Challenges in São Paulo, God’s Faithfulness Through It All

Jud and Raquel Hatcher serve the Lord in São Paulo, Brazil. They are part of the “SeedFactory” church planting initiative, which is a movement to plant churches in all 26 Brazilian capitals. Since 2006, 43 churches have been started in 5 states.
São Paulo, 8 of April of 2019
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
It’s with joy I write to you. God has done great things in our lives and around us. Since we arrived in São Paulo, on July 20, 2016 (almost 3 years ago), we have faced difficult challenges. But God is faithful and has given us wisdom in every step of the way. We thank you for your prayers and love demonstrated towards us in so many ways. Without you supporting our ministry, it wouldn’t be possible.
I want to share, even if in a nutshell, a little bit of our routine. When we first arrived, we were involved in starting/ministering at an English-speaking church and a Spanish-speaking church. Both were connected to a Portuguese-speaking church. Both churches were growing fast, and we were happy to be serving in that capacity. But God had other plans for us. Frustrated efforts in church plants in homes were discouraging. Through a turn of events, He redirected us to the other side of town. In the beginning, it was not easy. It was an unexpected change for all of us. There were questions in my mind at that time but never doubts about God’s faithfulness and love for us. As a wife, I learned I need to be prepared to follow my husband’s lead, and trust God. I think, this attitude of readiness (like Sarah – who had to pick up everything she had and follow her husband Abraham to a place where she did not know) was for me, the most difficult challenge as a missionary.
In August, we complete one year since the move. With God’s grace, we started two new churches. One meets on Saturdays – Hope Church. We have children’s church at 4:30 pm (they live in a very poor community, and they come by themselves bringing along their baby siblings; their ages average from 1-year-old to 13), and at 6:30 pm we have an open service to reach mainly adults. Another church meets on Sundays – Imagine Baptist Church. We have an English service at 5:00 pm and a Portuguese service at 6:30 pm. This church is an urbanized, more middle-class neighborhood. Jud is also mentoring a team of leaders from another Baptist church during the week (it is part of the network of churches Jud has started in São Paulo). But I stay home during the week. It is a tremendous joy to have the privilege to tell the good news of Jesus Christ to little ones, young and old. It’s an honor to serve Him.
Our children are very involved in both ministries – Hope and Imagine. They help us with children’s ministry on Saturdays, and in different ways on Sundays. It is priceless to see our daughters and son involved in church planting. I know the seed will grow in their hearts and be fruitful. They are a blessing to us. Sarah just turned 14 years old. Laura will be 13 in July, Benjamin is 11, and Melissa is 7 years old. They are attending an American Christian School. We are very happy. When we came to São Paulo, we brought material for me to home school them. Well, it didn’t work. So, they went to a public secular school. It was a mistake. Finally, we took a huge step of faith, and we registered them at Pan American Christian Academy, a well-known school for its strong biblical foundation and Christian worldview. They follow the US school calendar. With so many school changes, our kids had to adjust to the new school, which follows both curriculums: American and Brazilian. In other words, they have more disciplines in order to get both diplomas when they graduate. And 90% of their classes are in English.
During the week, I volunteer a few hours a week at our kids’ school. I also help families as a psychologist during the week. Next month, I’ll be guest speaking at a meeting for people who are thinking about becoming foster care parents, and families that already have a child under their care. This event is led by a Christian organization which has several ministry fronts in São Paulo. I also participate in a weekly, small group Bible study. It’s a blessing to study the Word of God with sisters in Christ. We are doing True Woman 201 – Interior Design – Ten Elements of Biblical Womanhood. It’s fantastic. I highly recommend.
There are so many other things I could share, but I need to save it for another opportunity. So, I will end with prayer requests:
1. For our ministries – that people can be saved
2. For our children – spiritual growth and studies
3. Our health, but especially for Laura who had her left eardrum ruptured and lost 90% of her hearing (the doctor in Brazil declared it as permanent hearing loss).
We are so thankful for each one of you. May God bless you with His spiritual blessings.
