Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher Stateside from Brazil [August 2015]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
July 23, 2015
Dear Brethren and Friends,
The pastors of churches we started in Brazil are sending us news about the work. We want to share two letters where they now pastor. One writes,
Pastor John, you will always be our pastor and spiritual leader. Thank you for all that you and Alta taught us. Thank you for your prayers. We miss you, but we know we will be with you in Heaven forever.
We are still serving the Lord and the work is growing. Many are trusting Christ as Savior and our Seminary here now has 16 students. Our children are serving the Lord. Thank you for teaching us how to rear our children to serve Him.
Thanks again for loving us so much! We love you. May God bless you!
Valdir and Sonia dos Santos
We also, received letters from the wife and pastor of the church we started in our home where we lived before leaving Brazil.
When Alta’s parents passed away, some money was left to Alta. We built a church building across from the small park close to our house in the town of Urai. On Mother’s Day there were 100 persons present, including 34 mothers. The mission churches that these churches have planted are growing. God bless you, Marcio & Carol Moraes.
Friends, we hope these letters will bring joy to your hearts. We thank each who have supported us in offerings and prayers throughout 60 years in Brazil. God will give you rewards in Heaven and you will meet the Brazilians your efforts have brought to Salvation. We love each of you.
John A. and Alta Hatcher
15905 Mercott Court
Clermont FL 34714
229-529-8497
jhatcher1925[at]gmail.com
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BFM Labor Day Conference 2015
LABOR DAY MISSION CONFERENCE
SEPTEMBER 6 – 7
EAST KEYS BAPTIST CHURCH
2150 East Keys Avenue, Springfield, IL
[Directions]
Pastor Dan Hillard
(dhillard51[at]yahoo.com)
(309-265-2974)
Everyone is invited to attend the Mission Conference Labor Day Weekend at East Keys Baptist Church on behalf of Baptist Faith Missions. An offering will be received during the meeting to help with the General Fund expenses and missionary support.
We recommend Howard Johnson Motel, 1701 J. David Jones Parkway, Springfield, IL 62702 (217) 541-8762. Tell them you are with East Keys Baptist Church.
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Missionary Update: Jud & Raquel Hatcher in Brazil [July 2015]
Jud and Raquel Hatcher serve the Lord in Manaus, 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.
July 9, 2015
Excitement is in the air! Our family is catching a flight to the States tonight. The kids are enthusiastic with the idea of living and studying in America. Personally, with all the packing, ministry responsibilities, farewells, meetings and cleaning (yes, in that random order) I am exhausted. I must admit though, I love every moment. Would not trade it for anything. Being in the center of the Lord’s will is delightful. Pardon my brevity, as I must return to wrapping things up before traveling.
THE CHURCH
The church’s leadership is fully transitioned – pastoral leadership, administrational and legal. The Lord has blessed the church with an incredible group of people. There is solid adult leadership and strategic outreach strategies in place to continue growing among all generations – children, youth, young adults and married couples. Last Sunday, July 5th, was our last worship service as their pastor. Man, did I enjoy preaching. We cried, laughed, sang, prayed, ate, fellowshipped and took “selfies”. It was a love overflow moment.
PASTORS’ NETWORK
On Tuesday, July 7th, we had our last “Pastor’s Network Gathering” under my leadership. Let me tell you, it was a blast! The network’s leadership was transitioned to a solid local church pastor – a dedicated man and dear friend of mine. Again, I cried, laughed, sang, prayed, ate, fellowshipped and took “selfies” with pastors and their wives. It too, was a love overflow moment. I sure do enjoy preaching. 
PRAYER REQUESTS
Please, pray for us as we:
1) Travel and settle into our new home for the next year.
2) Purchase a car to use while in the States.
3) Get the kids’ immunizations and school enrollment.
4) Prepare our children to reenter into American culture and social readjustments.
5) Immerse our children into the English language – to acquire good listening, reading & writing skills.
I am so thankful for the pastors who have contacted me via email with words of encouragement. I look forward to connecting with you.
Grateful always,
Judson Hatcher
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Missionary Update: AJ & Barbara Hensley in Brazil [July 2015]
The Hensleys have spent nearly 15 years serving in Brazil. They run a vocational school and orphanage in Caraguatatuba and have also established a church and mission points throughout the city.
Running out of space and seating for Sunday School.
July 6, 2015
Dear friends and family,
What an AWESOME month we have had here in Caragua this month with our Church. Lots of work and ministry thanks to these groups: Pinehurst Baptist, Pinecrest Baptist, First Baptist in Centerville—all in Georgia—and Central Baptist in Paris, Kentucky.
