The Details You Want To Know | Hawaii 2013

Aloha!

So if you missed our announcement we're moving back to Hawaii on April 4th to continue working with YWAM Honolulu.  

I've tried to anticipate some questions you might have, so here's my attempt at that...

What are you going to be doing out there?  

Jess will be serving as a receptionist in the office for the first three months and also helping prep for the upcoming School of Biblical Studies (SBS) which will start in July.  In her spare time she will  be studying and preparing her teaching on Ephesians, which she will teach in June for the Chronological Bible Core Course. 

Then from July-December she will be a student for the Old Testament portion of the School of Biblical studies, which she was suppose to do last year but because of a shortage of staff she had to serve as staff, instead of be a student.  

Then from January 2014 to March 2014 Jess will be academic staff for the New Testament portion of the SBS.  She will be teaching some of the New Testament books and grading students homework.  

Jim will be putting his creative talents to work, by helping YWAM Honolulu with their marketing, fundraising, web-presence, social media and public relations.

We will try our best this year to give a better look into our daily lives so you can see more of what we're doing on a day to day basis.  

Oh, Hawaii... what a rough place to serve the Lord...

Was that a question?  We do hear this one a lot.  We are indeed WORKING in Hawaii, we don't live at the resorts, we don't sit on the beach everyday with fruity drinks with umbrellas.  We are about 3 miles from Waikiki, but our living conditions are anything but luxurious.  

Let me remind you that YWAM is a volunteer organization, that means you're more than welcome to come and serve alongside us in Hawaii :)  

Why do you do what you do?  

A photo of Jesse one of the Fall 2012 DTS students sharing the gospel in Nepal.  He is returning to YWAM Honolulu to be a student in the upcoming School of Biblical Studies.  

The photo above is why we do what we do.  

Jesus' last words to His disciples are recorded in Matthew 28:18-20

¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  

YWAM is still mobilizing missionaries to preach the good news of Jesus Christ worldwide and we love playing a role in that.  

What is YWAM?  
YWAM is an acronym for Youth With A Mission.

YWAM is an international, interdenominational Christian missions organization.  It was founded in the 1960's by Loren Cunningham who had a vision to see young people released into the mission field.  (This was something that was not happening during that time.)

It currently has over 1000 operating locations in 180 countries.

Their mission statement is: "To know God and make Him known."

You can read more about the organization from their website.

How long will you be there?  
We've made a commitment for another year.  So at least until the end of March 2014.  

Where exactly will you be?  
We live and work at the same location, nestled in Manoa valley in Honolulu.  

If you'd like our mailing address let us know.  

What about the ministry you started in Maryland?

The Bakers Ministry board of Trustees met on January 17, 2013 to discuss the current standing and future of The Bakers Ministry.  

Currently the bible study that we started in Maryland is still going strong.  New members have joined the study and is under the leadership of Mike Shoemaker who is doing an excellent job.  

The prayer and worship night that we had started did not continue successfully and we are looking at new options to restart a similar meeting under new leadership.  


How do you get paid?

YWAM is a volunteer organization.  Everyone in the organization from the founder on down raises their own funding.  

We currently have a team of people that recognize our calling, believe strongly in what we are doing and what we want to continue to do and are generously donating to our ministry on a monthly basis.  We currently have monthly donors giving from anywhere from $10 a month to $450 a month.  

We will also continue to look for photography work while we are in Hawaii which we use to supplement our income.  

If you are interested in partnering with us financially please let us know.  If you want to give a one time gift you can use the paypal donate button below.  All donations are tax deductible.  You will be giving to the BAKERS ministry 501c3 to help us with our living expenses while we are serving with YWAM.  

If you are interested in partnering with us on a monthly basis please contact us at jimjessbaker (at) gmail (dot) com.  We will get you an ACH form so that your donation will be deducted automatically from your bank account once a month.  


Do you expect that I will give financially?  

Nope, if you like what we're doing and feel led to contribute then that's great!  If we ask you about the possibility of making a donation, just be honest with us.  We do our best to be up front and try not to turn this into a shady sales pitch.  If you don't want to, or can't make a donation, being up front with us helps us a lot.  

Is it hard living off support?  Don't you feel like you're begging people for money?  