In Christ’s love,
Raquel Hatcher
Judson & Raquel Hatcher
(859) 544-9040
judsonhatcher@gmail.com
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Amazing Opportunity to Reach the Lost

Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
Greetings from Kenya!
As I sit here typing this letter, the girls are at an art class they are taking during a break from school. We are so thankful another local ministry is providing this class for kids. The girls are enjoying it immensely and they have the opportunity to be around other kids. Breaks from school are difficult for kids here, as there are limited options of activities for them. Our school follows the Kenyan school calendar, which runs from Jan-Nov. The students are in classes for 3 months, then have 1 month off. We like the schedule as the kids retain more information and are less likely to need much refreshers at the start of the new terms.
Speaking of school calendars, we are so excited the girls have a school to attend now. Julie Tate, along with myself, and 4 Kenyan parents (directors) have seen the need for our community to have a Christian school for the children. We currently have 10 students enrolled, including our girls and a Hindu student. The school is such an amazing opportunity to reach the Hindu and Muslim population in our area. Not only do the students have a dedicated Bible class, but all their regular classes have Biblical principles woven into them. We are using a combination of Bob Jones University curriculum with Mystery of History and Math-U-See. All the students have enjoyed the year thus far and are anxious for classes to resume. As a mother, I am so happy to see our daughters thriving and enjoying their new friendships with kids in the Kenyan culture.
We are also very excited about a new family who is planning to move to our area sometime in June or July. There are 4 children in the family, including 2 girls close in age to our girls. McKenna and Cami haven’t had American girls here their ages, so this is a huge answer to prayer for them. We are praying for the family and their upcoming adjustments.
Speaking of prayer, a request we have as a family is for homesickness. The girls have been especially homesick lately, and it’s hard as a parent to see this. We want so badly for them to be happy, but we also recognize that God is able to work through the sadness and is teaching them things that will benefit them in the long term. School definitely helps as it keeps them busier and they are around kids, but still, they miss their family in the States. They don’t always understand why we are serving here in Kenya, so please pray for us as we lead and teach them.
As I close this letter, the sun is shining and the heat is rising. Kenya is in a bit of an emergency due to drought conditions. Please pray for rain and temperatures to cool soon. The farmers desperately need the rain for their crops and food prices are rising for everyone.
May the Lord bless each of you as you serve Him in the States. Thank you so much for all the prayers and encouragement you offer to us. We appreciate you all!
In Christ,
Carrie Radford
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa 30200
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.
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Sharing the Gospel Every Day at MCHC

The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is church planting.
Hello Everyone!
Let me just start by saying how excited I am to share with you how God has been working in me and through me recently! But before I get started, may I ask you to pray for our family? As you know, Emily has been back in the US for several years now, but Amy is also leaving us this July to return to the US for college. Then, in only one year’s time, Josiah will also be leaving Kenya to return to the US. This may be the most difficult part of being a missionary; when your kids grow up and leave the nest, they go 8,000 miles away (at least in our case). That’s over 48 hours of travel just to get to them if there’s an emergency. It’s daunting and heart-breaking, but I’m proud of all my children. They are amazing people, and I can’t wait to see what God has in store for them in their new chapters of life.
Ten years ago, Roger and I were taking a walk in our small neighborhood here in Kitale. It was the middle of the day; the sun was hot and the road was dusty, but it was peaceful. I remember saying to him, “This is going to sound really strange, but I feel like God is telling me that He wants me to start a school. I’m not saying He wants me to do it right now, I just feel like sometime in the future this is something He wants me to do.” Yes, I know that sounds strange, but God does that with me sometimes. I knew I didn’t have the ability or resources to pull off something like that, and I didn’t know exactly what it would look like, but it was something I felt very strongly.
A couple years later (unknown to me) two Kenyan families who didn’t even know each other moved from Nairobi to Kitale and couldn’t find acceptable schools for their children. Long story short, these two couples are now the directors of Rayzon Schools. Fast forward again several years and Chloe came along – a Kenyan child who needed contact with her culture. As a homeschooling parent at heart, it was difficult for me to make the decision to put her in school – especially around here. God, however, had that taken care of. By what may have looked like random chance to an unbeliever, Roger met two of the directors of Rayzon Schools and talked with them. I was cooking dinner when he came home and began sharing about the experience with me. I stopped stirring the pot, laid down my spoon, looked at Roger and said, “This is going to sound strange, but I feel like God is telling me Chloe needs to go to school there.” I know, I know…I’m freaking some of you out with my “God is telling me” comments, aren’t I? There’s really no other way to say it, though.
