, a key ingredient to making a cross-cultural film like the one we will make. Finally, our teammates are highly skilled in many key areas necessary to meet this type of challenge: script-writing, directing, fund-raising, even the most crucial jobs like: removing duct tape from the side of a building after a shoot, or bringing an actor a glass of water!

One exciting aspect for me is that I get to represent the amazing country of Sweden with all its amazing people and all its amazing nature and long sunsets. Hey! I guess I’m a bit more Swedish than I thought I was. As one of the film’s producers, I spend much of my time emailing back and forth between our global team and our Swedish contacts. And then I email everyone else as I raise funds and camera gear. Occasionally I even get sneak peaks at the script as it develops on that ‘back shelf’.

So, if you’re even half as excited as I am about making a film for Syrians – what an epic thought! – then I invite you to be part of our secret Facebook Group to stay on top of the latest news. Just send me an email or Facebook message and I’ll add you to the group.

The Darby Family

There are no igloos in Thailand

After inviting a young Thai couple for dinner recently, we decided to play a game of Charades we had brought from Sweden. We figured, “Hey! The cards are illustrated, so everybody will understand the word even without knowing Swedish.” We realized after pulling a few cards, however, that there are no igloos, polar bears or Northern Lights in Thailand!

This Newsletter is dedicated to my father Dan Darby (see lots of pictures here) who died of lung cancer. I was fortunate enough to arrive back in Angels Camp in time to be with him before he left us to be with Jesus. He died two days later, on 9 November, 2013. – I love you Dad! Thoughts on our first year in Thailand When I was a boy, I never imagined I’d be driving down the road in Thailand trying to find poinsettias for my Swedish wife! You can never underestimate God’s plans for you life, can you?  Eleven months ago Veronica and I rolled our two children and ten pieces of luggage through Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport to being our journey to Thailand. When we arrived in ChiangMai we we expected to confront major culture shock, but thankfully it hasn’t been bad at all. However, one of my biggest shocks has been the price of our car. When we sold our fairly new, clean car back in Sweden we thought, “This should be enough to get us a really decent car in Thailand. But we were wrong; we actually paid more for our 1996 Toyota Corolla here in Thailand than what we sold our 2003 Skoda for back in Sweden! If that doesn’t let the air out of one’s financial tires, I don’t know what does. But let’s exit this road of complaints so I can share one of my hi-lites after moving to this good land. Now, this may sound a bit shallow, but one of the best things, so far, about living in Thailand has been the Ice Cappuccinos. They are so yummy, and sweet! On a hot day – which is most days in South East Asia – an Ice Cap (or Capu-bon which is the Thai nickname) provides one of the most satisfying tastes in the world. And the cool thing about buying an Ice Cap at a small cafe is that I get to practice my Thai language a lot, which has been our goal for this first year. Click the word to see and hear “Iced Cappuccino” in Thai The Thai people are always willing to stop and help you learn their language. They’re also very inquisitive. I’m hoping that, as our language progresses, these conversations and friendships will lead to deeper talks about Jesus, and life, and everything that entails. (Watch year 2 for details.) It’s tempting to skip language learning, and get right to “ministry”. But we’ve heard too many stories about how that shortcut leads to a dead end. Think about it. Would you really want to get to know someone who moved to your country, if they never cared to learn ‘your’ language? Language learning is ministry! Even so, I am humbled by how gracious and patient the locals are with us as we try to learn. For Rasmus, This first year seems to have gone quite smoothly. In the beginning he had a hard time feeling comfortable in his new school setting. It’s an international school, run quite differently from his Swedish school. Still, he has finally managed to make some good friends. He just recently invited 14friends to his birthday party. We’ll take that as a good sign that all is well. Lucas started Kindergarten this year. He has actually had a harder time making friends, mostly because he gets rather shy when he’s in large groups. Believe it or not, I was that way when I was his age! But, just as Rasmus has made friends, Lucas too is becoming more social among his classmates, especially since returning from a month in the States.  Really, all it takes for Lucas is to have enough time to get his social motor warmed up. Both boys are doing quite well learning stuff at school, even if their learning styles are quite different. And we have made a real effort to speak both our native languages with them so that they are fully bi-lingual. Now, if only we can get them exposed to more Thai kids so they can learn a third language. Veronica’s first year has been more challenging than when we lived in Sweden.. duh! She is finally experiencing a bit of what I experienced the past thirteen years in Sweden, which is, she is now the one who can’t get her sentences out fast enough to keep up with the conversation. Still, I’m impressed that she can read Thai already, but I can’t! She started taking on a couple of projects at School of Promise, a Christian Thai school near our house. The school was started as a way to prevent trafficking, and has around 90 kids enrolled. As for me, I recently travelled to Southern Thailand with a team of around 15 people to make a short, drama film for the Southern Thai Buddhist people group. The entire film was shot on the Southern Thai peninsula, in their local dialect, with all indiginous actors. The film is called ‘The Dream’, and it tells of the struggle to escape bad karma by trying to gain merit through doing good works. ‘The Dream’ is in the final editing stages and will be uploaded to Indigitube.tv when it is finished. You can browse all of our films and animations there. As a family we’ve enjoyed learning to adapt to a new culture together. We’ve been applying the 40% rule – They say that when people move to a totally new culture they generally can only accomplish about 40% of what they would normally do in their native land. This has proven true for us here in Thailand, and we find ourselves out of gas at the end of nearly each day. At least it makes for a good night’s sleep!  And that’s just where I am headed after I share one phrase for you in Thai. Suk san wan Khristmas le suk san wan pii mai! – Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!   Friend on Facebook Forward to a Friend Pray with us 1. Finances – Surprisingly, the cost of living here in Thailand is much higher than we had expected, the biggest cost being the boys’ school fees. We’re also praying for a second vehicle, so I (Rob) can avoid the hazards of driving a motorcycle in Thai traffic every day. 2. 40% – Pray that our days won’t leave us so tired, but that we’ll continue to get more done with less effort as we learn how things work here and as our Thai comprehension improves. We’re hoping to see a definite increase this coming year. 3. Safety – Please pray for safety as I commute to work on a motorcycle, safety for our health as we are surrounded by produced sprayed with pesticides (the highest pesticide use in the entire world), for our lungs during the burning season, March and April, and for general safety from insects, snakes and accidents around the house and out in public. 4. Unity – Pray for unity, first between Veronica and I, but also between our work co-workers. It has been good, but we know that Satan loves to cause disunity among us because it hinders all that we do. Here’s how you can help support our ministry: Rasmus’ and Lucas’ school fees for the coming year A car for safe driving because it is safer to drive a car than a motorcyle. We hear about so many workers who get into accidents on motorcycles. Flight tickets We’ll be doing travel for work and furlough trips on regular intervals. And recently we paid $4,000US for flight tickets to visit my father in America. Do you have questions? We’ll be happy to share with you if you’re interested. Just drop us an email. PayPal Bank Deposit USA Bank Deposit Sweden Tax Deductable Donation Subscribeto our Thai Noodles Newsletter Connect with us

