[{"content":"Happy Thanksgiving from the Strattons!\nWe are praying you be blessed, wherever this newsletter finds you. We thank God for your partnership in His gospel, and your friendship with us. Keep reading for recent personal testimony of the work here in Trujillo, prayer requests, and announcements!\nGod provided for us to purchase a car! I (Shilo) went to Lima about a month ago, with some great referrals of some mechanics, and some options. I was in no rush to buy a vehicle, but with high hopes of finding something. Long story short, we bought a 2009 Hyundai Santa Fe. Praise God!\nAs the Bible teaches, following Jesus involves counting the cost. For example. My friend, Daniel, is a student here at CBI Perú. He has a great attitude and loves evangelism.\nThis past week Daniel, another student, and myself drove a \u0026ldquo;stranger\u0026rdquo; home. Before I knew God wanted us to drive him home, we (mostly Daniel) had sat and talked with him, sharing many verses with him from the Bible. Daniel knew this man (we\u0026rsquo;ll call him \u0026ldquo;Amigo\u0026rdquo;) from passing by before, and had been pretty relentless in inviting him to church and trying to seek him out. I had planned to head home earlier than normal this day, and ended up being home a lot later than I expected. I did not plan to drive our \u0026ldquo;new\u0026rdquo; car to one of the sketchier neighborhoods of our city after dark.\nBut the gospel of Christ is worth it. This man did not receive Christ that day, that we know. When we got to his house, he asked each of us in the car some Bible/life questions. He was very thankful we cut his trip home by almost an hour and a half (how long it usually takes the bus/his own two feet).\nPlease pray for this man, \u0026ldquo;Amigo,\u0026rdquo; we\u0026rsquo;ll call him. He has a lot of questions, and has never really understood the real FREE gospel. He says otherwise, but his actions and stories show that he believes his self-righteousness and achievements will earn him something with salvation in God\u0026rsquo;s Kingdom.\n\u0026ldquo;Amigo\u0026rdquo; is not the only one who thinks this way. Many South Americans have never heard the true gospel of Jesus Christ. \u0026ldquo;Jesus\u0026rdquo; is a figure \u0026ndash; He is painted, and sculpted hanging on fake crosses all over. His Name is thrown around all the time. But SO many people who Racquell and I encounter outside of the church campus are really at a loss when we ask them questions like, \u0026ldquo;How do you know God loves you?\u0026rdquo; or, \u0026ldquo;Do you know if you\u0026rsquo;re going to heaven or not?\u0026rdquo; or, \u0026ldquo;Who is Jesus?\u0026rdquo;\nRacquell and I are consistently reminded by other students, staff, and of course from the Bible itself that the gospel of Jesus Christ is WORTH IT. At least my Lord Jesus thought it was worth it, when He went to the cross for you and for me.\nThis is why we are here. Because South America needs the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we are extremely thankful for the privilege to be sent by Jesus Himself, and supported and prayed for by you. Thank you!\nFamily update: Amalia is a big sister! We\u0026rsquo;re expecting a baby in May of 2025!\nPlease pray for/that:\nWe rely on Jesus to be our Sustainer in this time Grace to fill our minds and our home as we raise Amalia together and figure out how to be missionaries in Peru We\u0026rsquo;d be bold in evangelism, and have grace to share Christ with lost people Racquell and the new baby would be in great health Strength for our friends and colaborers, the staff of CBI Peru and Calvary Trujillo who will be staying in Trujillo this Christmas A refreshing time back in the US soon THANK YOU AGAIN, and Happy Thanksgiving!\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2024/11/26/muchas-gracias/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eHappy Thanksgiving from the Strattons!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe are praying you be blessed, wherever this newsletter finds you. We thank God for your partnership in His gospel, and your friendship with us. Keep reading for recent personal testimony of the work here in Trujillo, prayer requests, and announcements!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2024/11/DSC02200.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eGod provided for us to purchase a car! I (Shilo) went to Lima about a month ago, with some great referrals of some mechanics, and some options. I was in no rush to buy a vehicle, but with high hopes of finding something. Long story short, we bought a 2009 Hyundai Santa Fe. Praise God!\u003c/p\u003e","title":"MUCHAS GRACIAS!"},{"content":"One year and some change living here in Perú full time. We would like to thank you ALL so much for your prayers and support both leading up to our move, and throughout our time overseas so far. The fact that you are even reading this newsletter means so much to us. Like most great things in life, our first year on the foreign mission field has been a rollercoaster with a lot of: fun things, difficult things, learning experiences, sweet successes, humbling disappointments, huge opportunities, and many, many divine appointments.\nOver this year we’ve had a lot of big changes. Reading the Bible and praying in Spanish used to be the most difficult for me (Shilo), now they’re still challenging, but not as much. We’ve also moved three times, from staying with Cory, Danielle, and their kids (our pastor and great friends), to sharing a whole house with two other couples (and a big dog) we had never met, to now being afforded the huge blessing of living in our place (for the first time since we were newly weds in 2020). Amalia has also grown so much — she is talking and walking. Prayers appreciated as we seek to be examples to her, and learn to discipline and train her up in the way she should go.\nWe also were accepted for our visa status to be changed from tourist to religious, which allows us to to stay here on a four-year basis at a time.\nOne of our main responsibilities here on the Bible college campus is hosting visiting teams and pastors who come to preach or teach classes. This last year we had teams come that helped build two large dormitories for the school. Another team came and painted the whole church campus and helped us put on a huge outreach in Trujillo’s biggest public park. We’ve had a great time hosting short term missions teams here, and it’s been a learning process.\nWe’ve had the privilege of hosting CBI Peru’s Summer Missions Internship this summer! It was catered towards English speakers in the college age range wanting do something with purpose for their summer break. We taught through the Book of Acts, read “Radical” by David Platt, a few amazing missionary biographies, and did hands on training here, on the foreign mission field.\nWe had an amazing time serving with these three young gals. We served with our home-base Calvary Trujillo, also Calvary Buenos Aires (neighborhood of Trujillo), and of course Calvary Moyobamba. The idea was to give them training and outlets to practice what they were learning (work with church plants, share the gospel of Jesus and their testimonies, and be generous with their time to serve others, in spite of cultural differences).\nDuring the internship the Lord spoke to these girls and mighty ways. One of them specifically through the book of Acts class her heart was being stirred for the nations. She was confident that the Lord was calling her to missions and knew that coming here for 6 weeks was another step. As she prayed about what was next the Lord kept making it clearer that she was to come back and serve as a student/intern this fall semester in Peru. In choosing this she’s giving up comforts and opportunities but she has been so encouraged to pursue the Lord whole heartedly. To see the growth and the heart of service in each of these girls has been a great joy for us. We\u0026rsquo;re so blessed and excited for what the Lord has in store for each of them.\nRacquell and I just kept on thinking to ourselves, “Wow, what an opportunity.” What an opportunity! These Americans are here to sit at the feet of Jesus, to experience foreign missions…and they are only here for 6 weeks. It was on a trip to Peru 7 years ago that God really started to show me (Shilo) what missions is. Then Racquell and I participated in Calvary School of Missions a few years ago where we further developed a biblical view for foreign missions. I knew that God would want to change these new interns’ lives and work in mighty ways. He did.\nhttps://youtu.be/UK20FmvT8bM\nMoyobamba recap\nOur fall semester is starting at CBI Perú, and soon we’ll have pastors and their wives coming to visit and teach “block” classes that run a week or two weeks, through different Books of the Bible, or different themes and topics to train our students. We’re excited to host them, and especially for God to use these classes to help shape the students’ biblical worldview as well as train and equip them for their future service in South America and beyond.\nWhat\u0026rsquo;s next for our family? Whatever Jesus wants. We just need to obey Him. We plan to continue living in Trujillo until God clearly calls us away and to another place, if He wills that. So we are putting our roots down, trying to make friendships and pour into discipleship times. We are currently car-shopping, potentially a truck or an SUV that would fit our family, with the potential to be used to move church items or pick up guests, and mobilize students and friends here around town.\nWe\u0026rsquo;ve got one more year until we graduate from CBI Peru\u0026rsquo;s Church Planting Class, and we\u0026rsquo;re excited to study the Word of God, teach short sermons every week, and take notes from talks by pastors who serve all over the world, that we might be better equipped to serve God in the future. So whether long term be here in Trujillo and helping to keep home-base strong (at CBI and the church), or leading/being part of a church planting team to some far away place, or doing something else\u0026hellip;we are surrendered to Jesus and wanting to live everyday as if it were our last, for God\u0026rsquo;s glory and our good.\nOne year in Perú so far. Years are cool. But we want to make every day count. Moses, a man who had lived 120 years and had basically three 40 year blocks in his life, prayed to God, \u0026ldquo;So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.\u0026rdquo; (Psalm 90:12)\nPRAYER REQUESTS:\nHEALTHY churches in Trujillo, Buenos Aires neighborhood, and Moyobamba HUMILITY to work with our young team WISDOM to train up Amalia in the way she should go BALANCING time well with family, friends, and the ministries’ responsibilities ","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2024/08/12/one-year-in-peru/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eOne year and some change living here in Perú full time. We would like to thank you ALL so much for your prayers and support both leading up to our move, and throughout our time overseas so far. The fact that you are even reading this newsletter means so much to us. Like most great things in life, our first year on the foreign mission field has been a rollercoaster with a lot of: fun things, difficult things, learning experiences, sweet successes, humbling disappointments, huge opportunities, and many, many divine appointments.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"One year in Perú!"},{"content":"Hola!\nWe pray this newsletter finds you well! We’ve got updates and pictures from CBI Peru, Calvary Trujillo, our recent mission trip to Moyobamba, and of course some prayer requests and praise reports to share with you.\n\u0026quot;\u0026hellip;and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.\u0026quot; (Matthew 16:18)\nJesus really is the One who builds His church. He is adding to the church here in Trujillo \u0026ndash; we\u0026rsquo;re now at two services on Sunday mornings, and the home fellowships and midweek Bible studies are often full. Calvary Bible Institute Peru has also been growing \u0026ndash; two new students signed up to live on campus midway through the semester, along with a few others who are living off-campus.\nThe semester at CBI Perú is wrapping up, and we\u0026rsquo;ve had teachers from different parts of the U.S. and Perú come to teach classes on 1\u0026amp;2 Kings, the Pastoral Epistles, Ephesians, Hebrews, Nehemiah, Daniel, Song of Solomon, and currently, 1 Corinthians. God is truly transforming students\u0026rsquo; hearts and minds as they diligently study and soak in the Word of God. We\u0026rsquo;ve seen big changes in some of the students\u0026rsquo; attitudes, and they are learning not just how to be adults, but how to follow Jesus, and stick to the Bible as the guide for their lives.