Is it hard?  Yup, at times.  We've made obvious sacrifices to live the way we're living.  But we believe that the trade off is worth it.   

We don't feel like we're begging people for money, we fully believe in the work we're doing, that's why we're doing it.  And we're asking people to partner with us in that work.  There are many other non profits that require donors to function.  

We are blessed by a current group of supporters that have expressed that they are truly blessed to give, and are invested in the ministry we're doing.  

If we were to be asked "What would you be doing if money wasn't an issue?"  We would be doing exactly what we're doing.  


Missions in Hawaii?  Aren't you suppose to go to Africa?  

We've been to Africa.  Besides sending out missionaries, YWAM also runs training schools that aim to equip people to be more effective in their ministry wherever they are.  We are working with the training aspect of the organization.  YWAM Honolulu has a rich history of sending out long term missionaries to South East Asia.  

Last year the School of Biblical Studies has 12 students, none of which were American.  We had students from Canada, Korea, China, Japan, Finland, Congo, and Switzerland.  The nations are coming to us :)  

You move around a lot, do you have ants in your pants?  Really what's that about?

It's true, we do move around a lot, this will be the fourth state we've lived in our 3 years of marriage.  And we just finished up a 6000+ mile 3 month road trip.  

We believe that life is about two things.  Loving God, and loving people.  (Luke 10:25-28)  We believe that God has called us to live a unique lifestyle that allows us to be available to go where He calls us to go, when He calls us to go.  So we are being obedient to what we believe the Lord is calling us to.  In hindsight, we can see clearly that everywhere we have gone, God has sent us there to invest in relationships with people.  


You guys make me uncomfortable, can't you just settle down and get a "real job"?   

We believe, for US, as Christians, that there is no realer job than the hands on teaching and equipping of people, so that the good news of Jesus Christ can go all over the world.  We are doing our best to live by our values of making God our number one priority.  keep reading... 



Am I expected to live like you two?! 
Nope.  Jesus model for life and ministry was to only do what He saw the Father do.  (John 5:19-20)  Our hope is that you would find peace in being obedient to whatever the Lord is calling YOU to do.  He created us each, with a unique calling and then gave us an unique personality, talents and giftings to fulfill that call.  Ask Him if you're walking in the fullness of what He has for you.  If He tells you you are right on track, then find such peace in being obedient and don't live by comparison to anyone.  If He tells you to pack up, sell your house, and move to a third world country, then we encourage you to be obedient because God's plan is the best plan for your life.  

You probably know if there are areas that you need to obey Him in.  We've learned along the way that its a lot easier to obey Him if you TRUST Him.  Trusting Him and His plan is always best, because He always has our best interest in mind.  Trust is something that is built.  It would be much harder for us to trust God on the level that we trust Him today, five years ago, or even one year ago.  We've walked through a lot individually and as a couple, we've stepped out in faith many times and every time we've seen God's constant miraculous provision for our lives.  Each time we experience His provision for us, it gets easier to trust Him with bigger things.  

Jesus tells us to seek FIRST the Kingdom of God and then promises us that He'll take care of the rest.  (Matt 6:25-34)  We feel like God has told us to do our part (seeking first the kingdom) and He promises that He will do His part.  He has and continues to do so.  


So what's after this?  Do you have any kind of long term plan?


Great question!  In a nutshell, no, other than to continue serving Jesus wherever we feel He is calling us.  (Refer back to You move around a lot, do you have ants in your pants?  Really what's that about?) 

This year will be indicative of what happens next for sure, but we are open to the Lord's leading as to what is next.  We like Hawaii and can see making it our home, but we are not making any firm commitments one way or another about what happens beyond March 2014.  

How can we be praying for you? 
Pray for a healthy and productive next year.  And pray that ministry that we do overflows from a place of intimacy with the Lord and a thankful heart.  

What are some of your NEEDS?
We are always in need of more people partnering with us financially.  

Here's an EASY way to help us out financially if you shop on Amazon.  Basically buy through our affiliate link, you pay the same but we get a 4% commission.  Details here.  

We would like to get a car this year so that we can have more of a life and have the ability to more easily get away from where we work and live a little more easy.  

Engage:  Have a question we didn't answer?  Unclear about something?  Ask it in the comments section and we will respond!