These Churches did not get to know our Brazilian Pastor as he has been in the hospital with heart problems. The Doctors said that he had a heart attack, but when the dust settled, the problem was with his aortic valve. So let me cut through all the exams, problems, doctors, etc, and get to the bottom line. He had surgery in Sao Paulo on the last of June and today is in the Intensive Care Unit doing GREAT. He is expected to be in the hospital for about 7 to 10 days if all goes well. Please keep Pastor Rosevaldo and his family in your prayers.
About our month—we have been blessed with two groups from the States. Our first group of 39 was from Georgia and represented 3 Churches. They were able to do lots of work on the Church and the school property. Window replacement, put up 3 more fans and installed emergency lights in the Church building. In addition, they did 3 Bible Schools in our area—one in our Church and 2 in the public schools here in the city. They also traveled to the Indian Village and did another Bible School with them. The Indian village is about 2½ hours from our city. These Indians need lots of help—physical and especially spiritual. Pray with us that more will accept Christ as their personal Savior. They serve many gods and we serve only One!!! We have established a good relationship with them because of several work projects with many American groups. God is so AWESOME!
The second group helped with more of the maintenance needs and also did 3 Bible Schools. This group has adopted a remote school (up a holler) here in our city. It is a two-room school and, needless to say, it is a somewhat forgotten school when it comes to supplies and maintenance needs. We had two Bible Schools there and did some much needed painting on their walls around the school building. The principal was so excited to see us come. What a little work and a little elbow grease can accomplish! They are almost like the Indians—“out of sight, out of mind.”
God really knew what He was doing when He led us to this area. After the completion of the new subdivision about ½ mile down the road, just in Sunday School we have doubled our attendance. “How Great Thou Art!” I would like to give a suggestion to all the Pastors in the States—if you want to increase in your attendance, just buy more chairs. The past two months we have had gifts to purchase new chairs and what an AWESOME blessing this has been. Our attendance before the chairs was around 60-80. This month we have averaged 105. God is good all the time—all the time God is good! Well I thought I would mention the chairs—because now we need to purchase more chairs! How AWESOME! We now have 85 chairs and 25+ white plastic chairs in our Sunday School areas. We are making do with this number, but if anyone out there would like to help purchase more chairs!!!! (They cost 75 each.) What a sweet way to ask for more financial help with Church problems. And what a good problem to have. As you can tell by the numbers I have cited, we are not only out of seats but we are out of room to seat them. We are looking for a larger place for our Church. God is working in this area. Pray with us about this new building.
I am so glad that God is working where we are. There is much work and few laborers. Would you like to come and help? The doors are always open and the light is on out on the porch. Come on down and see your mission dollars at work.
Without B.F.M. and you helping us, we would not have the chance to see miracles happen every day.
In His Service,
Aj and Barbara Hensley
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Missionary Update: Mike & Beverly Creiglow in Brazil [July 2015]
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.
July 2, 2015
Dear Brethren,
As soon as I arrived from my trip up the Juruá River in May I caught a flu that was going around. It started on a Tuesday night while recording the TV program. On Wednesday morning the lady from the health department came by to give us our flu shots. Bev took hers, but I was not able. It has now been over a month and it looks like I will be going to the doctor this afternoon. That is what the boss says. I had improved last week, but since Monday it has gotten much worse.
Even though I have been very weak I have been able to get a few things done.
One of the jobs that was urgent was build a trailer for missionary José Maia for the work in Tipisca, Peru. The river is going down fast and we needed to get the trailer and some building supplies to him while there is still a little water in the river. The trailer was finished last week and early this week I bought the last of the materials and got it all on a boat. I wasn’t much help getting the stuff on the boat, so Pastor Ezi helped and we still had to hire some guys. Those 100lb bags of cement now weigh about a ton!
Baptism at Guajará in the state of Amazonas
Also I was able to visit our works at Rodrigues Alves (up river) and Guajará, Amazonas (down stream). Bev went with me on the visit to Guajará. We held a baptism service there, too.
The materials that I produce for the church and the work got behind, also. There were a few days when my fever was so high I couldn’t think straight. Much of that is caught up, but still have a way to go.
The most recent group that was baptized into First Baptist Church, Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil.
I managed to preach Friday night, Sunday night and Wednesday night at church. We had a huge crowd on Sunday and 2 more people were saved. There have been several more saved in other services, too. There were several more baptized on the 21st of June.
Well I hope that by time you read this I will be well again. Pray for me anyway.
Pray and give also for our next big medical mission trip. On October 23-31 we will be going to the Huacapisteia River (a tributary of the Juruá River way up in Peru). There are 4 Ashaninka indian villages that we will visit. Besides all the fuel, food and medicine we will have to buy one more aluminum canoe and motor to add to our fleet. Next month I will give you some numbers. Please pray and get ready to give to make this exciting mission trip happen.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.