\nA young student, we\u0026rsquo;ll call him \u0026ldquo;J,\u0026rdquo; was ready to pack up and leave after his first week here. He wasn\u0026rsquo;t used to living away from family, sharing a room with other students, or living in Perú in general. The balance of serving and working hard at the church and keeping up with his studies was a challenge for him. He bought flights without telling staff or his parents, and was going to sneak out and leave. But his mom called him, and he confessed to her and chose to stay. \u0026ldquo;J\u0026rdquo; has since been a really faithful student. On his turn to share a devotional with the school one morning recently, he told us what happened at the beginning of the semester. He compared himself to the prophet Jonah, who was running away from what God had commanded him to do. \u0026ldquo;J\u0026rdquo; is growing in his humility and his teamwork, and plans to stay here for three more semesters and finish the program at CBI Perú. Please keep him and other students like him in your prayers.\nThank you for praying also for our mission trip! We split in to three teams to visit three different churches here in Perú and serve alongside them for a week. I (Shilo) had the privilege to lead the team to Moyobamba, where we visited our friends and church planters Pastor Andrew, Jesús, and Yenry. The week was full of great things.\nSome highlights from our trip to Moyobamba:\nWe got to prepare and deliver \u0026ldquo;bags of love\u0026rdquo; that had dry goods like rice, beans, and canned food to families in need. The director of an institute in Moyobamba has become a friend of Pastor Andrew\u0026rsquo;s, and he prepared every classroom to receive our team in small groups, where we shared testimonies, a message from the Bible, gave gospel invitations, and invited them to Calvary Moyobamba. We also gave some love to the church\u0026rsquo;s property \u0026ndash; framing up walls for a storage area upstairs, texturing and pouring some new concrete to upstairs walls, and giving fresh coats of paint to everywhere we could.\nThe entire trip was a demonstration of God\u0026rsquo;s faithfulness, and continuing to build up His church. The Moyobambinos were encouraged, and our team who travelled 20 hours by bus from Trujillo were likewise encouraged. 14 people were baptized the Sunday we left, and our team got to make great connections with many of them! God is really blowing us away with what He\u0026rsquo;s doing in this church plant that started only about 6 months ago.\nPersonally God has really been building us up recently also. Easter was a great time of reflection and rejoicing in our risen King. My (Shilo\u0026rsquo;s) parents were here visiting for a week around that time as well, and that was a blast. They met all of the Bible college staff and students, came and worshiped with us at the services, and we got to share some quality time out and about as well. Racquell and I both felt encouraged and glad to share time with family. Having extra baby-sitters for Amalia was great, too. Love you, Mom and Dad!\nWe\u0026rsquo;re also excited to share that we\u0026rsquo;ll be leading a program THIS summer, to introduce young people to foreign missions, and give an introduction and Biblical view of what \u0026ldquo;missions\u0026rdquo; is. It\u0026rsquo;s designed for English speakers aged 18-29 years old. Check out this short video for more information.\nSummer Missions Internship, June 22nd-July 31st\nIf you would like to apply, or know someone who may be interested, please contact us directly by responding to this email, or visit Calvaryperu.com and click on \u0026ldquo;Summer Missions Internship.\u0026rdquo; We\u0026rsquo;re excited for what God has in store this summer!\nThank you so much for keeping our family, and the ministries of CBI Peru and Calvary Trujillo in your prayers. We would not be here if it were not for prayer. We\u0026rsquo;ve seen God answering prayers in our own lives and the lives of others, and we look forward to His continued faithfulness. May His will be done.\nSome current prayer requests:\nThe students at CBI Peru to finish the semester strong Good rest at night (Amalia has been difficult lately\u0026ndash; she\u0026rsquo;s our toddler with teeth poking through and needs a lot of attention) Wisdom in how to organize and plan for the Summer Missions Internship People to come to the Summer Missions Internship, and that their lives would be changed For continued unity and humility among the leadership team Grace to be prepared for the growth God is bringing as He\u0026rsquo;s building His church here Continued love and dependence on Jesus in our personal lives THANK YOU FOR PRAYING!\nWe love you all so much and thank you for partnering with us. Through your prayers and generous financial support, you have made this ministry possible for us, and we want to let you know that this is the fruit of your labor as well. If the Lord leads you to partner with us financially, or increase your already generous support, you can do so by clicking on the financial button below or mailing your support check to:\nSaving Grace World Missions 17451 Bastanchury Rd., Ste.203 Yorba Linda, CA 62886*Note “Stratton” in memo*\nTo check out the ministry we are serving with, please click the link below or find us on Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube:\nCalvaryperu.com\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2024/05/07/jesus-the-builder/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eHola!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe pray this newsletter finds you well! We’ve got updates and pictures from CBI Peru, Calvary Trujillo, our recent mission trip to Moyobamba, and of course some prayer requests and praise reports to share with you.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026quot;\u0026hellip;and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.\u0026quot; (Matthew 16:18)\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJesus really is the One who builds His church. He is adding to the church here in Trujillo \u0026ndash; we\u0026rsquo;re now at two services on Sunday mornings, and the home fellowships and midweek Bible studies are often full. Calvary Bible Institute Peru has also been growing \u0026ndash; two new students signed up to live on campus midway through the semester, along with a few others who are living off-campus.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Jesus the Builder"},{"content":" Hola!\nWe pray this newsletter finds you well! We’ve got updates, pictures of some highlights and daily life here in Trujillo, and some prayer requests and praise reports to share with you.\nWe are only a few days away from our next semester here at Calvary Bible Institute Peru! We’ve got a batch of returning and brand new students from Peru, Venezuela, Honduras, Chile, Colombia, Panama, Bolivia, Mexico, the US, and Italy. There’s a great lineup of teachers who will come teach 1-2 week block classes through different topics and books of the Bible, and a missions week planned in April. There\u0026rsquo;ll be three teams of staff and students headed to different parts of Peru to share the love of Jesus and help other Calvary Chapels, and we get to lead one of the teams!\nWe’re super excited for what God has in store this next semester for the students, interns, staff, visiting pastors, and especially those we get to minister to. The semester\u0026rsquo;s theme is “Heme Aquí,” or “Here am I,” as taken from Isaiah 6:8. It\u0026rsquo;s also a phrase and theme that runs through other parts of Scripture, when God calls His servants, and they in response say, \u0026ldquo;Here am I.\u0026rdquo; May we have the same response, and be ready to obey what God commissions us to do!\nBig update: we moved into our own apartment! We were blessed to crash land at our pastor’s family’s home for our first 6 weeks here, and then to share a home with other families afterward until around Christmas time. Now we\u0026rsquo;re a 10 minute taxi ride to the church and school. More than half of our marriage, we\u0026rsquo;ve shared spaces with family and other roommates. We’re really thankful to have a place of our own, and to grow in hospitality.\nThis year we spent our first Christmas in Peru and were surrounded by great friends. We got some neat opportunities to serve during Christmas time, too. As a whole, our church collected and gave presents to all the kids of our church and the church plants (Buenos Aires, and Moyobamba). We also wrapped a bunch of other gifts that we passed out throughout Trujillo to families whose kids might have otherwise not gotten any.\nRacquell and I also got to lead something we in Peru call a \u0026ldquo;chocolatada.\u0026rdquo; It\u0026rsquo;s a pop-up event, mostly for kids, where you give hot chocolate and fruitcake (Panetón) out for free to the neighborhood. At our chocolatada, they got that and more as we did some ice breakers, games, and shared a Christmas message from the Bible with over 80 kids and their families, and we ended the time with face-painting and more games.\nRacquell also helped plan for our church\u0026rsquo;s Women\u0026rsquo;s Christmas Tea, where we had about 60 women come for a gift exchange and sweet time of fellowship, laughter and fun. She and I both have gotten to be involved in other ministries in the church lately, like ushering, audio/visual ministry, serving in the coffee shop, and leading Sunday School.\nChristmas in Peru was tough as well, in the way of missing family, friends, and familiarities in San Diego and Kauai. It was really a time of testing and patience for us. Serving as missionaries in South America means that most of the time, we\u0026rsquo;ll miss birthdays and holidays that we used to spend with family and friends in the States. Living that for the first time this year has been something God is using to refine us and test our obedience.\nBringing in the new year, our church had a week of praying and fasting. As a family we saw the Lord work and answer prayers in a way that completely surprised us. Fasting really showed us our weaknesses and our need for true reliance on Jesus, not food, to satisfy and fill us up.\nPretty much since we moved almost seven months ago, I\u0026rsquo;ve gotten the opportunity to disciple one of our new friends, Diego. He and his wife moved from Cajamarca, a mountain city, to Trujillo almost two years ago, and they are becoming some good friends of ours. They\u0026rsquo;ve had some hardship on multiple fronts since moving to this big city. But Diego is such a hard worker, and he and his wife both just want to please God in their lives and marriage. One thing Diego has been struggling with for a while is direction. Well, just a few days ago, God presented an opportunity to them, and Diego and his wife took a step of faith to start at CBI with us, as full time students! It was a quick change, and a lot of things had to move for them to be with us before the semester starts. I\u0026rsquo;m blessed because obviously this means I\u0026rsquo;ll get to see my friend a lot! But we are praying that their time at CBI Perú be something that God uses to transform their minds (Romans 12:2), and root them and ground them in the love of Christ (Ephesians 3:17).\nLast update — AMALIA IS WALKING! She didn’t walk by her first birthday, or her second Christmas…but a couple weeks ago she got the balance down, and now that motor won’t stop. Thank you for praying for her. Amalia has been doing great health wise, and she brings so much joy to us and our friends here with her big smiles and laughs.\nPlease pray\nFor our new semester serving with CBI Peru, and the students we\u0026rsquo;ll be discipling For love, humility, and discernment as we serve in our various areas For our health \u0026ndash; that we would remain healthy so that we can be more effective Praise Reports\nAmalia has learned to walk and is growing every day Racquell and I have both been learning and growing in our Spanish every day, and I\u0026rsquo;m hoping to start a class for advanced Spanish soon We have a new apartment that is 10 minutes to the church ","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2024/02/12/happy-6-months/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2024/01/IMG%5F9797.jpeg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHola!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe pray this newsletter finds you well! We’ve got updates, pictures of some highlights and daily life here in Trujillo, and some prayer requests and praise reports to share with you.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe are only a few days away from our next semester here at Calvary Bible Institute Peru! We’ve got a batch of returning and brand new students from Peru, Venezuela, Honduras, Chile, Colombia, Panama, Bolivia, Mexico, the US, and Italy. There’s a great lineup of teachers who will come teach 1-2 week block classes through different topics and books of the Bible, and a missions week planned in April. There\u0026rsquo;ll be three teams of staff and students headed to different parts of Peru to share the love of Jesus and help other Calvary Chapels, and we get to lead one of the teams!