Battle Plan with Steve Hemphill
Interview With Amber Butaud, 4 The One Studio
Hello, and welcome back to "Battle Plan," a podcast focused on spiritual warfare. I'm Steve Hemphill, and "Battle Plan" is an ongoing discussion of how we put our faith into action. And today begins the first of some special episodes having to do with our TV series, episodic series called "Taking Ground." And I have as a special guest today, Amber Buto from the "For the One" studio in Houston. This is the studio helping us with the filming and planning and promotion of "Taking Ground." Welcome, Amber. Thanks, Steve. I'm super pumped to be here with you today. Oh, so glad to talk to you. Well, Ditto, Ditto. And let's just tell everybody first, give your side of how we met through the NRB convention. What a crazy story. You know, I kind of think this is how life works a little bit, God's all about relationships. So I have a dear friend. Our name is Trity Simmons, and she is the host of "The Christian View." And we had been at NRB doing our NRB things, and she was like, "Hey, we really got to stop by this booth. I really want to meet this guy. I've read his stuff. I've seen his things, and I just really want to go meet him." And I was like, "Yeah, great. Whatever, wherever we're going to go." And then we ended up at your booth, active faith booth, where you had all your books that you've written and the stakes, and you told us all the stories. It was just so great that we realized we were there with Randall Reader, who had moved from LA to literally 30 minutes from the studio location. And it was just so many things. The minute that I heard the stories of stakes, I said that would make an exceptional TV series. Like, that needs to be a movie, that needs to be into some kind of episodic stories. It just never ends. I mean, the stories just keep going and going. And so I believe I said that too that day too. Yes, she did. And then here we sit, what? Two years? Yeah. A couple years later. I remember that was your, that's your version. My memory is when Dr. Trudy came up, and she had, she had sought me out because a friend of mine who's an airplane pilot knew about me and you need to meet this guy, he's going to be at MRV. So that's why, I mean, I don't even know her. She, of course I didn't know you, you were with her. And I can remember meeting her and I said, oh yeah, Jay, the pilot friend, and she said, yeah, yeah, he's what I told me about you. And we talked a minute and then you said, well, tell me what you do. And I told both of you what I did. And I remember you looking at each other and just laughing and that kind of puzzled me at first. And you said to me, everything you just said fits with what I'm doing. I'm building a studio. I've just built a studio. I can't remember where you were. I think you just built the studio then. And that would be a great series to, we'd love to talk to you about doing that. And that was my first impression of you is immediately you thought this would be helpful to people in a successful series. So now we are just finished filming the first episode. So tell us, tell me your part or your version of how we get from that first day to where we are now with the first episode about to come out. Well, okay. Let me say this, Steve, it's so much harder to do this than we make it sound like, right? Like it's so long, like it's such a long process by the time you're like in such an idea of like that, sounds like a great idea to like actual production and post production and then delivery. So it's just been a journey, I feel like, since we met to refining the story off, honestly, and finding it the right way, you know, between different writers and different versions and different filters and lenses that you tell these stories through, you know, being that the content is the way that it is, and also you're very passionate about how things are told in the right kind of way that the delivery is done in such a way that it's done right and good and receivable like you do everything else. Truthfully and done truthfully. That was a big thing. Truthfully and authentically, you know, in a real way, that was very important to you. So that, I feel like has to go through a process and we went through that process. Well, and I made it sound like you said we should make a show and I just went, oh, that's a great idea. I was not interested in that. I was very resistant. You and several others nudged me gently in that direction and I was quite opposed to it, honestly. I felt like I had enough on my plate, I was already busy enough. I didn't want another project to, you know, try to get the money for or whatever. In fact, it's funny once I was sort of convinced that this was what God wanted us to do and that God wanted it with you. And that's another crazy story about how I prayed for a verse on who to pick for the studio because I had other offers. And I will say this, I have never, I don't think I've ever in my life heard more clearly from God because your studio is a newer studio and it was not your goal, we'll talk about that in a second. It was not your goal to have a studio. It's kind of God's nudge in your life to have a studio. And so here I was, offers from, you know, established studios and then talking to you also, but you were going to let me have a little more control and be a part of it so I can make sure it remained truthful and not a lie or a perversion of what God made happen so that just for box office, money or whatever, it needed to be the true story for me. So I remember going to bed one night and praying that God, I've never done this before, give me a verse. That was what I prayed. Give me a verse that helped me to know whether to go with Amber or someone else. And I woke up at five the next morning and I went from a dead sleep to awake and this thought is immediately in my head. When you wake up at five, it's not like you're contemplating something, you know, and then I've