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Since quite a few years back I have been convinced that learning the language of the people where you live is a ministry in itself. It shows that you actually care about them and that you are willing to be in a humble position. Besides the obvious fact that it really helps in making communication possible of course. But now when we are in the middle of our language learning it can sometimes feel very dreary. The road to actually knowing a language is long. The fact that the language happens to be Thai doesn’t make it any shorter. Somebody told me it takes seven years of studies before you “know” thai. Who knows?

So even though language learning is essential, it’s not always very exciting and we miss seeing clear results of our labour. That’s why I was very encouraged the other day when Rob came home. He had been at the celebration of Create International’s 25th anniversary and brought home an information booklet including very clear results from their work, film making. It was so wonderful to read about the fruit they are seeing, and to know that we will see similar things shortly! In August Rob will get a sneak peak when he attends their 6 week seminar in film making. He will be able to use the Thai he has learned when the film team heads down to a small village on the southern-most tip of Thailand to make a film for an unreached Buddhist people group. Below are a couple of the testimonies from field workers who have used these films made by Create International’s staff.

In case you missed it, Create International is part of Youth With A Mission. This is where Rob – and possibly myself – will work after our language studies. They produce evangelistic films for specific people groups, in their own language and relevant to the context of that particular culture. I hope you will be as encouraged as I was.

“As a result of distributing 4 million copies of the Mandarin evangelistic and discipleship film, we were told that 10 000 new churches were established.”

– National workers in China

“In North India, over 600 fellowships in four different Muslim unreached people groups were established, in one group alone 7000 awaited baptism-and they were all using Create International’s contextual gathering film to do this.”

– Paul Eshleman, VP Global Coverage in Campus Crusade for Christ

I know, I know. You can’t measure success in numbers – the most important is our obedience to the Lord – but isn’t it great to read about what God is doing?! We look forward to being part of this good work in a few months. Until then, we will keep doing what we know will generate fruit in the long run, studying Thai.

Until next time! (Pope-gan-na!)

My mom gave me a Fuji waterproof camera for Christmas. It was the perfect gift for what happened to me today; I joined the world’s biggest water fight. It takes place in Chiang Mai center, around the edge of the mote, during the Thai new year of Songkran. The water in the mote is free, albeit not very clean! People line the streets and draw up buckets of water to fill large trash bins fomr which they take smaller buckets and fill them and throw them on anything that moves. Others carry large buckets of ice water and throw it from their pickup tricks. The following images are from my experience today. Enjoy!