Articles

Telling Their Story to the World

By Rachel Wegner 07

Click Photo to Enlarge The Nolls gather for a family photo. From top to bottom, left to right, they are: Yvonne, Aron, Maleena and Lian.

Click Photo to Enlarge Noll captures sights and sounds while shooting a documentary in Khartoum, Sudan.

“I have this incurable itch inside of me to keep asking questions,” Aron Noll, a 1991 graduate, said. “I want to make documentary films to help change the world, in terms of being a tool to feed people, to see [God’s] Kingdom come on earth and to change the lives of people that watch them.”

Noll has traveled internationally with the Global Aid Network, an extension of Campus Crusade for Christ, which he and his wife, Yvonne, joined in 2004. On his trips, he has shot documentaries about life in developing nations. The documentaries are in turn used to raise awareness of and funds for the people they depict. So far, Noll has traveled to Sudan, Africa and Benin, Africa. In the process, he has encountered many people from other cultures and taken on the challenge of asking them the right questions, while still remaining sensitive to their way of life. Ultimately, Noll feels that his work is part of a higher calling.

“If I don’t do this job, who’s going to tell this story?” he said. “Who’s going to show this to the world? I know I was born for this time and this season to do this. It makes everything I’ve gone through in my life fall into place.”

Growing up in a wealthy area and attending an affluent high school, Noll saw a side of life that was very different from what he has encountered in Africa. He realized, however, that need can come in many forms, regardless of the economic status of a person or a country.

Reflecting on his parents’ divorce when he was a young boy and the lack of evangelism and outreach in his childhood church, Noll said the experience shaped him to understand that money couldn’t always meet needs. He was fortunate to learn what it meant to be a true Christian in his teenage years and during his time at ORU, where he tailored his own liberal arts degree that combined sociology and communications. He was first inspired to design such a degree after visiting the campus of the University of Southern California, where a similar program was in place.

“ORU taught me about worship, evangelism, prayer, healing, community, fellowship and hearing God’s voice,” Noll said. “That handful of things is what made me into the person that I am today. It was one of the best experiences of my life, where you can thrive on worship and God and live in a structured environment where people are going the same direction. It burned something into me that hasn’t stopped.”

Currently, the Nolls are raising support so that Aron can return to the international mission field. He does freelance video work around the Pacific Northwest, while his wife helps him with pre- and post-production on his projects and also works with the Global Aid Network.

Despite the challenging and sometimes mundane task of raising support, Noll understands that it is all part of God’s plan for him and his family.

“There’s nothing more amazing than using your gift for the kingdom of God,” Noll said. “It’s more than paying your bills. You can use your gifts for His kingdom, not just to build your resume or make money.”

The Nolls reside in Portland, Oregon with their two children, Lian, 9 months, and Maleena, 2. They can be reached at http://www.thenolls.net or via e-mail at gain@thenolls.net. Noll said he envisions short dramatic films shot overseas and a full-length documentary suitable for film festivals and distribution to come out of the footage they collect in the next few years around the world.

This interview was conducted by phone and e-mail.