Doors God is Opening
April 23, 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Greetings from Southern France. We hope that your Easter Sunday was as enjoyable as ours. Sunday was a good day of rejoicing with the church at Plaisance du Touch. Emilie was here for the first time. She is the second child of parents who trusted Christ a few years ago; faithful participants in the church of Jesus that meets in our home each Sunday.
A few weeks ago, while Judy and I were out on our regular walk, we crossed a gentleman walking his dog. He was friendly and we exchanged phone information and discussed getting together. His wife is a High School English teacher. Last week we had them over for a snack and a friendship is developing. A door to connect with a couple who needs Christ.
Last week I was working in the front yard when a man about my age stopped and said, “Bonjour”. It was obvious that he was interested in chatting, so I stopped my flower planting and spent a few minutes getting acquainted with him. Yesterday afternoon a lady knocked on the door and invited us to come and snack at their home in a couple of hours. It was the man’s wife. He is a retired teacher and High School principal. God has opened another door.
On Monday afternoon another couple from further up our dead-end street spoke to me when they paused on the lane up the other side of our home. She was anxious to get better acquainted. Her husband is 93 years old. He did not talk as much but seemed to enjoy the conversation. God opened yet another door.
Each week Judy and I spend a bit over an hour speaking English with a couple of ladies. The last two times the subject has been primarily about Christ and the gift of life He offers us; walking through the door to share the Good News of Jesus.
This is our life here in Southern France. Praying for God to open doors and walking through them when they are opened.
The connections our Father gives us has led to many opportunities in the past and opened the doors to establish the Bible studies we have in seven different cities. The Word is the seed and the fruit is Eternal life. Rejoice with us in the work God is doing here as you partner with us in God’s work.
Your sister and brother,
Judy and John
Contact Info:
John Mark & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
jmhatcher@aol.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.
Read more
A Delight to See God at Work
March 19, 2025
Dear Fellow Disciples of Jesus Christ,
We thank God for you and your participation in what God is doing here. The past few days have been extremely windy here. It is a reminder of a verse that Judy and I quote often “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8) God is at work in ways that are invisible like the wind, but the results are obvious.
Last night, we were at the regular Bible study meeting in Mazere about an hour and a half drive south of us. This is a group of believers who would have to drive an hour and a half to participate in a Baptist or similar church. We have been holding meetings in this city for about 20 years. Douceline, a believing young lady, moved to this city at that time. She was very discouraged because she knew no other believers in Christ with whom she could fellowship in that region. Judy and I decided to offer coming to her home weekly for Bible study and fellowship. Douceline loved the idea and soon began seeing herself as a light for Jesus in the area. She is the director of a History Museum in this city and has contact with many people. She began inviting people to the weekly Bible study we were having in her apartment. Over the years we have had scores of interested people participate. The group now is mostly believers growing in the Lord and we meet in the home of a couple on a farm just outside the city. Just one example of how the many outreaches God has given us began.
Tonight, we will be in a Bible study hosted by Blandine, Douceline’s sister, in a city about an half hour drive north of us. We will be meeting on a Wednesday instead of the typical Thursday night meeting because this is the beginning of the New Year in Iran. Blandine’s husband is Iranian and they will be celebrating the Holiday with Iranian friends on Thursday. God has saved individuals in this Bible study during the last couple of years. It is delightful to see God at work.
As I close, I want to tell you about two wonderful blessings among many for which Judy and I are especially thankful to our Heavenly Father. March 3rd was our 52nd marriage anniversary. We are so thankful for the children, their spouses and the grandchildren He has given us. What a delight it has been and is to serve the Lord in three continents and experience the way He has worked around us and the great number of friends and brothers and sisters in Christ God has given to us. Judy had cataract surgery on both eyes during the first couple weeks of March and she is doing very well and can see much better. Thank you for your prayers.
Your sister and brother in Christ,
John and Judy Hatcher
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
Disciples in France Sharing the Gospel with Others!
February 17, 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Greetings from Southern France which is far north of where most of you live. Plaisance du Touch is about the same distance from the North Pole as Toronto, Canada. However, our winters are not extremely cold due to the Gulf Stream that warms western Europe.
God continues to touch lives around us. It is wonderful to be sharers of the Good News here and to be used by God to disciple those who have trusted Christ as Lord and Savior. Yesterday, Rose, a lady who was diagnosed with cancer a couple of years ago, told us excitedly about a door that God opened for her to share the Good News. She was waiting for minor surgery to remove the chemotherapy port that had been used for her treatment. A conversation with another lady awaiting the same procedure began and God guided her to be able to give her testimony and share about her faith as the other lady asked questions.