\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Happy +6 months!"},{"content":"Skateboarding, dancing, and sharing the love of Jesus at school assemblies. Hosting a missions conference that connected and encouraged over 400 people from South America and all over the world. “Invading” a jungle city with eighty people, to make some noise and help our friends plant a Bible-teaching, grace filled church in an area full of apostasy and loosely practiced religious traditions.\nThose are a few things we’ve been graced with doing since we’ve written you last! The end of September and all of October were eventful to say the least. Please enjoy photos and captions of some highlights.\nRacquell, Amalia, and I are grateful for your prayers and partnership in this work in Peru. On a personal level, I feel very humbled to be part of this work. Paul said of himself and his ministry, “To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ…” (Ephesians 3:8 NKJV). I resonate with Paul on this, it is truly a GRACE that God has given us to be His ambassadors and specifically to be used in these capacities in South America.\nBelow are some pictures of our time in Moyobamba. It took a 19 hour bus ride and some motion sickness medicine to get us there.\nFor many South Americans, Jesus was “a good man.” Others will even acknowledge His death on the cross as payment for their sin. But many, when I ask them, do not know where they are going when they die. Or they believe they will be in heaven because their “good outweighs their bad,” essentially. The name of Jesus is known, but He is often believed to be only an option, or a piece of salvation. He is even known as “Savior,” to some, but not as “Lord” to most. Our family, then, gets to represent to others what it means to follow Jesus, to be His disciples, and to know and walk with Him. It is a joy to share the love of Jesus here.\nIt’s our prayer that souls be saved and strengthened through the fellowship of our local church, Calvary Trujillo. And that leaders be trained, discipled, and sent out of CBI Peru—planting Bible-teaching churches all over South America and beyond. In just these past four short months living in Trujillo, we have gotten to see some of that. We have not been alone. Thank you for praying with us and for us, for encouraging us in the ministry God has graced us with, for supporting us financially, and also for those who have come and helped us.\nOur prayer for YOU, and those we serve in South America, is really what Paul prayed for the Ephesians. We encourage you to read and pray Ephesians 3:14-21 with us, that the love of God in Christ would be KNOWN and STRENGTHEN MANY.\nHere are some specific ways to pray for us:\nDivine appointments as we connect with locals here in Trujillo. Wisdom as we house hunt for a new place to live. We’ve been sharing a house with two other couples for a few months, but need to find a new place by January. Our prayer is to rent or buy a home or apartment with enough space for our family, and another married couple. Continued financial provision as we prepare for things like appliances and a car. Boldness and courage to press on. Wisdom as Racquell and I learn how to be parents of a one-year old, living in Peru. ","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2023/11/18/gracias-for-this-grace/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eSkateboarding, dancing, and sharing the love of Jesus at school assemblies. Hosting a missions conference that connected and encouraged over 400 people from South America and all over the world. “Invading” a jungle city with eighty people, to make some noise and help our friends plant a Bible-teaching, grace filled church in an area full of apostasy and loosely practiced religious traditions.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThose are a few things we’ve been graced with doing since we’ve written you last! The end of September and all of October were eventful to say the least. Please enjoy photos and captions of some highlights.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Gracias for this GRACE!"},{"content":" Hello friends and family!\nWe wrote to you last when we had just landed in Trujillo at the end of June. Since then, we’ve moved into a new place! We live in a nice neighborhood with a small park, a few small grocery stores, and pharmacies all within walking distance. And we’re not too far from the church and Bible institute.\nIn the short time that we’ve been here, we’ve been acclimating to the city and trying to learn as much as we can. We’re like babies in a world we’re not really used to. It’s been six years since Racquell and I have been in Peru! We have a lot to learn and relearn.\nIn this area, God has been speaking to me (Shilo) His words to Peter on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus had just died on the cross, resurrected, and appeared to His disciples afterward. This instance specifically, He came to restore Peter and give him direct instruction on what he was to do after Jesus’ ascent. Before Jesus could even walk away, Peter was already asking about other people’s responsibilities. To this Jesus responded: “\u0026hellip;what is that to you? You follow Me!” (John 21:22).\nThese words are actually painted on a wall here at church now. And I’m reminded when I look at them, yes, we are new here. Yes, I could be doing this thing, or that thing, instead of what I am doing. But rather than comparing myself to others, or questioning my own ministry and responsibilities, the words from Jesus to me are: “Shilo, You follow Me!” Friends I encourage you, God is calling you to the same thing, before anything else, Jesus says to YOU, “You follow Me!”\nRacquell and I have gotten a lot of opportunities right away to serve here with Calvary Trujillo and Calvary Bible Institute Peru. They are both growing ministries, with great teams of leaders and helpers. And there is a lot of work to be done. Pray that the Lord of the harvest would send more laborers!\nA main responsibility Racquell and I have here is hosting and planning for visiting teams and pastors. Since moving, we’ve had three teams of short term mission trips from the USA come to Calvary Trujillo. The first was from our sending church, Calvary Chapel Lihue, then a team from Calvary Chapel Modesto, California, and most recently a team from Calvary Chapel Dothan, Alabama. During their visits we got to serve together with kids festivals/outreaches, street-witnessing, a medical clinic, and construction projects here on campus. Each team was so special and we were blessed by their hard work, their encouragement, and their like-mindedness – they all came to serve, with the goal of obeying the Great Commission and seeing the name of Jesus lifted up in this city and all over the world.\nIn other news, our semester has started! Most of our students have arrived, and classes have begun. This is exciting as Racquell and I start our first semester with CBI Peru. We have students from the US, Italy, Columbia, Chile, Mexico, Honduras, Bolivia, Peru and Germany. Please pray as we work together this semester! That we would be of the same mind, and that we would walk in the Spirit. The theme this semester at CBI is “Commissioned.”\nOur prayer also is for the students to realize their calling to Jesus’ commission (Matthew 28:18-20), not just here in Trujillo, but all over the world. We would love to see Calvary Chapels and Calvary Bible Institutes planted all over South America, and beyond.\nSomething a bit more personal that the Lord has encouraged us with recently is these words of Jesus to His disciples: “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life” (‭‭Matthew‬ ‭19‬:‭29‬).\nWe’ve left a lot of these things to serve Jesus here in Perú. But we were reflecting as a couple recently, how many people have loved and cared for Amalia at the Bible College and church. Between students, staff and other new friends, our little girl is well loved.\nThe day after this conversation, another staff member from CBI was talking about what a blessing Amalia is to her. She has nieces around Amalia’s age who she misses, and she feels that as she’s given up time with them to serve the Lord, He has blessed her with a niece in Amalia. It brought tears to Racquell’s eyes as she got to share how much we already feel like family with everyone here, and know that Amalia is going to grow up so loved by the people around her these \u0026ldquo;tios\u0026rdquo; and \u0026ldquo;tias\u0026rdquo; in the faith. On top of her family in the States, who also love her so much!\nAgain, it costs to follow Jesus. But just yesterday we heard Pastor Drew McIntyre say, \u0026ldquo;It costs you today to follow Jesus. But it will cost you more later, if you choose not to follow Him.\u0026rdquo; Rather than thinking about other people\u0026rsquo;s responsibilities or circumstances\u0026hellip;what\u0026rsquo;s it to ya? Jesus is simply calling us to follow Him.\nThank you for taking the time to read some of the things we\u0026rsquo;ve been doing since moving! It has been an adjustment, and it is tough at times, but friends, it is worth it to follow Jesus.\nIt is truly a joy to be here. We love the people, especially the family in Christ we have gained in living here. There\u0026rsquo;s a lot more to share than could fit on this short newsletter, but we can always be reached if you respond to this email, a phone call, through iMessage, Messenger or WhatsApp.\nPRAYER REQUESTS:\nPray for our taxi drivers. We take at least two, sometimes up to five or six taxi rides a day between all of us. The drivers almost always ask us where we are from, and why we are here. Probably because Shilo has light skin and blue eyes. Plus we’re still awkward and new in terms of cultural stuff\u0026hellip;and our Spanish isn’t great. But pray for their salvation! We share the gospel with or invite almost every single driver we’ve had to church. Some have really been interested. Eduardo is one who you can specifically pray for. Pray for the people of Trujillo, and South America in general. Pray for CBI and Calvary Trujillo! God is doing amazing things with the students and church. We could write a whole newsletter just on all the specific things going on here. You’ve just gotten a taste. Pray for our family’s health! Racquell and I have each gotten sick in one way or another about 4 times in the 8 weeks we’ve been here. Amalia has, too. Our bodies are adjusting, but the flu, strep throat, fevers, colds – can and have been just another thing that slows us down and distracts us. Pray for our visas – we are applying for a change from “Tourist” to “Religious.” It is a process, as you can imagine. Pray for our pastors, Cory, Jaime, and Joaquin, and the rest of the leadership here. PRAISE REPORTS:\nJesus is building His Church all over the world. Lives are being changed right here in Trujillo. We are learning things daily about Peruvian culture. God is working on our hearts. We\u0026rsquo;ve heard the call from Jesus to \u0026ldquo;Follow Me.\u0026rdquo; And by the grace of God, we are doing that. We love you all so much and thank you for partnering with us. Through your prayers and generous financial support, you have made this ministry possible for us and we want to let you know that this is the fruit of your labor as well. If the Lord leads you to partner with us financially, or increase your already generous support, you can do so by clicking on the financial button below or mailing your support check to:\nSaving Grace World Missions\n17451 Bastanchury Rd., Ste.203\nYorba Linda, CA 62886\n*Note “Stratton” in memo*\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2023/08/22/whats-it-to-ya/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2023/08/IMG%5F8252.jpeg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHello friends and family!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe wrote to you last when we had just landed in Trujillo at the end of June. Since then, we’ve moved into a new place! We live in a nice neighborhood with a small park, a few small grocery stores, and pharmacies all within walking distance. And we’re not too far from the church and Bible institute.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the short time that we’ve been here, we’ve been acclimating to the city and trying to learn as much as we can. We’re like babies in a world we’re not really used to. It’s been six years since Racquell and I have been in Peru! We have a lot to learn and relearn.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"What's it to ya?"