decided it was like God put the thought there. I mean, for me, it was very obvious and what I felt like I heard from God was Steve, your ministry is new wine and new wine needs new wineskins and Amber is new wineskins and the other studios are old, old wineskins and old ways. So that was the really confirmation and affirmation from God. So at that point, I sort of said, okay, well, if God wants us to happen, he's going to provide the provision for it. So we just kind of threw it out there to our fan base, so to speak, and said, if you'd like to see this happen, you could donate just for that. And we got in within, I mean, within $400 of enough money, exactly what we needed to film one and only one episode, and then connections started happening and here we are with release coming out. So now go ahead and give your side now that that was my side background part of that. Yeah. Yeah, you know, the whole studio is actually, you know, people are saying to me all the time, like, wow, you're getting to do your dream. This is amazing. It's so great. And I'm like, I've never dreamed of having a studio. I didn't even know what it was, like, I didn't even know what a studio was. So definitely, I've never even been in one. So it's definitely not my dream and not something that I dreamed of. But what I came to realize was it's God's dream to walk out God's dream every day. And, you know, I wake up and I'm like, all right, what do you want to do today? What story do you want to tell today? How do you want to do that? And who do you want to do that? And I don't think we've told anybody the name of your studio yet. It's for the one studio. You know, if I say it directly, I don't know what, I don't know how you could say it more directly than that for the one, the one we all worship in the door and the one worthy of our praise and honor and glory, the only one worthy. So for the one studio, that really got my attention to because you don't see that much in this industry. Yeah, very true. And the name came from when I was when he was asking me to do all this and I was a little like, huh, that's a lot of work, like a lot of work and I don't even know what I'm doing and I don't fully understand. So like, maybe we won't do something else got her. I don't know. Like that's a lot. And he's like, yeah, but would you do all of that for the one person that needs the message that needs to hear what's going to come through that studio? Would you do it all for the one? And I was like, I was kind of thinking we would maybe hit more than just one because that's a lot. And then he said, well, I died for the one. I died for just you. And I was like, well, when you say it like that, sure, we're going to do it. So, you know, the name was, it's always been about the one person that needs to see taking ground to understand God's love for them and the power and the authority that they have within him, that they can stand against the darkness in their life. And so if only one person got freedom from all the work we did for taking ground, I feel like I am pleasing the Lord in what he's asked me to do, even though it's required so much work and time and effort and all of that fight, everything to do it. It didn't cost me my life. You know? And so, one of the most impressive things I remember you saying one day that really struck me is you had been involved for years with a lot of different fundraisers for different institutions. And they would spend, you know, $500,000 and raise $550,000. So there wasn't much net left. And she said, you remember you saying that you could do one $50,000 video and that video could raise hundreds of thousands of dollars if not millions for projects, for missionaries and mission funds. And you'd seen that kind of thing happen. That really got my attention. In fact, in the middle of me wanting to say no to this and struggling with the fact that God kept nudging me this way, I got an email message one day from someone who had seen a little five minute video I did 10 years ago and it's just on YouTube, free. And it said that video changed their life, changed that person's life and it brought them closer to the Lord in a way never known. And I just went, oh my goodness, if I go ahead and do this taking ground series, it will help people after I'm dead and gone. And that's what I want. I want to, I just want to help people. I never did this for the money. I walked away from a good salary to no salary to do this and yet God has gotten us through so many things. So anyway, I interrupted you. Go ahead with the four to one studio and you have other projects. Tell about multiplied and other things you have going on too. Yeah. Well, that's the funny thing is, you know, when I was first getting into this, I, when I was asking the Lord, what He wanted me to do, the word that He gave to me was duplication and multiplication. And I was like, okay, I don't know what that is at the time I was, I was a practicing as a Christian counselor and, you know, I counseled them one at a time and I had appointments all day long and he just kept telling me duplication, multiplication. And I was like, okay, he said, how do you do that, Amber? And I was like, media, like, if I could record this, then not one person hears it, but like, it just keeps, goes around the clue, right? And so that's the root of why I started was to multiply the message of him, whether it was attributes of his, his love, his acceptance, his stories, his words, whatever he wanted to multiply through media is what I felt like I was supposed to do. That's the root cause. Ironically, or God, the first feature film I ever took to theaters name was multiple. You can't make this stuff up. Literally, you can't make this stuff up. And you can get that on Amazon Prime, right? Yes. On the app. Yeah. On the app. Yeah, for the one, this video has their own app. Yeah. So if you go to for the one studio app, you can get it there and that just supports the whole