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| Missionaries |
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Cecelia Beck ministers as an outreach worker in a struggling neighborhood in Shelby, N.C. Called the “Northeast Shelby Weed and Seed” area, the neighborhood has been identified by the U.S. Department of Justice as a community in need of revitalization. By “weeding” out violence and other unhealthy problems, the hope is that the community can be “seeded” to allow for a healthier and more hopeful future.
Using her background in pastoral care and social work, Beck will minister through child and adult literacy, children enrichment programs and support for single parents. “My calling to serve the most neglected fits this work as many of my neighbors will be those who have been marginalized by crime, educational deficits, low income and unemployment,” she said.
She also hopes to engage CBF partnering congregations, particularly those in North Carolina, with opportunities to partner with the north Shelby neighborhood. “I hope to network and partner with congregations and individuals engaged in similar work so that we maximize our resources and help break the cycle of poverty for our neighbors here in North Carolina,” she said.
Download Cecelia's Newsletters and brochure |
Ryan and Courtney Tucker
Ryan Tucker, the pastor of the Billings congregation, is a graduate of Cumberland College in Williamsburg, Kentucky and the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. He has completed the Church Planters Boot Camp in Waco, Texas hosted by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in July, 2007 and has eleven years of Associate Pastor experience as a Student Minister. Ryan is fortunate to receive guidance and discernment from veteran church planter and Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Alabama Church Plant Coordinator, Dr. Michial Lewis. Ryan is married to his wife of eleven years, Courtney. She is a registered nurse, and they have one daughter, Avery.
Montana Missional Communities website: http://www.montanamc.org
Montana Missional Communities newsletters: http://winterparkbaptist.org/tucker_newsletters
Ryan's Blog: http://montanamc.blogspot.com/
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Kevin and Faydra Stratton
Kevin and Faydra Stratton feel called to the international mission field through Kevin's passion for flying. These two have experienced a restlessness living within suburban America and welcome the idea of raising their family in another culture. Kevin was always restless in his out-of-college chosen career path of chemical engineering. He began getting his private pilot's license not knowing what might become of it but sensing that if he were to change career paths it would be in this direction. When he discovered the occupation of missionary aviation, that piece of the puzzle slid into the picture with ease. Faydra's background includes extensive travel so it works out that Kevin's wife felt up for any adventure even one that involves living abroad. International missions is not something they discussed while dating or even in the first few years of marriage but when Kevin felt the pull towards missionary aviation Faydra didn't doubt that this was a calling centered in God's will. That it would involve sacrificing a steady income and a home/town/church they loved made the calling that much more about God and that much less about them. When they left Wilmington with their house unsold and no alternative plan for income, Faydra told a friend, "God got us into this mess; He's going to get us out of it!" Sure enough, one week before they needed to pay their first Longview mortgage payment, they closed on their Wilmington house. They continue to live off that profit so Kevin can concentrate on school full-time and Faydra can remain home with Kaden.
These days Kevin is racking up various aviation licenses and endorsements and they keep their eyes open for ministry opportunities in Longview. They attend Lifepoint Church, where once again, Kevin works with children and Faydra works with youth. They are also in the final stages of becoming licensed foster parents.
Through everything they continue to see God provide. They have never struggled to make a tuition payment because of the faithfulness of those who pledged to support them financially. The additional $7,000 Kevin needed to pay for summer classes they were able to afford themselves because of part-time contract work Kevin had been doing for his Wilmington company. When Kaden was rejected by private insurance, they stressed over how to pay for a tonsillectomy Kaden needed but finally got him covered through CHIP.
They don't yet know what step will follow this time of training and preparation. Kevin went on a spring break mission trip to JAARS headquarters in Waxhaw, NC. He hopes to visit other missionary aviations groups this year so that in his final year of school he'll be confident where he should apply. Please pray for them as they begin to more seriously consider where God will have them serve after Kevin's schooling.
The Stratton's Blogs http://thestrattons.typepad.com |
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