},{"content":" Then He said to them, \u0026ldquo;Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.\u0026rdquo;\nLuke 24:46-47\nFelicidades! Thank you for opening our newsletter! We\u0026rsquo;ll catch you up on some things from the past two months, and include prayer requests and pictures below, as always!\nWE WRITE TO YOU FROM OUR NEW HOME IN TRUJILLO, PERÚ!\nBy the grace of God, we flew in this past weekend and are staying at our pastor\u0026rsquo;s family\u0026rsquo;s house for a month, to get acquainted with the city and the ministries here at Calvary Trujillo and CBI Perú. Soon we will move to a shared house with our own rented quarters.\nThank you all for encouraging us, praying for us, and supporting us through our time in the States these past few months! A lot of things needed to happen for us to get where we are currently.\nBig praise reports: our flights were very affordable, our daughter Amalia\u0026rsquo;s passport came in time, and our sister-in-law Andrea got to fly with us and help make traveling with a baby and all our bags go smoothly.\nThe month of May was full of new partnerships, and fun with family and friends in Southern California. So many great memories as we enjoyed our \u0026ldquo;lasts\u0026rdquo; of many things in America for a while. We were also blessed to attend the internship class with Calvary Chapel Saving Grace in our time in SoCal. There we hung out with future/current missionaries, prepare and teach 15 minute messages from the Bible, and participate as students in a class through the Book of Acts. The internship really helped us stay focused during our time in America.\nWe also got to share at the church we grew up in, MVCF, in San Diego and host a dessert gathering to share more specific details about the work we\u0026rsquo;re endeavoring to do in Perú! Thank you to those who came and asked such great questions! MVCF also joined in a special way by praying over us and sending us out the Sunday before we left. This church really played a huge part in both mine and Racquell\u0026rsquo;s childhood and youth group ages, so continuing that connection now is a huge privilege for us.\nWe also had an opportunity to meet new friends and share at Calvary Chapel Escondido, in California. The Lord has been giving us with great connections and amazing people who have encouraged us and spurred us on. Thank you, friends, new and old!\nWe\u0026rsquo;re especially excited to be in Trujillo now, because a team from Calvary Chapel Lihue (Hawaii) will be visiting in just a few days! It will be great to reconnect with them in Perú\u0026hellip;kind of like two worlds colliding for our family! We\u0026rsquo;re praying it is a sweet time and that God uses this trip mightily in the lives of those coming, and the lives that they impact while they\u0026rsquo;re with us in Perú. We\u0026rsquo;ll work alongside them a lot in the next couple weeks, with construction projects at the CBI campus and in local outreaches.\n\u0026quot; Then He said to them, \u0026ldquo;Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem\u0026rdquo;\u0026quot;(Luke 24:46-47 NKJV). Friends, the saving message of Jesus hasn\u0026rsquo;t changed, and His commission yet remains for the Church to obey. As the work began in Jerusalem and spread through the earth these past two millennia, Jesus is continuing His work of saving souls TODAY, using the Church as His ambassador.\nRacquell and I are praying that Jesus uses our lives mightily for His name here in South America. That many disciples are made and Bible teaching churches are planted throughout the world. People need to hear the gospel.\nIn months past we\u0026rsquo;ve updated our newsletters with our financial status\u0026hellip;and we want to share that thanks to many of your generous ongoing monthly support and one time donations, we can afford to live in Trujillo with our basic needs covered! We will continue to update you with specific needs as they come.\nWe know that those who give are taking a step of faith along with us. Thank you for your generosity and faith in God in this area. We hope to be a blessing to people in Trujillo and beyond, on your behalf. Really, we\u0026rsquo;re an extension of the Body of Christ reaching from all over the globe, to continue the church planting and disciple making movement in South America.\nPrayer Requests for our family:\nFor our BODIES, MINDS, AND SPIRITS: We need to press on and continue with love by the Holy Spirit. STARTING WELL in our new home and with the ministries here in South America Praise Reports:\nWe’ve been FOCUSED. God is giving us great friendships and partnerships. We’ve been BOLD in sharing the gospel. WE MADE IT TO PERU! Ways to get involved:\nPray for us. We will need ongoing prayerful support settle into our new home country. Join our Care Team. It\u0026rsquo;s a group of people that meets once a month in Kauai to pray for us specifically. Tell a friend or family member. Help share the vision that the Lord has given us with people or churches you know. It takes an army of people to send a missionary out! If you know anyone who is interested in partnering with missionaries who are church planting, we\u0026rsquo;d love to connect with them! Become a financial partner. God has been providing immensely for us to take this big step of faith, and you can help us to be blessing to more people. ","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2023/06/27/crash-landed/","summary":"\u003cblockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThen He said to them, \u0026ldquo;Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.\u0026rdquo;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLuke 24:46-47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/blockquote\u003e\n\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2023/06/Straochogus.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFelicidades! Thank you for opening our newsletter! We\u0026rsquo;ll catch you up on some things from the past two months, and include prayer requests and pictures below, as always!\u003c/p\u003e","title":"CRASH LANDED!"},{"content":" These past two months in California have been an absolute blessing. Some of our biggest prayer requests from our previous newsletter were: that we\u0026rsquo;d be focused, that we\u0026rsquo;d cultivate new and old meaningful partnerships and friendships, and that we\u0026rsquo;d be bold in sharing the gospel. I can confidently say that by the grace of God, He\u0026rsquo;s been granting these prayers.\nSince moving, we\u0026rsquo;ve had the opportunity to meet with our friends at Saving Grace World Missions, the organization who is helping send us out to the mission field. At SGWM\u0026rsquo;s Preaching and Teaching classes, Racquell and I share 15 minute messages that we\u0026rsquo;ve prepared beforehand (once from Philippians and twice now from the Book of Jonah). The critiques and feedback we\u0026rsquo;ve gotten from pastors there will only continue to help us sharpen the gifting of teaching we see God has charged both Racquell and I with. We\u0026rsquo;ve also gotten to sit in on other Bible \u0026amp; Apologetics classes and times of missionary testimonies. All these things have helped us maintain that focus that we\u0026rsquo;ve been praying for!\nFor the most part, our schedule has been full of meeting with friends and family, as well as pastors and church boards who want to know more about the ministry and support us. As I\u0026rsquo;m writing this, Amalia is playing in her own play chair, smiling and laughing like a big girl. She\u0026rsquo;s six months old now with two teeth to show for it. For these things, we praise Jesus.\nBeing so connected with family here has also been great. As an aside \u0026ndash; Family, you know who you are. THANK YOU for helping Racquell and I with places to stay, cars to drive, and many meals to eat while we are raising support and continuing to prepare for our big move. Thank you for your surrender to God and sacrifice in this way too. We know that the idea of us moving (and taking Amalia with us) isn\u0026rsquo;t the easiest cross to carry. May it be a joy and noble duty for you, as it is for us. Surrendering to God and obeying His will.\nWe want to share a verse of Scripture with you from the Book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah lived in exile with the Jews in the Assyrian Empire, until God called them out of there to rebuild the city of Jerusalem. After moving to Jerusalem, he was very passionate about the work of protecting the city from its enemies by rebuilding the wall around it. Nehemiah knew this was a task too great for one man.\nAs I\u0026rsquo;ve been reading through Nehemiah, I\u0026rsquo;ve loved seeing his heart to rally the troops around the goal and accomplish it by the grace of God. He said of the work, \u0026ldquo;So we built the wall and the whole wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work\u0026rdquo; (Nehemiah 4:6). They had only been working on the wall a short time, and had already built up the wall to half its height, because they worked together.\nFriends and family, you have had a mind to work! Racquell and I are excited to share that we are currently at 54% of our needs met on a monthly basis for our budget while living in Perú, and 100% met in regards to one time MOVING costs! Thank you for those who have given!\nIf you catch what we\u0026rsquo;re saying, there is a great work ahead of us in South America, where we\u0026rsquo;ll help with Calvary Trujillo and Calvary Bible Institute. Many lives have been changed, people have placed their faith in Jesus, been baptized, and are now being taught and making other disciples. The church body is growing and reaching the local community. The Bible Institute is growing with many students applying and desiring to be trained up, to change the world with the love of Christ. And we need your help to get there! We\u0026rsquo;re over halfway!\nPrayer Requests for our family:\nFor our BODIES, MINDS, AND SPIRITS: We\u0026rsquo;re a little sick right now. We\u0026rsquo;ve noticed our attitudes have been off these past few days. Discontentment and impatience are hitting us. We need to press on and continue with by the Holy Spirit. Praise Reports:\nWe\u0026rsquo;ve been FOCUSED. God is giving us great friendships and partnerships. We\u0026rsquo;ve been BOLD in sharing the gospel. It\u0026rsquo;s May and we\u0026rsquo;re at 54% of our monthly Peru living expenses. Ways to get involved:\nPray for us. We will need ongoing prayerful support as we prepare to move and settle into our new home country in June. Join our care team. Our care team is a group of people that meets once a month in Kauai to pray for us specifically. Tell a friend or family member. Help share the vision that the Lord has given us with trusted people or churches you know. It takes an army of people to send a missionary out! If you know anyone who is interested in partnering with missionaries who are church planting, please connect us with them! Become a financial partner. God has been providing immensely for us to take this big step of faith, however, we are still in need of more monthly supporters as we need 80% ongoing monthly support before we can move. ","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2023/05/03/a-mind-to-work/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2023/05/IMG%5F0686.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThese past two months in California have been an absolute blessing. Some of our biggest prayer requests from our previous newsletter were: that we\u0026rsquo;d be focused, that we\u0026rsquo;d cultivate new and old meaningful partnerships and friendships, and that we\u0026rsquo;d be bold in sharing the gospel. I can confidently say that by the grace of God, He\u0026rsquo;s been granting these prayers.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSince moving, we\u0026rsquo;ve had the opportunity to meet with our friends at Saving Grace World Missions, the organization who is helping send us out to the mission field. At SGWM\u0026rsquo;s Preaching and Teaching classes, Racquell and I share 15 minute messages that we\u0026rsquo;ve prepared beforehand (once from Philippians and twice now from the Book of Jonah). The critiques and feedback we\u0026rsquo;ve gotten from pastors there will only continue to help us sharpen the gifting of teaching we see God has charged both Racquell and I with. We\u0026rsquo;ve also gotten to sit in on other Bible \u0026amp; Apologetics classes and times of missionary testimonies. All these things have helped us maintain that focus that we\u0026rsquo;ve been praying for!\u003c/p\u003e","title":"A Mind to Work"},{"content":" The month of February was a busy and exciting month for us! We established a Care Team, had a moving sale, taught at CBI Kauai for their Missions class, MOVED from Kauai to California for a time of transition, AND Amalia turned 4 months old!