everything. The same like taking ground, he'll be able to get taking ground on the app. And so it's just crazy how God works. I'm just so blessed to be able to just partner with him. He does not have to have us, but he chooses to partner with us. And the fact that we get to choose to partner with the creator of the world is also like those behind and, you know, so getting to do your stories and tell people about spiritual warfare and the power and authority that they have and how you make it, yeah, just so simple. Practical. I try to make it practical. Yeah. You know, and you can do it that people can do it. That's why I thought it was so powerful that if we were to be able to put it into a storytelling film kind of way that people could watch, just not everybody reads, especially this next generation. They're not reading. They're watching. Right. Right. And be able to circle the globe and show people what their authority is. Mm. Yeah, that's probably not going to make the enemy very happy, but hey, you know, we've got way greater power than what infuriates him. Now, you've seen a lot of projects along the way the last couple of years come together and you watched the taking ground group come together and you get a producer come in. Talk just a second about how that looked and how, how, I guess you would say, how smooth did it go going through all this? Again, total God, thank we'd been talking, you and I've been talking for a long time. I'd say for a hot minute about making this thing happen. You know, we've gotten back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, different writers, different people, different things, interview different people, talk to different people, you know what I mean? You had a lot of other opportunities that, you know, have come up and all of that. And we'd be like, Oh, this is it. This is it. This is it. And then it just, you know, God would just show us the just to move directions just a little bit more. Well, I have a guy that works here at Dan Rebotom that has done a lot of things, worked with us in a lot of different ways, and he had a guest one day, we were shooting our show, set life, and he was DP in it. And so he had a guest show up and in comes walking this, this young kid and he's like, Hey, I sure want you to meet Isaac. He's been working with Darren Moore and, you know, all the films and document pictures and all the things and I was like, Hey, how you doing buddy? And I'm like, make yourself at home. Go upstairs because I'm shooting my show. I'm like go upstairs, see how we do here and watch everything. We're happy to have you everything. Well, he sticks around for the day and he's leaving and when he goes to leave, I was like, Hey, why don't you, why don't you come back and sit down and have a meeting with me. Let's talk. Let's figure out what you want to do and where you're headed because he just moved here. And when he walked out that door, I said, I know the Lord's got something for us to work on together. And the time I did not know that it was taking ground, which the name has, we went through a variation of names, which landed taking ground and he came back and set in my office and we talked for a long time and I was just like, what do you feel like God's really asking you to do in this industry and how can I help you do that? And what does that look like? And we just talked through a bunch of things and I said, here's a couple of projects I want to give you. Why don't you read over some of them and let's just talk and just see and as we pray, we'll just pray about it. And then it was just like the Lord said, he's got Steve's project. And we talked and I said, Hey, I think I got, I think I found I think God has brought. Yeah. Do we need to produce this? I came down and met him. By the way, you just mentioned your podcast, set life podcast, you felt like God wanted you to do a podcast too, and you did that and I think you got nominated for some award or something. Tell us about that. That's like one, three awards now and I didn't even know you could win awards for these things. You know, and God was just so good. I mean, we won the Gold Crown Award at IC at VM and it's like the little Oscars for Christian podcasting movie world. And I was actually at the show with our friend Trudy and the awards show because I'm a presenter usually there every year and I'm videoing for Trudy because I'm thinking someone else is going to win and they called my name and I was like, wait, what? I mean, and I just got up there and I was like, I would like to stand up here and tell you like, you know, I've just hoped to get this and like, but I've never even considered it. And I feel like every angel in heaven is rejoicing right now because it's God's win. It's like his victory is getting honored and seen for just saying yes. I just happened to say yes to the greatest person, the greatest being the greatest, everything to me. I call him my best friend. So that's like a person to me. I just said yes to him and we ended up winning, you know, multiple awards for the show. So I'm just, yeah, I'm just humble because it's nothing I ever set out to do. It's everything he wanted. And I just am thankful that he's getting honored and doing that. You know, there is, as we wind this down, I'm going to say, there's something special about knowing your where God wants you to be. I had, you know, like you, I had a, I didn't need to do any of this. I had a successful life going on without getting in the ministry of any kind or writing books. And, and I didn't, you know, you got to sit still to write a book and I'm pretty high energy. So that's really hard for me. Amen. I have six books, you know, and we have others in the, in the works. So I will tell you that I have no regrets of doing this. I know you feel the same way, even though there, it's, it's still hard. That didn't mean there are hard days and meeting deadlines and, you know, we're through, working