In Christ,
Mike Creiglow
Mike and Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Paul & Wanda Hatcher in Brazil [July 2015]
Paul and Wanda Hatcher have been serving the Lord together in Brazil since 1974. Their main ministry is church planting.
July 01, 2015
Dear Friends and Co-laborers,
We greet each of you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are so thankful for God’s goodness and grace. We do not cease to be reminded, and Praise God the Father for providing unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. He so graciously supplies our every need and much more; we want to always be grateful and gracious to others even as God has been to us.
There is an update on the new church plant in downtown Manaus. I met with the mission team for this church plant and they are praying and awaiting the new facility to be completed. Meanwhile they are meeting and getting things ready for the inauguration. Pray for them to have a fruitful ministry. It is an old part of the city where older and traditional families live, most of whom profess to be religious but not knowing or trusting in the living Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thanks to you for your prayers in this matter and your contributions towards the building.
Meeting with the team for the downtown Manaus church plant.
I visited one of the churches that was started as an underground church plant. They have since decided to expand as a formalized church. They are now renting a place to meet. It was a great joy to meet with them and speak. It also was very special to see that the entire original group is active in the work, and that new disciples are being added. I rejoice to see the transformation of people’s lives by means of the gospel of Jesus Christ and their endeavors to reach their community with the Gospel.
I spent some time with our children and grandchildren. It’s always great to be with them and enjoy their company and see how the grandchildren are growing in stature and Christ-likeness. We thank God for your continued prayers and financial support to God’s ministry in Brazil.
I arrived back from Manaus two days ago on June 29th. Despite travel delays and resulting missed flights, all went well and I had a blessed time there.
We pray for you that your knowledge and remembrance of our Lord, the only true God, may abundantly increase in wisdom and discernment, that your trust and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ may be steadfast always, and that the love of his Holy Spirit may fill and overflow in your every word and action, with thanksgiving to God though Jesus Christ our only Lord and Life. God bless each of you richly through Jesus Christ.
Love, Paul and Wanda
Paul and Wanda Hatcher
rphatcher[at]gmail.com
15905 Mercott Court
Clermont, FL 34714
(239)227-6551
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Things that Changed My Life for Christ: Soul Winner Pastor Arley Jones
John A. Hatcher has served in Brazil with his wife Alta since 1955.
by John A. Hatcher
When I was young Christian one of my pastors was Brother Arley Jones. He was pastor of the First Baptist Church of Alexandria, KY where my parents were members. The church was limited in the depression days and Brother Jones worked as traveling salesman of cookies and sweets. He rarely passed a hitch-hiker. He took the opportunity to witness of Jesus.
One day he picked up a young man. In a few minutes he told him about Jesus the Savior. Deeply touched, the man trusted Christ as Savior. In thirty minutes or so he reached the place where the man was going. When Arley stopped to let him out, the hitch-hiker pulled out a 38 revolver and said, “When I asked for a ride my intention was to rob you or kill you and take your money. Jesus has changed my life and I want to thank you with all my heart.”
My life and ministry have felt a love for the lost and given me a desire to tell people about the Savior. Pastor Arley Jones’ example was my principle example.
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Missionary Update: The Wacasers in Brazil [July 2015]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
June 30, 2015
Dear Friends,
Charlene and I made a two week trip to Brazil this month. The trip was a tremendous encouragement and the Lord’s hand was clearly with us at every moment. We had the privilege to ordain two young men to the Gospel ministry and they will be taking the oversight of two of our outreach teams. Marcos, one of the young men, had recently returned from a year and a half of evangelism and church planting in India. The Lord blessed him greatly there and it is clear that he is called to be a minister of the Word. The other young man, Victor, has lead one of our Projeto Vida outreach teams on trips to the interior of Brazil where he and his wife, Fabiana, are highly respected and loved by their team members.
Alysson, our missionary to the Muslims in the Middle East has returned from his first trip there and reports that the Lord truly opened doors for sharing the Gospel. Despite what we see on the news channels, the majority of the common citizens are hungry for truth and love. We know that they have been fed lies all their lives and that makes it difficult for them to have open minds to Christ, but God is glorifying Himself greatly by bringing many of them to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Alysson will be returning to that field again soon, so we ask that you pray God’s blessings on him.
Alek Rossi is doing a great job pastoring my former church in Curitiba, Brazil. We visited the services and we heard many great reports on his leadership from basically everyone who attends. The church continues to grow and we sensed real unity among the members.
Charlene and I have offered to help a local Baptist Church here in the Tampa, FL area as we also seek to help with the health needs of my father. We rotate with my siblings on a 24/7 schedule. I am thankful for this privilege. Thank you for your prayers and support.
In Christ’s love,
Furlough Address:
3912 Casaba Loop
Valrico, FL 33596
Field Address:
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
Phone: (813) 481-7007
Cell Phone: (813) 727-6405
Email: bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
Give: Click here to give.
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