\nWe experienced many \u0026ldquo;lasts\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;not for a whiles.\u0026rdquo; One of those \u0026ldquo;lasts\u0026rdquo; was actually a first and last time meeting with our Care Team in our home base of Kauai. We ate dinner, prayed, and worshipped with them. We also got to share more specifics about the ministry with Calvary Trujillo, CBI Peru, and general things about the country of Peru. It was very encouraging to meet with our team before leaving, knowing that they will be praying for us every step of the way, and meeting with us once a month over Zoom to pray with us. If YOU are on Kauai and are interested in joining us once a month, contact Trevor or Carissa Tadiarca for more details! We are so blessed already by our friends who are partnering with us in this way.\nSaying a hui hou (see you later) to our home church, CCLihue, and all of our Kauai family was extremely bitter sweet. Pastor Bruce Baumgartner shared, \u0026ldquo;While they were serving the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set Barnabas and Saul apart for Me for the work to which I have called them.” Then, when they had fasted, prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo; (Acts 13:2-3). There were many tears, laughs, and hugs shared but we are comforted in the will of the Lord.\nMoving means downsizing. You\u0026rsquo;re probably familiar with that. Racquell and I were blessed to live with family, the Ochoas (Racquell\u0026rsquo;s brother, our sister-in-law, and their baby boy) for the majority of our time on Kauai. They and some other friends helped us think through what to sell/donate, and put on a garage sale. Despite the pouring rain, the Lord blessed us with a lot of visitors and buyers, and we were able to sell or donate most of our belongings we no longer need. Praise God! Thank you, Kauai family, for helping us MOVE!\nWe\u0026rsquo;re also excited to share that we are currently receiving 31% of our monthly budget! Saving Grace World Missions require that we be 80% funded on a monthly basis prior to departing. We\u0026rsquo;re nearly halfway there.\nThank you for those of you who have graciously given one time gifts to contribute to our part in this great task of making disciples of all nations. Thank you also to those of you who are signed up to give on a monthly basis. Our family is preparing to move to South America and be involved in foreign missions for the long haul. We\u0026rsquo;re excited and grateful for you to be along for the ride with us! We are partners in this work together, with Jesus as our Master, Commander, Shepherd, and God.\nWith that in mind, Racquell and I love hearing from our friends (who doesn\u0026rsquo;t?). If you\u0026rsquo;ve got a praise report, prayer request, nugget of wisdom or encouragement, some advice, questions, or want to talk story, please reach out to us. You can message us on WhatsApp or Messenger, text us, or respond to THIS email. It will come straight to our inbox.\nSince flying back to the mainland, we\u0026rsquo;ve had lots of opportunities to share the gospel with folks and also share about the work we\u0026rsquo;re preparing to be a part of in Peru. We\u0026rsquo;ll share more about that next time! Here\u0026rsquo;s an Amalia update pic and a few final thoughts for you in the meantime:\nPrayer Requests for our family:\nFocus in this short transition time here in California, waiting for our time to go (hopefully the beginning of THIS June) Meaningful partnerships and friendships to be forged, and for old ones to flourish and rekindle BOLDNESS as we share Jesus with people in San Diego 80% funding by June Praise Reports:\nWe are all three in good health and are encouraged by God to press on. We\u0026rsquo;ve got plenty of family and friends who are housing us, welcoming us and reminding us of the aloha we had back on Kauai. God is blessing the ministries in Peru, to say the least. God is still faithful and unchanging (Psalms 36:5; Hebrews 13:8) To check out the ministry we are preparing to serve with, please click the link: Calvaryperu.com\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2023/03/16/full-send/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2023/03/Perf-pic-1.jpeg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe month of February was a busy and exciting month for us! We established a Care Team, had a moving sale, taught at CBI Kauai for their Missions class, MOVED from Kauai to California for a time of transition, AND Amalia turned 4 months old!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe experienced many \u0026ldquo;lasts\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;not for a whiles.\u0026rdquo; One of those \u0026ldquo;lasts\u0026rdquo; was actually a first and last time meeting with our Care Team in our home base of Kauai. We ate dinner, prayed, and worshipped with them. We also got to share more specifics about the ministry with Calvary Trujillo, CBI Peru, and general things about the country of Peru. It was very encouraging to meet with our team before leaving, knowing that they will be praying for us every step of the way, and meeting with us once a month over Zoom to pray with us. If YOU are on Kauai and are interested in joining us once a month, contact Trevor or Carissa Tadiarca for more details! We are so blessed already by our friends who are partnering with us in this way.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Full Send"},{"content":"January has been a fun month for the Stratton family! We have been blessed with so much love, support and aloha from our home church, Calvary Chapel Lihue. They have really come around us as a family in an incredible way. Recently God has been blessing us with many divine appointments and times to share the gospel with new friends and also to share about the Great Commission and reaching the lost for the sake of Christ.\nWe\u0026rsquo;ve gotten a few opportunities to share briefly at CC Lihue and other fellowships, and announce our dessert gatherings (where we share more information and pray for Peru). We\u0026rsquo;ve scheduled them around the island of Kauai to share what the Lord has been doing in our hearts, as well as what He has been doing in Perú through Calvary Trujillo and the Calvary Bible Institute. If you\u0026rsquo;re on Kauai, come eat dessert and pray with us!\nWe\u0026rsquo;ve also continued serving with the Young Adults ministry at our church as we have started the New Year! It has been a blessing to be a part of that ministry and serve alongside of friends to minister the young adults of Kauai. It\u0026rsquo;s sweet to come back together after the holidays as many friends left island for to visit family and are now back. We\u0026rsquo;re starting a new study in 1 Peter currently.\nLast weekend, I (Shilo) got to cruise up to Koke\u0026rsquo;e State Park to attend a men\u0026rsquo;s retreat with our church, where the drive was foggy and rainy, and we slept in cabins in the mountains. We didn\u0026rsquo;t have water or electricity for most of the weekend, but where we lacked in amenities, the Lord blessed us all the more in good food, fellowship, and powerful times of worship and Bible study. The theme of the weekend was DISCIPLESHIP, and one thing that the Lord showed me was that before I am a disciple of anyone else, or a member of any church or group, an employee at such and such company, or have any other man-given title, or anything\u0026hellip; I am a disciple of the Lord, Jesus the Messiah. He is my Rabbi (Teacher), my Master, and I simply ought to follow Him.\nWe as disciples of Jesus often refer to ourselves as \u0026ldquo;the Church,\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;believers,\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;Christians.\u0026rdquo; Those are great, and true, but the reality is that those terms are used only a handful of times in the New Testament, while the term \u0026ldquo;disciple\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;disciples\u0026rdquo; is used over two hundred times. So I ask you, are you a disciple of Jesus? Is He your Lord? Follow Him.\nI do also want to share this Scripture with you, it\u0026rsquo;s been special to our hearts for a while and especially as of late. The context is of course Jesus discussing His own ministry and Self and purpose with the religious leaders of His day. Many of whom didn\u0026rsquo;t understand or want to understand what it meant to \u0026ldquo;follow Him.\u0026rdquo; The dialogue in this whole chapter is great, we encourage you to read it. But the verse we want to share is:\nJohn 10:27, \u0026ldquo;My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo;\nIf you hear Jesus\u0026rsquo; voice, you are His sheep! He knows you, and you follow Him! What awesome truths. If you feel you\u0026rsquo;re not hearing His voice, then listen by reading His word, the Bible. God speaks clearly through His word. Follow Him. You won\u0026rsquo;t regret it.\nWe are continuing to prepare for our very near departure from Hawaii back to the mainland for a short time by selling our things and doing a lot of downsizing. We are excited to spend a few months in California before launching to Peru full time in the early summer!\nPlease pray for the logistics of our move, including selling/donating and packing our things, purchasing flights, being sent out from our church, etc.\nPray for our friends and families, as these big steps are difficult in some ways and our emotions are many.\nPlease continue to pray for the health and safety of baby Amalia (she had her first cold this month).\nPray also for the ministries of Calvary Trujillo and Calvary Bible Institute Peru. God is doing amazing things, many disciples are being made and growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus. God is raising up leaders to continue to impact South America and beyond, but not without difficulties and opposition.\nIf you would like to pray for some people who are currently in Trujillo, doing the work of the ministry now, by name: for Cory and Danielle K, Andrew, Santiago, Joaquin and Ruth, and many more. That list will likely grow\u0026hellip;we\u0026rsquo;re not in Peru yet.\nLastly, please pray for Peru as a nation. There is some social and governmental unrest, pray that it would be resolved quickly and well.\nIf you have prayer requests, any questions or comments, please feel free to respond to this email. We love hearing from those who read our newsletters. Send us a message! Thank you for taking time with us as we share about preparing for Peru!\nThank you for your prayers and support. If you would like to partner with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the link below. We do have one time costs we\u0026rsquo;re expecting here soon, and could use monthly partners especially.\n\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2023/02/01/jesus-says-my-sheep-hear-my-voice/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eJanuary has been a fun month for the Stratton family! We have been blessed with so much love, support and aloha from our home church, Calvary Chapel Lihue. They have really come around us as a family in an incredible way. Recently God has been blessing us with many divine appointments and times to share the gospel with new friends and also to share about the Great Commission and reaching the lost for the sake of Christ.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Jesus says, \"My sheep hear My voice...\""},{"content":"","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/give/","summary":"","title":"Give"},{"content":" After this summer\u0026rsquo;s school of missions Racquell and I were accepted officially as Saving Grace World Missions Missionaries! This means that along with our sending church, Calvary Chapel Lihue we are being sent out with this missions organization. They will help us with facilitating funds, sending newsletters, as well a support spiritually.\nWe have been back in our home on Kauai, Hawaii and have been sharing updates with our church Calvary Chapel Lihue and serving in several ministries. Huge answer to prayer we welcomed our baby Amalia Esther Stratton on October 29th she is happy and healthy and keeping us busy.\nWe were able to serve in our churches children\u0026rsquo;s ministry for the month of October. Our young adults ministry broke off into small home groups for about 6 weeks and we were privileged to host one in our home right before welcoming Amalia. We were blessed by the fellowship, study and worship that we got to lead and take part in.\nAlthough we\u0026rsquo;ve been busy in ministry and with our new family we have still been moving forward in preparing for our move to Peru. It is our aim to move to Peru next year in the late spring/early summer to come along side Calvary Trujillo church plant and the Calvary Bible Institute. If you would like to follow the ministry we’re going to be apart of you can follow them @calvaryperu on instagram or find them on Facebook at Calvary Trujillo.