through the financial parts of it. None of it's easy, but it's not easy if you, you know, it's kind of like it's the same old story. Either way it's hard. Choose God's way. And it feels right. And he helps you through one of my board members for active faith said to me, if God gives you the vision, he's going to give you the provision. And I believe that now I'll talk later with Isaac, the, the young man you talked about was Isaac for our, I'm going to, he's probably going to be the next one I go ahead and bring on for this special battle plan series on taking ground, but Isaac was the one you talked about that day. I know he mentioned that everything went very smoothly on a very small budget. I mean, we had just enough, everybody, some people took pay cuts, other people, you provided some housing for people to help keep our expenses down. We appreciate that. And then other people, some of the film crew of the, I don't know, 13 or those, some of those work three days for no pay and the rest of them worked at a discount. They love the story so much, they wanted to see it, get put on film. And so only God can make all that kind of stuff. And it was just such a great, great environment. Like you just wanted to be there, like you wanted to be on set. That's why all these crew members kept coming back because they just wanted to stay apart and wanted to be apart. Yeah. I mean, we, some of the crew members, I mean, we, we had extra of, should I say, that we could have done it without, but they just wanted to be there. Yeah. And that was super cool to watch. It was super cool to watch. If you know anything about filmmaking at all, you have a, you try to make your days, you have to get so many scenes done in a day. Oh goodness. I was blown away at the schedule. You're right. That was amazing. It's just so much crammed to once and everybody has stayed on in schedule and on time and all that. Yeah. Oh, we're making our days, we're staying on schedule. We're getting things we need to get done. You know, all of that was just so great. It went off without a glitch. Um, you know, God was just all over it. And then the cast and the crew were just, uh, so kind. Everybody was very, very. I loved working with everybody. I noticed too. Yeah. So I think, you know, hey, let's be honest, let's contribute that to a lot of prayer. I mean, we had people praying like crazy, Steve, you had a lot of people, um, praying for you. I've got a lot of people praying for the studio and the things. And it matters. I mean, prayer absolutely matters, especially when we're handling the content that we've got. I know you got sick. I've gotten an erect. I mean, things happen, um, but you know what? I mean, God is completely protecting both of us and he's got us. I'm not afraid. He knew we were tough cookies. That's why he gave us the assignment because he knows we don't have quit in us and we've got perseverance. So you can't be afraid of what comes with the territory. You know, I mean, it's like you can go like, I want to get in shape, but I never want to have a sore muscle. Like that's not going to happen. Yeah. Yeah. And I showed up on the set and I, I was expecting, uh, problems. And so I first thing I said, when I get there, have you all staked out the building yet where we're filming? And they all looked at me and went kind of like, Oh, we did overlook that. You know, they were because they didn't like, no, they said not yet, but you plan to do that. But somebody forgot. And so I'm, I'm not in the show, except for a couple of little, you know, clips. So I was focused on just being there to help and encourage and meet the people and thank them for all they were doing. And first thing I did was get my hammer, which is in that picture behind me, uh, very special hammers, a long, funny story behind that hammer, but I got that hammer and I staked the property and, and I'm not to end to take credit. There was a lot of prayer, but I'm just saying, you know, we're filming the show on staking ground and making a difference. That's the first thing needs to happen. And we did that and you had people pray and we had people pray and, and it could not have gone any better. I mean, until the numbers all, uh, added up, I was worried I was going to owe, uh, you a bunch of extra money above what we had donated and when you call them said, we're, I think we're within $400 of what we needed, I just kind of almost fainted, uh, only God can make those kinds of things happen. Well, tell people where they can find your other stuff, multiplying your other stuff. Yeah. So all content is the app. 100% you know, um, is to go get the download the studio app. It's like so supportive of the whole cause of everything that's happening right now with the studio. Um, of course you can follow us on Instagram, um, for the one studio. Um, Amber buto app at, um, Instagram and all the social medias, YouTube, we have LinkedIn, we have all those things, um, same, you know, um, but I, I would really encourage get the app. I mean, we promote to the app. We promote, we'll have shorts, we'll have little clips of things like this, you know, our YouTube channel will have, you know, some of this that points towards but the full content. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I know people are already asking me, where can I see it? And I know, uh, longer term, a few months down the road, we hope that it'll be on, uh, Amazon Prime. Uh, uh, so it'll be there and then you'll have it on the four to one app, which is very portable. We also will have be streaming it on the app for active dash faith dot org. Um, but, uh, there may be some other affiliate partners that, uh, you know, carry it for us and help, help promote. We're trying to make it available as many places as possible. OBBM is one of those, but just kind of look for those spots and there will be clips on YouTube that'll have, uh, links to, you know, one of those places to, to see the full episode. And then we're hoping people, uh, it's a $5 episode. We're hoping people will kind of pay it forward to and, and donate toward the future episodes. We'd like to, we'd like to get enough for an entire season to be planned out. Uh, people can donate and it's, it's totally a tax deductible because we're a 501c three nonprofit or they can invest and they can contact us. Uh, you or me either one, my email, see if MPL one at me.com, you want to give your email right quick. Yeah. Um, it's Amber at four, the one studio.com. And I'd like to say too, if you watch it, I mean, we have eight more of these. So, you know, if they want to invest in telling this story and getting it around the world, you know, donate to the nonprofit and help us complete this and see this all the way through, you know, I think you're going to be very encouraged by the first one. You're going to want to see more of the stories because Steve's got a million more, um, that are so great that need to come to life visually need to come to life. Um, I know you can read them in his bookstakes, but to see them come to life like what you're going to see in taking ground the first episode. We have many more of those that we're working on funding and getting, um, in the queue to start recording and producing and all of that. So I'll just say it too. When I, you know, I knew the story and I cried when I, uh, saw the episode and it's, you know, final product, uh, that was, that was a weird experience to even know what's going to happen and still it hit me emotionally, uh, and it just feels good to be helping people. I know you feel the same way. I don't usually do this, but I want to, I want us to end with a prayer today. And if you don't mind, I'll start the prayer and let you finish the prayer. Is that okay? Okay. And then I'll have some sign off comments right after that. Okay. God, thank you for Amber and for the, for the one studio and for the mission that you put in front of her with taking ground and multiplied and many other things that are in the works. I pray you'd bless them as a studio financially. Bless them emotionally. I pray you protect them with your mighty angels. I pray you continue to bless active faith and this series of taking ground. I pray that if you want people to, uh, donate, you put it on their heart to do that. If you want them to invest, that you put it on their heart to do that. We pray that you would be glorified and honored with everything we say and do. We want to do this to, to grow your kingdom, not ours. We want you to have all the glory that goes with this and we pray that these episodes will touch people who've walked away from you or who've never come to Christ and caused them to realize that your word is still powerful. You're still on the throne and prayer still works. We thank you and love you and praise you with all we, with all we know in Jesus name. Lord, I just thank you so much for the opportunity to be your best friend. I thank you so much for the opportunity to partner with you on the daily to watch your goodness and faithfulness to come about on the earth. Lord help us to be obedient, good stewards of all the greatness and the goodness that you give to us. Lord, I thank you for these stories. I thank you for the ability to bring these stories to life. May these stories go across the globe and empower and encourage and give people the wisdom and understanding to know the authority that they have in you, whether it's the first time they see this, whether it's the first time they fully understand who you are to us and what you offer to us as your kids and the kingdom, Lord, what we have readily available through your blood, through your name, through your word, Lord, I just thank you. I just thank you for the price that you paid to give us the power and the authority over the darkness and sin in this world. Lord, I thank you for the ultimate sacrifice that you gave or laying down your life so that we can have freedoms, so that we can break the sin in our life. Lord, I may every second of this content permeate people's lives, that it be changed for the better, that they fully understand who you are, not religion, not what they think, not what could be, but Lord, that they see this with a fresh eyes and that they see it with your love and acceptance and grace and mercy, Lord. And I thank you that sometimes we make this more difficult than it is, but that this makes it practical and understandable that we have the power to stand up against the darkness in our life, that we don't have to live in bondage, that we don't have to live in fear, but that we can stand and be victorious in all things because of the price you paid and because of who you are in our life, that we just got to call upon you and that you show up, never fell us, never leave us or forsake us. And Lord, I just thank you that we get to sit with you, may you get all the glory, all the honor in everything that we do and say, and Lord, I just thank you that you are protecting this content, that as it goes around the world, that the people that need to see it will see it and that what needs to happen with it will happen and nothing that comes against it will prosper, but that it will cease where it began and that it will flourish all the way around the world. Lord, I thank you for Steve. I thank you for healing him and his health right now. I thank you for the angels that are around both of us, keeping all of us safe and the studio, Lord. And we pray all of these things and you're precious in mighty name, Jesus, Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you. Thank you for praying with us today and thank you for joining us on battle plan. Share this with someone else so they'll learn about taking ground and before signing off, I always want to remind you to keep praying because prayer works. God loves you and I love you. Have a great day. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. [BLANK_AUDIO]