After Chloe settled into Rayzon Schools (okay, settled is a strong word…) we became good friends with the directors. This was about a year and a half ago now. This soon led to them asking me to fill in some Grammar and English gaps for their students, and I began teaching for two hours twice a week. I loved it. The kids loved it. The directors loved it. The teachers…they didn’t love it so much. Neither did the head teacher who took a serious dis-liking (read, “hatred”) to me.
Toward the end of 2018, the directors began planning to open a new branch of Rayzon Schools using an international curriculum (something they had wanted to do at Rayzon from the very beginning). They called on me and Carrie Radford to give them advice on curriculum. When all was said and done, they decided to use much of our homeschooling curriculum and another widely known Christian curriculum from the US. Carrie and I both volunteered to help with running the school and teaching, and thus, Milimani Christian Homeschooling Community was born.
It’s been quite a spiritual battle – different than anything I’ve ever experienced. The school is running, but Satan attacks from every side. We have 10 students (now including the 17-year-old son of one set of the directors. I oversee his studies). Of these students, one is Hindu. He’s a beautiful young boy in 4th grade, and his father is so happy with what he is learning here! What’s exciting is that he hears the Gospel every single day, and he soaks it in. Kitale is a spiritually dark place, and MCHC is a light – a small light – that shines like a candle in that darkness. Satan doesn’t give up his territory easily or nicely. No, he gets quite ugly about it, and he doesn’t let up.
We’ve seen such a huge change in our kids at MCHC. Most of them were shy, unable to do math without using tic-marks or fingers, and afraid of answering questions and participating in class because they came from a system that crammed information into them for hours upon end and severely punished them (literally beat them with rods) if they didn’t regurgitate answers verbatim. At MCHC, however, they are being shown the love of Christ on a daily basis as we encourage them to participate, use critical thinking skills, and care for one another. The changes are amazing. Each and every one of the children love coming to school! Even their parents have commented on that. They love each subject and participate freely without fear. We’ve watched sullen children become leaders, children with learning differences begin to make connections and grasp concepts, and all of them grow daily in their understanding of the Gospel and what it means to them personally.
Please pray for MCHC. As I said, Satan is attacking from every side…even from sides we didn’t know existed! Pray for godly, born-again, caring teachers who will embrace a new way of thinking and doing things. Pray for the directors as they make decisions and deal with the inevitable financial struggles of running a school. Please also pray for me as I am officially what they call the head teacher. Specifically pray for wisdom, and mental and emotional stamina. I started with a commitment to be at the school 3 days a week for half days, but on those 3 days, I’m actually there from 7:00 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. and occasionally a bit later. By Wednesday evening I am totally exhausted and need to turn off my phone and hibernate all of Thursday…but I love it. Outside of my family, it’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever been privileged to participate in.
Ten years ago, God gave me a little bit of a glimpse into the future. I had no idea how in the world He was going to facilitate it; I just knew when He was ready, He would. And now, here I am. I couldn’t have done it alone, but He was putting pieces of a puzzle into place even back then – including my Kenyan friends who are the MCHC directors. Without these two precious families, this would not be possible, and I thank God for their vision and their amazing faith.
Julie Tate
Roger & Julie Tate (and Amy, Josiah & Chloe)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
Visit their blog!
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.
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Going Back in Time

Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together since 1971. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.
I really didn’t know what I was getting into when I came to Brazil in June of 1971. I tell everyone that I went back 50 years in time when I arrived in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre. I grew up with running water, indoor bathroom, hot water from the faucet, buying almost anything needed, electricity 24 hours, etc. I came to a town with no running water, no hot water, and electricity only in the middle of town at night for a few hours. To buy most anything, it was a hassle, especially meat.