\nPlease continue to pray for our young family as we navigate our new roles of parenthood. Pray for opportunities to continue to serve where we are and prepare for moving away.\nA verse that has been on out minds lately is Psalm 127:3-5 which says,\n\u0026ldquo;Behold, children are a gift of the Lord,\nThe fruit of the womb is a reward.\nLike arrows in the hand of a warrior,\nSo are the children of one’s youth.\nHow blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;\nThey will not be ashamed\nWhen they speak with their enemies in the gate.\u0026rdquo;\nWe are receiving this and praying this over our family, praising the Lord for the gift that He has given us and praying that we would train her in His ways.\nThank you for your prayers. If you would like to partner with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the link below.\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family of three\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/12/14/family-of-three/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2022/11/IMG%5F0576.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter this summer\u0026rsquo;s school of missions Racquell and I were accepted officially as Saving Grace World Missions Missionaries! This means that along with our sending church, Calvary Chapel Lihue we are being sent out with this missions organization. They will help us with facilitating funds, sending newsletters, as well a support spiritually.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe have been back in our home on Kauai, Hawaii and have been sharing updates with our church Calvary Chapel Lihue and serving in several ministries. Huge answer to prayer we welcomed our baby Amalia Esther Stratton on October 29th she is happy and healthy and keeping us busy.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Family of Three!"},{"content":" Hello friends and family! We are back in Rosarito after 10 days in Mazatlán and Culiacán. This is our last week of the School of Missions, and we have learned, grown, and experienced so much in such a short time of six weeks. Thanks for taking time to read and partner with us through prayer.\n\u0026#34;Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, \u0026#34;Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing.\u0026#34;\u0026#34; (Acts 15:36 NKJV) During our time in Mazatlán and Culiacán, we visited several church plants and got to both enjoy the fellowship of believers there, and serve God in various areas right alongside them. The first church our team had the privilege of serving at on the trip was one of the church plants out of Calvary Maranatha, Mazatlán. We did a \u0026ldquo;church take over\u0026rdquo; and both of us were able to serve in the children\u0026rsquo;s ministry: Racquell led worship and Shilo helped in translating and doing games with the older kids.\nShilo was very encouraged by a conversation with one of the kids named Roman, there at Maranatha Mazatlán Este. He\u0026rsquo;s a young teenager and the oldest in his family, and had such a welcoming and warm friendliness about him. He was really excited for missionaries to be visiting his church. When it came to the Bible Study our team did with the youth, Roman ate it up. He said he wants to be a missionary in the future and take the gospel where it hasn\u0026rsquo;t been taken.\nAnother sweet part of our visit to Mazatlán was getting to spend time with and encourage the foreign and national missionaries, pastors, and workers who are serving there. One missionary who we spent time with was Nancy S. Her life is such a testimony of faith and trust in the Lord. Our whole team was impacted by her testimony and being able to see her live out the calling God has placed on her life.\nAfter our time in Mazatlán, we drove about 3 hours north east to Culiacán. There we also visited a number of church plants. We put on several special events for the churches including a Women\u0026rsquo;s Dinner at Calvary Chapel Aguaruto, and a Missions Conference for all the Calvary Chapels in the Culiacán area (seven and counting). The theme of the Missions Conference \u0026ldquo;Mexico y Más Allá\u0026rdquo; which means \u0026ldquo;Mexico and Beyond.\u0026rdquo; The goal was to call the Mexican church to look past their own borders at the world wide need for the gospel. Their hearts were stirred for the 3 billion people who are currently without the gospel, and were exposed to the facts of the most needy-for-the-gospel-countries in the world.\nAs the parents were given all this information, we also had children\u0026rsquo;s classes where they were learning about the Great Commission and specifics about countries around the world, their cultures and their religions. Shilo served in translating for the group that taught the first of four sessions, which was an introduction Great Commission, and Racquell served in translating for the group that taught on the country of Jordan. During the conference were also able to serve in ushering the people, at the snack table in between teaching sessions, in the nursery with the little ones, and by ushering people in.\nAfter visiting several other church plants from Calvary Culiacán, we made our way by plane back to Tijuana, then drove back to Rosarito. We\u0026rsquo;re writing to you now from a beach house near Rosarito, and we\u0026rsquo;re here really just to meditate on and digest all the Lord has shown us in these past six weeks, and prepare our hearts for the next steps of what God is calling us to.\nThank you for praying for us! You can continue to pray for us in these areas:\nRacquell and baby\u0026rsquo;s health Travels from San Diego back to Kauai in about a week (Racquell\u0026rsquo;s comfort and minimal stress on her body and the baby) Financial provision Health for the group (there\u0026rsquo;s a few students and staff members who have been having stomach issues these past few days) Wisdom Time spent well these last couple of days of Calvary School of Missions Praise Reports: Shilo is completely over the cold that he had and Racquell never caught it. Also, we\u0026rsquo;ve had no issues in our travels and have gotten where we need to go without problems.\nThank you to those who have graciously given financially!\nIf you would like to partner financially with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the button below. We still have a few days to raise support on the remainder of our balance for school, which is $2,717.14.\nWe\u0026rsquo;ll be in San Diego for a week starting this Sunday, the 21st. If you\u0026rsquo;re in the area and would like to connect with us, we\u0026rsquo;d love to see you!\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/08/19/churches-that-plant-churches-that-plant-churches/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2022/08/1ca9df62-95de-4529-92c5-18a1916f912a-1.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHello friends and family! We are back in Rosarito after 10 days in Mazatlán and Culiacán. \u003cstrong\u003eThis is our last week of the School of Missions\u003c/strong\u003e, and we have learned, grown, and experienced so much in such a short time of six weeks. Thanks for taking time to read and partner with us through prayer.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"highlight\"\u003e\u003cpre tabindex=\"0\" style=\"color:#f8f8f2;background-color:#272822;-moz-tab-size:4;-o-tab-size:4;tab-size:4;\"\u003e\u003ccode class=\"language-fallback\" data-lang=\"fallback\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"display:flex;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026#34;Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, \u0026#34;Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing.\u0026#34;\u0026#34; (Acts 15:36 NKJV)\n\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/code\u003e\u003c/pre\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2022/08/c15842b5-8534-4979-86ce-0d5058a4c14e-3.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDuring our time in Mazatlán and Culiacán, we visited several church plants and got to both enjoy the fellowship of believers there, and serve God in various areas right alongside them. The first church our team had the privilege of serving at on the trip was one of the church plants out of Calvary Maranatha, Mazatlán. We did a \u0026ldquo;church take over\u0026rdquo; and both of us were able to serve in the children\u0026rsquo;s ministry: Racquell led worship and Shilo helped in translating and doing games with the older kids.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Churches That Plant Churches That Plant Churches..."},{"content":" Hola! We write to you from Mazátlan, Mexico! We have been so blessed this past week of ministry and learning. We finished up our classes in Rosarito our Pastor Cory Kilgus (missionary to Perú) taught our last classes as well as another missionary, Pastor Wes Bentley, to South Sudan. This week the team gathered for a time of evangelism at a nearby park. Our last couple days there were spent attending the Church Planting Conference that was put on by Calvary Chapel Rosarito. They gathered all the churches that they have sent out so far (around 45) and also invited many other pastors and leaders to catch the vision of Church Planting around the world. Right after the conference we caught a flight out to Culiacán and drove from there to Mazatlán to attend church at Calvary Maranatha on Sunday morning and an evening service at Calvary Isla de Piedra.\nBefore we left Rosarito, we joined the rest of our group in an outreach to a beach community not far from church. We set up a face painting booth and a prayer tent to encourage people to stop and interact with us. Part of our group was leading worship to bring people into that area of the park. While some of the team stayed in the main plaza to talk to kids and their families several groups formed to invite more families to get their face painted as well as to get into conversations. Our team pointed the people to a local church (Calvary Chapel Rosarito) if they were looking for a place or if they had any follow up questions.\nOver the weekend we attended Calvary Chapel Rosarito\u0026rsquo;s Church Planting Conference. That was a huge blessing to us and our team, as we got to sit under some amazing teachers and attend insightful workshops all about Church Planting. One specific workshop Shilo got to attend was about discipleship. Pastor Michael Pallotto from Calvary Chapel Oceanside led the workshop and unpacked for us what it means to be a disciple of Christ. The reality is that the word \u0026ldquo;Christian\u0026rdquo; is used only three times in the New Testament. But \u0026ldquo;disciple(s)\u0026rdquo; is used over 200 times. Pastor Michael discussed how a disciple of Jesus is more than just a \u0026ldquo;learner,\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;follower,\u0026rdquo; as we commonly simplify it \u0026ndash; a disciple of Jesus is \u0026ldquo;someone who imitates and obeys Jesus Christ, who is changed and transformed by the Holy Spirit, and who makes other disciples.\u0026rdquo;\nFor Racquell and I, as we live to obey Jesus\u0026rsquo;s command to \u0026ldquo;go and make disciples\u0026rdquo; (Matthew 28:19), that is our goal. Be healthy disciples ourselves, imitating and obeying Christ, being transformed by His Spirit within us, and making other disciples\u0026hellip;who do the same! Long term, it is our hope to do that in Trujillo, Perú, by assisting with a Calvary Bible Institute and church there. The past week or so we were joined by not only Pastor Cory, but a group of other friends (pictured below) who are or will be part of what\u0026rsquo;s going on in Trujillo. We cherished the time we\u0026rsquo;ve gotten to spend with those friends, and hope to join them within the next year.\nWe will be in Mazatlán for a couple days before heading to Cualicán. We are mostly visiting different church plants and serving along side of them as well as encouraging the missionaries that are here with fellowship and by strengthening their hands.\nWe would love for you guys to join us in prayer that the Lord would clearly speak to us as our trip is in its last two weeks. Our prayer is that we would have a clear vision and purpose in our next season. We would also appreciate your continued prayers for Racquell and our baby girl \u0026ndash; that they would both be strengthened. Lastly, for Shilo as he has been fighting a cold for the last couple days.\nThank you! We appreciate you encouragement and support. We only have about two weeks left here at Calvary School of Missions. In the future we will likely continue with monthly newsletters, rather than weekly updates as we\u0026rsquo;ve been doing.