Roxane, a young lady who is a member of our congregation, studying to be an engineer, shared how God had given her the opportunity to share the Gospel with a friend for whom she had been praying. Roxane trusted the Lord and followed Him in baptism less than two years ago. She is the only believer in her family, but a flame of fire for the Lord in her gentle way of passionately seeking the lost and sharing the Good News.
We have regular Bible studies in six different locations in addition to the regular church meetings. Some of these are groups of saved people growing in the Lord and encouraging each other and some are groups of seekers meeting in the home of a believer with whom they are friends.
Several of those who were seekers have trusted Christ in the last year and are reading through their Bibles. It is exciting to receive phone calls or text messages from these new believers asking questions from their reading. Here are a couple of questions I received this past Saturday: “How come prophet Nahum proclaims condemnation of Nineveh when Jonah tells about their repentance and forgiveness?” “How were Pharaoh’s men able to do some of the same signs as Moses?” How would you answer these questions? If you need help, ask one of your spiritual leaders.
We are very grateful for your contribution to what God is doing here.
Your Fellow Servants in France,
John and Judy
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
God at Work in Your Work with Us
January 14, 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Thank you for your prayers and generous support. Judy and I are doing fine and are thrilled to see God at work.
Yesterday afternoon we left Galen, Tammy and Holly Gerig at the Toulouse airport to begin their return to Ohio after having spent a wonderful five days together. They have supported us for years and we enjoyed their company as we were able to introduce them to some of those whose life God has touched.
Your work with us enables us to have regular Bible studies in six different locations as well as the regular Sunday meetings here in Plaisance du Touch. Judy and I also spend time counseling believers to help them learn and apply God’s principles to their personal and family lives. There is also regular pastoral work such as visiting the sick. Our Savior often uses human difficulties to lead individuals to understand their need of Him.
We are delighted with those that the Lord has added to our congregation this past year. Among them is a couple who are believers with a two-year-old son and another child on the way. The husband started Bible study with Judy and me about 12 years ago. After studying the Bible together for about a year, he trusted Christ as Savior and followed the Lord in baptism. He later moved to Germany and met a girl there from El Salvador. She started going to church with him and trusted the Lord as Savior. They were married in 2018 and lived in Paris until last year. When they moved back to our area last year, they began participating in the church here.
A young lady about 20 years old was saved and baptized about a year and a half ago. She is active in church, youth meetings, ladies’ prayer meetings and Bible study with our granddaughters Camille and Emily. She also meets regularly with two friends who are interested in Christ for Bible study. She does all of this while going to Engineering school and working.
It is a delight to see what God is doing! We are glad to have you as part of our team.
Your brother and sister,
John and Judy Hatcher
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
Delighting in God’s Work Through Bible Studies Across France
December 13, 2024
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior. We are getting along fine and hope you are as well. We are excited to see God at work and to have you as fellow servants and supporters.
Judy and I just returned from a visit with Patricia in her home. You may remember our request for your intercession on her behalf in our last letter. Frankly, I did not think she would be able to return to her apartment. I was wrong. She is receiving nutrition through a stomach tube as she is not able to swallow. A medical worker comes to her place each evening to load and activate the feeding mechanism. Barbara, one of the ladies from our church, has spent numerous hours visiting Patricia and seeking to help in the administrative aspects of her care. Please continue to pray for this needy lady that she might clearly understand and trust Christ as her Savior.
In the Fall of 2022, we began a new Bible study in the city of L’Union. The hostess was the only person besides us who was a believer. She wanted her friends to come to Christ. There are now usually 9 people at this Bible study. As perceived in their conversation, understanding of the Bible and regular worship service involvement, two seemed to have trusted Christ, though they have not yet made a public profession. The hostess followed Christ in baptism this past summer and we now have another believer from our church participating. God is at work and we are delighted. Please continue to pray for this Bible study.
Our Bible study in Mazeres is growing and last month a young army officer who attends professed his faith in Christ.
We have started a new Bible study in the City of Auterive and there are 10 people participating. These are believers or individuals who are very interested in studying the Bible.
This week, a lady with whom Judy and I have been meeting for about a year and a half trusted Christ as Savior. The history of her life is a wreck. However, in retrospect it is obvious that God has been intervening for years in her life to draw her to Himself. Our first contact with her was three years ago through her chiropractor who is a member of the church that meets in our home. This new believer has a son in first grade and a husband who both need Christ. Please pray for her.
Our Father is at work in many other ways around us and we are very encouraged. Let us all express our thanks to our Lord and continue to intercede for those who need a Savior and for believers in their spiritual growth.
We are delighted to have you ministering with us.
In Christ,
Judy and John
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
A New Believer in Mazere
November 12, 2024
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
It’s Thanksgiving month and we have much for which to be thankful. You are on our Thanksgiving list.
