Jesus the Builder

Hola!

We 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.

“…and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” (Matthew 16:18)

Jesus really is the One who builds His church. He is adding to the church here in Trujillo — we’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 — two new students signed up to live on campus midway through the semester, along with a few others who are living off-campus.

The semester at CBI Perú is wrapping up, and we’ve had teachers from different parts of the U.S. and Perú come to teach classes on 1&2 Kings, the Pastoral Epistles, Ephesians, Hebrews, Nehemiah, Daniel, Song of Solomon, and currently, 1 Corinthians. God is truly transforming students’ hearts and minds as they diligently study and soak in the Word of God. We’ve seen big changes in some of the students’ 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.

A young student, we’ll call him “J,” was ready to pack up and leave after his first week here. He wasn’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. “J” 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. “J” 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.

Thank 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.

Some highlights from our trip to Moyobamba:

We got to prepare and deliver “bags of love” 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’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’s property — 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.

The entire trip was a demonstration of God’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’s doing in this church plant that started only about 6 months ago.

Personally God has really been building us up recently also. Easter was a great time of reflection and rejoicing in our risen King. My (Shilo’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!

We’re also excited to share that we’ll be leading a program THIS summer, to introduce young people to foreign missions, and give an introduction and Biblical view of what “missions” is. It’s designed for English speakers aged 18-29 years old. Check out this short video for more information.

If 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 “Summer Missions Internship.” We’re excited for what God has in store this summer!

Thank 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’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.

Some current prayer requests:

• The students at CBI Peru to finish the semester strong
• Good rest at night (Amalia has been difficult lately– she’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’s building His church here
• Continued love and dependence on Jesus in our personal lives

THANK YOU FOR PRAYING!

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: Saving Grace World Missions17451 Bastanchury Rd., Ste.203 Yorba Linda, CA 62886*Note “Stratton” in memo* To check out the ministry we are serving with, please click the link below or find us on Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube: Calvaryperu.com By the grace of Jesus and for His glory, The Stratton Family