The first few years were pretty difficult, Mike traveled a lot. I knew very little Portuguese. We walked in a lot of mud those first several years! God knew I would need my first born, Adam, to occupy my time. Today much has changed. We have very nice supermarkets, 24-hour electricity (most of the time), and paved roads, even though they are full of holes! We have internet and cell phones.
When it came time for my kids to go to public school, for a while it was fine. After they started insisting that the students bring items for the saint’s holiday, that began our search for a way to home school them. Thankfully a church in Missouri bought the books for this to happen. All of my children homeschooled then went on to get their GED or equivalent and further education. Their social life was at church. Most of their friends were from church. That’s a very important detail.
Adam is an IT manager in the California court system. He has two grown daughters. Monica is manager of a law firm in Lexington and has a young daughter. Andrew started and owns a boat factory, but because of the poor economy, he is also a shop manager of a regional airline. He has two daughters and two sons. Crissy has her own English school and is married to one of our pastors. She has three sons and one daughter. Andrew and Crissy live across the street from us and I usually get visits from my grandkids once a day!
I wasn’t able to go with Mike on his river trips while our children were at home and at school. Now that they are out and on their own, I am able to go with Mike on a few trips. My arthritis limits my activities. Now on most of his longer river trips men go with him. My most important job now is supporting him and caring for his needs.
I cannot see Mike retiring. He doesn’t know how to stop! If he doesn’t retire, I guess neither do I.
Keep us in your prayers,
Beverly
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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My Happy Place

Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
April 1, 2019
My life as a missionary wife in Brazil is truly my “Happy Place”. It is so evident that this is what God has called me to and He has blessed me more than I could have imagined. He gave me two beautiful children here and now we have our first grandson, named Jayce. Bobby ministered in Brazil from 1985 to 2015 when he had to return to the USA to take care of his ailing father after his mother passed away. We spent 3 years there until January of 2018 when we returned to Brazil to start all over again. It’s been a little over a year since we returned from the States. We had to sell everything when we left and having to start from scratch was quite a struggle. The Lord blessed tremendously, though, and we have seen our ministry flourish beyond our greatest hopes. The toughest part as a wife was to refurnish our house and make it feel like a home again. We were only able to bring a few suitcases on the plane with us and our house was in great need of many repairs.

These two men were boys of 8 and 9 years of age when Charlene was the their Bible school teacher. They have each become faithful leaders in their church work.
When we first came to Brazil, I struggled with the Portuguese language. I grew up in southern Georgia and had never even thought that I might need to learn another language. Since I came to Brazil as an adult, it has been impossible to completely lose my southern accent, but everyone says that I speak the language very well. It is probably just me that feels that my language skills aren’t the best. The Lord has used me, though, to share the gospel with thousands of women and kids through the course of our 33 years of ministry here. I am very grateful for this privilege. One of the most thrilling blessings to me is that I am in the process of discipling two girls who are from the third generation of people we evangelized during the course of our ministry. We had the privilege to lead a woman, her daughter and now, her granddaughter to the Lord and teach them the Word of God.
Besides being Bobby’s life-partner, I also have a few activities that aid in our ministries. During the week I teach English as a second language to children from the community. This is a way for us to come into contact with families that wouldn’t ordinarily come to church. At present, I have 20 students from ages 8 to 12. I am also involved in our church’s couples’ outreach ministry.
We put on 4 couples’ events each year to attract unchurched families where Bobby preaches the gospel and I help with planning the event, such as decoration and food preparation. On Sundays I teach the children ages 8 to 12. In fact, my assistant now is a woman who used to be one of my students and her two daughters are in our class.
There are a few prayer requests that I would like to share with you who would be interested in partnering with me in this ministry:
- My son, Brennen, and his family – his present job doesn’t pay enough and his son, Jayce, has struggles with his health. This is especially tough because we live so far away.
- My daughter, Jessie – She has a great job at her church and she wants the Lord to use her greatly for the growth of His kingdom.
- Bobby and I need wisdom to guide the church in the direction the Lord wants us to take it.
Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
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