Last week at our Bible Study in Mazere, a young man testified that He had put his faith in Christ the previous weekend. I mentioned this career soldier in army special forces in my last letter. He just recently started coming to the Bible study. It is great to see his interest and commitment to the Lord.
Once a month, we have a men’s prayer breakfast. This past Saturday there was a range of men from twenty years old to seventy-one years old present. It is very encouraging to see the interest that these men have in helping each other through fellowship, counsel and prayer. The ladies meet every other week for prayer.
Our Sunday meetings and other Bible studies in six other locations are going well and we are encouraged by what God is doing in the lives of the individuals who participate.
Patricia, a lady who lived not far from us when we met her in our former neighborhood, has been in long term hospital care for several weeks. We have witnessed to her as have others from our congregation over the last dozen or so years. Judy has picked her up and brought her to our church meetings. She shows greater interest now and asks for prayer, but has never made a clear commitment of faith in Jesus Christ for salvation. Barbara, one of the ladies from our congregation, has done a lot to help her. Your prayers for Patricia are greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your prayers and support. May God bless you and your ministry.
Your fellow servants,
John and Judy Hatcher
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
Evangelism, Shepherding, & Training Across Southern France
October 17, 2024
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Thank you for serving with us. God is changing lives in wonderful ways. Our ministry is quite broad, challenging and encouraging. It is a mixture of evangelism, shepherding and training. Judy and I spend time in personal counseling of individuals on a regular basis. We are driven to pray for wisdom, patience and the work of God in people’s heart. So, in the process, we grow in our relationship with our Father and Savior as well.
There is a new regular participant in our Bible study in the city of Mazeres. This young man is a carrier sub-officer in the army. This Bible study is made up of individuals who have already placed their faith in Christ. We are presently studying the Gospel of Luke.
We are starting a new Bible Study in the city of Auterive. A family from our church moved there a couple of years ago and are excited to host this Bible Study.
The Bible study in the city of L’Union is going very well. It is exciting to see the way God is touching the lives of the seekers who participate without missing. One lady seems to have trusted Christ though she has not made public profession of faith. The husband of the Iranian couple who fled their country years ago always thanks me with a great smile at the conclusion of each study.
Our three other studies are going well, and we are very encouraged by the way God is working in the lives of the participants. The regular Sunday meetings here in Plaisance du Touch are also going well. Philip is now doing the teaching as we study through the book of Acts. One young lady who trusted the Lord about a year ago is very involved in the study of the Word and church activities in addition to her Engineering Studies and job. She is the only believer in her family.
Philip and Amanda are self-supporting missionaries who work with us. A number of believers are passionately involved in serving the Lord and this is very encouraging to us.
May you enjoy God’s richest blessings,
John and Judy
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
Celebrating 25 Years of Sharing the Good News in France
September 2, 2024
Dear Fellow laborers,
We are back in France following a good trip to the USA for the wedding or our oldest granddaughter, Abigail. It was great to see friends and extended family members. Judy and I spent the last couple of weeks in Chicago where we had great moments with our children, their good spouses and eight grandchildren! God has abundantly blessed us in more ways than we could ever count. Both of our children who live in Chicago celebrated 20 years of marriage this summer. Their children range from 9 to 16 years old and are very enjoyable to be around.
David and Dulce celebrated their twenty years of marriage by spending a week in Mozambique. Judy and I got to enjoy their children and Lydia and Adam’s children during this time. It was wonderful. But, “ya just gotta do whacha gotta do”!
Four days after our return we had a great baptismal service at the encounter of two mountain rivers. Blandine, the hostess for our Bible studies in the city of L’Union followed the Lord in baptism. She is the only person in this Bible study with “seekers” who has made a profession of faith. All of the participants are very interested. All of them drove nearly a couple of hours to be at the baptism. There were about 50 people at the baptismal service. Most of these were not believers. We tried to give a clear Gospel message, and all were very attentive.
After the baptism we had a picnic with those who attended. Judy, Philip, Amanda and I spent most of the afternoon discussing spiritual matters with those who were there. One lady, who started coming to the Bible study at Blandine’s home about a year ago, is delighted with what she is learning about Christ. She has not made a public profession of faith, but I would not be surprised if that happens soon. On March 15th (less than 6 months ago) she began reading her Bible. She has read the entire Old Testament, the Gospels and a good number of the epistles! Jesus declared, “Seek and you will find”!
Speaking of celebrations, in a couple of weeks Judy and I will complete 25 years of sharing the Good News in Southern France. Philip and Amanda have been our partners in ministry for 23 years. Time passes fast. We thank God for the privilege of serving our Savior here. What a delight to see God change lives. Thank you for your participation with us.
Thankfully in Christ,
John and Judy
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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.
Read more