\nWe have $2,967.14 left to raise to cover our tuition here at CSOM. Thank you to those who have given generously already.\nIf you would like to partner financially with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the button below.\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/08/12/and-were-off/","summary":"\u003cfigure\u003e\n    \u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" src=\"/srstratton/wp-content/uploads/sites/164/2022/08/IMG%5F4472.jpg\"/\u003e \n\u003c/figure\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHola! We write to you from Mazátlan, Mexico! We have been so blessed this past week of ministry and learning. We finished up our classes in Rosarito our Pastor Cory Kilgus (missionary to Perú) taught our last classes as well as another missionary, Pastor Wes Bentley, to South Sudan. This week the team gathered for a time of evangelism at a nearby park. Our last couple days there were spent attending the Church Planting Conference that was put on by Calvary Chapel Rosarito. They gathered all the churches that they have sent out so far (around 45) and also invited many other pastors and leaders to catch the vision of Church Planting around the world. Right after the conference we caught a flight out to Culiacán and drove from there to Mazatlán to attend church at Calvary Maranatha on Sunday morning and an evening service at Calvary Isla de Piedra.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"And We're Off..."},{"content":"Family and Friends, we are so blessed and encouraged by all of you who are part of our Newsletter and partnering with us in prayer during this School of Missions. We have entered into the fourth week here in Rosarito and have continuously been blessed by the missionaries (from Mexico, Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa) who have come out to share their wisdom with us. We\u0026rsquo;re encouraged by their stories of how the Lord Jesus has used them and grown them in their contexts.\nWe were blessed this week to visit a rehabilitation center in Tijuana and lead their \u0026ldquo;hora de Dios,\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;hour of God.\u0026rdquo; Students from our group shared testimonies, a small Bible study, and a snack with all of the men and women who are going through the rehab process. Afterwards, the men split up into small groups and asked specific questions about the teaching that was shared. Many of the gentlemen there had great questions for us about the Bible and Christianity. The women took time to chat with each other while the ladies from our team painted their nails and helped them make beaded jewelry.\nA few of them expressed to Racquell that not many people come to serve them, although they get a teaching of some sort everyday. They were blessed to be able to get their nails done and do something creative as well. One of the men also shared with Shilo and the other guys that it was \u0026ldquo;like a breath of fresh air\u0026rdquo; having us come. Wow. They\u0026rsquo;re exposed to the Gospel all the time. Many of them are believers and joined with us in singing during the time of worship. But what impacted them most was the time we took afterwards to sit, talk, and share life with them.\nOur team also had the opportunity to go to an indigenous community of Spanish speaking Kumeyaay Native Americans this past weekend to do a church service with them. The pastor, named Angel Jesús, is a Mexican man who married an indigenous woman. He invited people from the community to come to the church on Saturday to visit with our group.\nAfter a time of playing outside with kids from the area and meeting with parents and other adults who had come, our group got to share a drama (mini-skit that shared a story from the Bible), play a few songs of worship in Spanish, open the Bible for a brief teaching, and share a couple testimonies with the people who came. After we shared a meal with them, Shilo got to talk to Pastor Angel a little more. He was very thankful that we came to visit. From where we are staying in Rosarito, it was about an hour and a half drive to get there. The reservation is secluded. The church itself is not typical, in terms of attendance. Because it\u0026rsquo;s such a rural area, very few people come consistently. From what Pastor Angel said, people come when they are in need. And our going and visiting with them this past Saturday encouraged Pastor Angel, his wife, and the other helpers to simply stay the course.\nRegardless of attendance or reception from the community, Pastor Angel knows God has placed him there for a reason. Like Jesus says, \u0026ldquo;You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.\u0026rdquo; (Matthew 5:14-15). Pastor Angel and his wife know that their church is a place of refuge in the reservation. The large group of us who went to them and loved on his people was a huge source of encouragement Angel and the other workers. It stirred them up. We are thankful God used us in that way. We know that the gas, wear on the tires it took to get there, and the food and resources we brought were worth it. Not because we have anything of value to bring, in and of ourselves, but because of the love of Christ we got to share with the church, its Pastor and the community there.\nThank you all for praying for the health and well-being of our team here. Overall, everyone has been in pretty good health. Racquell is almost 25 weeks pregnant, and has been feeling a lot of movement from our growing baby girl.\nPlease continue to pray for us as we prepare for our trip to Mazatlán and Culiacán\u0026hellip;this weekend!\nYou can also pray for a Conference that Calvary Chapel Rosarito is hosting this weekend. Before we jump on a plane, we\u0026rsquo;re helping serve there. Pray that church planters would be encouraged and that future church planters would be stirred up!\nAs for our needs, we have 40% of our combined tuition paid off. If you would like to partner with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the button below. By the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/08/01/hide-it-under-a-bushel-no/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eFamily and Friends, we are so blessed and encouraged by all of you who are part of our Newsletter and partnering with us in prayer during this School of Missions. We have entered into the fourth week here in Rosarito and have continuously been blessed by the missionaries (from Mexico, Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa) who have come out to share their wisdom with us. We\u0026rsquo;re encouraged by their stories of how the Lord Jesus has used them and grown them in their contexts.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Hide it under a bushel? No!"},{"content":"Aloha friends and family!\nWe have been at the Calvary School of Missions for three weeks now and have continued to participate in classes and meet missionaries who have served in countries like Nepal, India, and Mexico. We have also been able to engage in multiple ministries and serve at some of the local church plants from Calvary Chapel Rosarito.\nThis past week in our classes we\u0026rsquo;ve finished looking at the Purpose of the Church and started looking at cultural matters. We\u0026rsquo;ve looked at maps and charts of the \u0026ldquo;reached\u0026rdquo; (areas where the Gospel is largely accessible) and \u0026ldquo;unreached\u0026rdquo; (places with little to no accessibility to the Gospel) areas of the world. We\u0026rsquo;ve touched on topics like \u0026ldquo;worldview,\u0026rdquo; and seen how there is a great deal of difference between Western and Eastern ideologies.\nThis week we participated in two park outreaches and served during a church takeover night. We have both been growing and practicing our Spanish since arriving. Both of us have been given the opportunity to serve as translators for our friends who have taught Bible lessons for kids at the outreaches and during casual conversations.\nMost of the park outreaches consist of the school of eighteen students coming along side a local church to support and put on an event for the community. The team of students do things like face painting, balloon animals, and a VBS type presentation for the kids. For the women we have nail painting and for the adults we do a time of worship and teaching. There is also food provided for the whole family.\nAt one of these park outreaches we were both placed on the evangelism team, having conversations with people and trying to encourage them towards the Lord. One conversation that Racquell had was with a woman named Lulu. She and her family were selling clothes on the side of the park. Racquell had earlier invited her three children to participate in the face painting and other activities that were available. We both began to engage with Lulu and she soon opened up to Racquell about how she had been far from the Lord for many years and she felt something was missing in her heart, and she knew it was Jesus. Lulu shared with us that she is a single mom of four and that she was a business owner but lost her business due to the pandemic.\nRacquell sat with her for a long time and talked through what a biblical church looks like, which came in contrast to the religiosity she had been faced with in the past at other churches. We spoke about how Jesus does not expect us to be perfect before we come to Him. Jesus Himself spoke about this in Luke 5:31-32, “It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.\u0026quot; Lulu had been rejected from churches due to not being \u0026ldquo;dressed up enough,\u0026rdquo; and sadly this is a terrible reflection of Jesus\u0026rsquo; heart for people. Racquell encouraged her that the Lord doesn\u0026rsquo;t hold that kind of standard, and neither do we. We were able to pray with her and point her to two great Bible teaching churches in her area.\nThank you all for praying for the health and well-being of our team here! Please continue to pray for us as we prepare for our trip to Mazatlán and Culiacán. Please pray also for our Spanish, as we desire to learn and grow at this time, that we\u0026rsquo;d be more effective here in Mexico and in the future.\nHere\u0026rsquo;s a short video we made for Calvary Chapel Saving Grace in Yorba Linda, California. Their pastors and leaders play a huge part in putting this school on, so this is a video we made to thank them and keep the church body informed \u0026ndash; we\u0026rsquo;re putting it here for your encouragement too.\nhttps://youtu.be/O_5ARLdnzsM\nThank you for your prayers. If you would like to partner with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the button below.\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/07/27/the-great-physician/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eAloha friends and family!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe have been at the Calvary School of Missions for three weeks now and have continued to participate in classes and meet missionaries who have served in countries like Nepal, India, and Mexico. We have also been able to engage in multiple ministries and serve at some of the local church plants from Calvary Chapel Rosarito.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis past week in our classes we\u0026rsquo;ve finished looking at the Purpose of the Church and started looking at cultural matters. We\u0026rsquo;ve looked at maps and charts of the \u0026ldquo;reached\u0026rdquo; (areas where the Gospel is largely accessible) and \u0026ldquo;unreached\u0026rdquo; (places with little to no accessibility to the Gospel) areas of the world. We\u0026rsquo;ve touched on topics like \u0026ldquo;worldview,\u0026rdquo; and seen how there is a great deal of difference between Western and Eastern ideologies.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"The Great Physician"},{"content":"Hola! From Rosarito, Mexico. We have been so blessed to continue this journey into week two of Calvary School of Missions. We are being strengthened and encouraged in our classes, getting to hear directly from missionaries on the field, and witness the work of God in several church plants here in Baja California. We\u0026rsquo;ve also had the incredible opportunity to reach out in the community and connect with local churches.\nIn one of our classes, we\u0026rsquo;ve been looking at the book of Acts as a model for the global Church. We\u0026rsquo;ve reflected much on Jesus\u0026rsquo; words to His disciples in the very beginning of the Book, saying,\n\u0026ldquo;but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth\u0026rdquo; (Acts 1:8).\nFriends and family, we believe this to be a call from God not just in our lives but in the life of every follower of Christ. We encourage you to pray about how God would have you be involved in the work of reaching the remotest part of the earth with the love of Christ.\nIn this second week we were able to participate in two outreaches partnering with local churches. The first being a dump outreach with Calvary Chapel Homex. There’s no sugar coating it – we went to a literal landfill where some people make a living by sorting and separating trash, many of whom have constructed shacks to live in right there in the dump. Pastor Eddie has built some relationships with some of the men, women, and children there, and visits them a few times a week for what he calls “Pachanga Time” (party time). It usually involves an EZ-UP, some chairs, worship, Bible study, and some food. I personally got to speak with Jorge (see picture). Last year, he broke his ankle and had to go to a hospital in Tijuana, where doctors gave him the news that he would likely need to have his whole right foot cut off. He prayed, reached out to family and was able to get some financial help and have surgery (with some metal plates) to save his foot. He is born-again and actively goes to the services on Sundays at CC Homex, not far from the dump. Jorge is grateful for his life in Christ. He knows God cares for him and will continue to take care of his needs. Retelling me the story about his ankle, he was getting teary-eyed in thankfulness that he got to keep his foot.\nAfter our group left on Tuesday, the other half of our team visited the dump again on Friday. They went later in the day and got a lot bigger turn out. One man made the decision to follow Christ. The team that went encouraged my friend, Jorge and the other believers there, to disciple their new brother in Christ and bring him to church with them.\nSomething we’ve been learning in class and have been able to see before our eyes is the importance of partnering with a local church when we do mission trips. The reality is that Racquell, myself, and all the rest of the students and staff here from CSOM are going to leave Rosarito in a couple weeks. I’m thankful to God that He has workers here to reach people when we are gone. My brothers at the dump have a church they can walk to. Jesus told His disciples to “go and make disciples,” (Matthew 28:19), He didn’t say, “make converts.” So in our going, and partnering with churches, He is faithful to do as He said, and build His church (Matthew 16:18).\nThe second outreach we were blessed to be apart of was with \u0026ldquo;Gracia del Calvario\u0026rdquo; located in east Tijuana. We partnered with them to do a park outreach geared towards families. We had faceprinting, carnival games, and soccer for the kids. We also had nail painting to minister to the women/ teen girls and provided a meal for the whole family. There were two separate Bible studies, one for kids which was taught by Racquell, and another for adults which was taught by myself. This was a huge blessing as we both got to share the gospel and spend time with those who were at the outreach. One woman who Racquell spent time with while painting her nails is a single mom of three kids. Although she regularly attends church at Gracia del Calvario she hasn\u0026rsquo;t been serving in order to provide for her family. Racquell was able to encourage her and meet all her sons who are currently serving at the church, even the youngest who is 12 was passing out flyers and helping lead the kids worship. Being able to fellowship with these believers was a blessing for both Racquell and the women who attended.\nPlease pray for the health of the staff and students at the school. Join us in praying for the different missionaries who we have been partnering with and hearing from here in Mexico but also around the world that they would be strengthened in the work that the Lord has called them to.\nPlease continue to pray for Racquell and our baby girl. We praise Jesus that Racquell has been in great health since being here and has been enjoying all the Mexican cuisine. Baby is moving and kicking which has been exciting to experience.\nThank you for your prayers. If you would like to partner with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the link below.\nhttps://www.egsnetwork.com/gift2/?giftid=01ECF5D0141E43B\nRomans 10:14-17: \u0026ldquo;How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!”\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/07/18/how-will-they-hear/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eHola! From Rosarito, Mexico. We have been so blessed to continue this journey into week two of Calvary School of Missions. We are being strengthened and encouraged in our classes, getting to hear directly from missionaries on the field, and witness the work of God in several church plants here in Baja California. We\u0026rsquo;ve also had the incredible opportunity to reach out in the community and connect with local churches.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"How will they hear?"},{"content":"Week One: School of Missions Update Family and friends, hola from Rosarito! We\u0026rsquo;ve flown from our home in Hawaii, spent a few days with our family in California, and arrived safely in Mexico. Today marks the second day of our six-week training at Calvary School of Missions!\nThank you for taking a minute to read this update from us. We\u0026rsquo;ve been reminded already in this time, and want to remind you, that our lives are not our own but rather, they belong to Jesus. A verse that represents that truth and that the Lord has ministered to us so far is,\n\u0026ldquo;For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: \u0026ldquo;You shall love your neighbor as yourself.\u0026rdquo; Galatians 5:14 . Recently we\u0026rsquo;ve been increasingly aware of our great need to love others if we are to serve God. We need to have compassion and truly care for other people. How can we make disciples, or build up our brothers and sisters in Christ, without love? God help us love others.\nIt has been a journey for us to arrive from Kauai to Mexico, and with us expecting a baby, it has only added to our preparations. One blessing we have already experienced is that the doctors in Kauai have cleared Racquell for travel, and they cleared it for the exact time we will be at the school. We also got to do an ultrasound before leaving Kauai and we were pleased to find out that we\u0026rsquo;re having a girl and that she is perfectly healthy. This is a huge comfort to our hearts as we don\u0026rsquo;t plan on seeing a doctor until we return home to Kauai.\nCurrently we are joined by sixteen other students and a handful of staff here in Rosarito, simply opening the Word of God and surrendering to His will. We will be in Rosarito for another four weeks before taking off on a plane to southern Mexico to visit some new and old church plants, coming alongside their ministries and putting on a conference in hopes to stir up Mexican churches for reaching other nations, too. William Carey famously said, \u0026ldquo;Expect great things; attempt great things.\u0026rdquo; Heading into this six-week training and looking ahead to the rest of our lives\u0026ndash;we expect great things.\nThis week we\u0026rsquo;ve been diving into a Biblical foundation for missions, and are also preparing for our outreaches here in Rosarito at a dump and later this weekend at a nearby park. In the weeks to come we will have other classes to further our training, along with hearing from and meeting SGWM missionaries as they teach classes and share personal testimonies from around the world.\nIt is a privilege for us to come to this School of Missions to be taught, guided and trained up. If we are to go into the world and make disciples, specifically in a country with great need and little or no access to the gospel, we need to be trained, and that is what has brought us here.\nWe ask that you continue to pray for Racquell for strength and endurance during classes, outreach and travel. Also please pray for our daughter as she is being knit together that the Lord would protect her.\nPlease pray also for the health of the entire team (staff, students, hosts, guest speakers), that we\u0026rsquo;d be able to focus on the work God is doing here. Additionally for wisdom with the leadership, and humility for ourselves and the rest of the team.\nMost of all, we pray that God be glorified in this time. We are confident that His will is going to be accomplished, and that He will clearly speak to us and direct us as to what\u0026rsquo;s next after this training \u0026ndash; whether it is to serve in Perú and other Spanish speaking countries, or to do something altogether different for His name.\nThank you for your prayers. If you would like to partner with our family in furtherance of the gospel please consider donating through the link below.\nhttps://www.egsnetwork.com/gift2/?giftid=01ECF5D0141E43B\nBy the grace of Jesus and for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/07/11/week-one/","summary":"\u003ch2 id=\"week-one-school-of-missions-update\"\u003eWeek One: School of Missions Update\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFamily and friends, hola from Rosarito! We\u0026rsquo;ve flown from our home in Hawaii, spent a few days with our family in California, and arrived safely in Mexico. Today marks the second day of our six-week training at Calvary School of Missions!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThank you for taking a minute to read this update from us. We\u0026rsquo;ve been reminded already in this time, and want to remind you, that our lives are not our own but rather, they belong to Jesus. A verse that represents that truth and that the Lord has ministered to us so far is,\u003c/p\u003e","title":"New Opportunities Same Mission"},{"content":"June Update:\nThank you for your fellowship in the faith and for your prayerful support. We are continuing to prepare for the CSOM term that is coming up. We recently shared with our church body CCLihue, our plans to go to the training and hopes that we will be sent out as foreign missionaries in the near future. Along with that vision we also shared with them that Racquell is pregnant and we will be welcoming a baby into this world in November. The Lord has been preparing us in multiple ways.\nOur hope and prayer during this time has been,\n\u0026hellip;in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now. For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.\nPhilippians 1:5-6\nBy the grace of Jesus, for His glory,\nThe Stratton Family\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/2022/05/13/hello-world/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eJune Update:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThank you for your fellowship in the faith and for your prayerful support. We are continuing to prepare for the CSOM term that is coming up. We recently shared with our church body CCLihue, our plans to go to the training and hopes that we will be sent out as foreign missionaries in the near future. Along with that vision we also shared with them that Racquell is pregnant and we will be welcoming a baby into this world in November. The Lord has been preparing us in multiple ways.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Bienvenidos!"},{"content":"This is an example page. It\u0026rsquo;s different from a blog post because it will stay in one place and will show up in your site navigation (in most themes). Most people start with an About page that introduces them to potential site visitors. It might say something like this:\nHi there! I\u0026rsquo;m a bike messenger by day, aspiring actor by night, and this is my website. I live in Los Angeles, have a great dog named Jack, and I like piña coladas. (And gettin\u0026rsquo; caught in the rain.)\n\u0026hellip;or something like this:\nThe XYZ Doohickey Company was founded in 1971, and has been providing quality doohickeys to the public ever since. Located in Gotham City, XYZ employs over 2,000 people and does all kinds of awesome things for the Gotham community.\nAs a new WordPress user, you should go to your dashboard to delete this page and create new pages for your content. Have fun!\n","permalink":"https://archive.sgwm.com/stratton/srstratton/sample-page/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eThis is an example page. It\u0026rsquo;s different from a blog post because it will stay in one place and will show up in your site navigation (in most themes). Most people start with an About page that introduces them to potential site visitors. It might say something like this:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHi there! I\u0026rsquo;m a bike messenger by day, aspiring actor by night, and this is my website. I live in Los Angeles, have a great dog named Jack, and I like piña coladas. (And gettin\u0026rsquo; caught in the rain.)\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Sample Page"}]