Thanksgiving Offering Appeal
WE NEED TO REACH FOR OUR $50,000.00 THANKSGIVING OFFERING GOAL!
Have you given your personal offering toward the 2020 THANKSGIVING OFFERING?
There is just no way that we can exaggerate or over-state the importance of our Thanksgiving Offering. The Thanksgiving Offering is indispensable if we are to maintain providing our missionaries with the levels of service and benefits we are giving them now – and we certainly can’t increase the benefits we give them without a very generous Thanksgiving Offering.
All the offerings given to the Thanksgiving Offering go directly toward the support of our missionaries by funding the commitments, benefits, and services we give them over the course of the next year.
Consider these truths:
- All the commitments, benefits, and services we give our missionaries are funded through offerings and contributions given to the Missionary Support Fund
- The only contribution streams that supply the Missionary Support Fund are the monthly offerings given to the Missionary Support Fund and the THANKSGIVING OFFERING
- The monthly Missionary Support Fund contributions do not sustain all the accrued annual disbursements for the commitments, benefits, and services we give our missionaries
- Therefore, we need and depend upon the THANKSGIVING OFFERINGS to make up for the monthly deficits we will incur in providing the commitments, benefits, and services we give our missionaries over the upcoming year
- This year’s THANKSGIVING OFFERING will make up for next year’s monthly deficits in Missionary Support Fund contributions and disbursements
- IF WE DO NOT RECEIVE SUFFICIENT THANKSGIVING OFFERING FUNDS NOW IN ADVANCE OF NEXT YEAR’S DISBURSEMENTS, THEN WE WILL HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO REDUCE THE COMMITMENTS, BENEFITS, AND SERVICES WE GIVE TO OUR MISSIONARIES
- we have no other reserves, subsidies, or endowments to draw from or fall back on
- we cannot borrow money to operate
- So, it is essential that we all give as generously as possible so our missionaries’ needs will be supplied
- Will you give a generous personal THANKSGIVING OFFERING right now?
- and, at the same time, may we encourage you to commit to making monthly offerings to the Missionary Support Fund!
- Your missionaries’ needs will be met – and thanksgivings to God will abound and increase and continue!
Giving Options:
You can give your Thanksgiving Offering either through your church’s offering, or by mailing your personal check to our Treasurer, or by giving online through our website www.bfmnow.org ‘Give’ tab and typing in Thanksgiving Offering in the memo field.
Click here to make a one-time donation.
Click here to set up a recurring donation.
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Introducing Our New Field Representative: Pastor David Pitman
William Carey preached his famous sermon from Isaiah 54:2,3, and summed up its teaching in these two important statements: (1) “Expect great things from God,” and (2) “Attempt great things for God.” Carey appealed for a mission to India but also proved his sincerity by volunteering to be a missionary to India. Andrew Fuller, likening the souls of sinners to hidden treasure, had said, “There is a gold mine in India; but it seems as deep as the centre of the earth; who will venture to explore it?” “I will go down,” responded William Carey, in words never to be forgotten, “but remember that you must hold the rope.”
My ministry, deeply embedded in pastoral and educational work nearly 50 years, has always moved me to be a “rope-holder” for missionaries. And now at my request, the Directors of Baptist Faith Mission have asked me to serve as our Field Representative. It is a voluntary, unpaid position; but a vital one -strengthening the hold on that rope in every pastor’s hand who sends and in every missionary’s hand who goes.
The field representative serves as an ambassador for all our missionaries. He promotes through church, conference, and media services, the resources for the missionaries and the reports from the missionaries. What his ministry actually looks like will depend on your requests and your encouragement.
Let’s begin by communicating. You may reach me by text: 513-708-5607; social media:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BFMfieldrep/
Twitter: @pastorpitman
Email: pastorpitman@gmail.com
Mail: PO Box 286 Addyston, OH 45001
Will you help us “hold the ropes?”
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Seeking a Place to Meet; Update on Josiah
The Tates have served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is church planting.
July 20, 2020
Greetings in the Name of Jesus Christ,
As you read through my newsletter for this month you will probably say to yourself “haven’t I heard this before”? Well, even to me some of the things I will write about in this newsletter sound like a broken record – skip, skip, skip. I definitely feel like we have been through this newsletter before.
The reason for the broken record this month is because, once again, we are definitely looking for a new location to worship in for Upper Room Baptist Chapel. We started the Chapel in 2018, meeting in a room on the top floor (the “Upper Room”) of a building in town. In August 2019, while I was in the States taking Amy to college, we encountered problems with another church that had moved in across the hall and greatly disturbed our services with their amplifiers and speakers and loud music and screeching preaching. Not being able to resolve the problems with this other church we decided to move out. In September of 2019 we moved into a house, sub-renting the place from a school that also met there. It was an excellent venue for the Chapel, and we all enjoyed meeting and worshiping there. The Chapel began to grow numerically and spiritually. Then, in March of 2020 the big boom hit – Covid19. The Kenyan government shut down everything as I mentioned in previous newsletters – schools, churches, government offices, etc. This shutdown ultimately caused the school from whom we were sub-renting to financially implode and subsequently go belly-up and shut its doors for good.The shutting down of the school left URBC in a quandary. Now we again needed a place to worship. Because we liked the location so much, we considered taking over the entire rent of the premises and just using it entirely for the Chapel. We approached the landlady proposing the idea. It would cost us a lot more money, but it would cause the least disruption to the Chapel and since the Lord’s work is more important than money, we thought it was a deal worth pursuing. It turns out, however, that the owner of the building is a Somali lady. Now, I am not disparaging Somalis or putting them down at all, but the end result was not surprising. Somalia is 99% Muslim and the Somali owner is a Muslim. She was not mean about her decision and she was not discriminating against us because we are Christians but she felt like renting her place to a “Jesus church” was against her Muslim beliefs. She thought that her Somali community here in Kitale would persecute her if they found out she was renting her property to a church and decided not to rent it to us. That is her prerogative. But this did leave us in a familiar position – once again looking for a place to worship.
Since then I have been looking for a new place to worship but the available places are severely limited and expensive. I just looked at a place today that could meet our needs and be an OK place to meet but I feel like the property is overpriced. I hope to look at another place tomorrow but I’m not sure how that will turn out either. Please be in earnest prayer that God would lead us to the right place, a place that would meet our needs at the right price and that could be used to glorify His Name, spread His kingdom here on earth, and provide spiritual and physical growth for the Chapel.
In other news, we were able to get Josiah on an evacuation flight out of Kenya and to the States. He needed to get back to the States in time to quarantine for 14 days before school starts but there have been no international flights out of Kenya since March, and none scheduled until sometime in August. This didn’t give Josiah enough time to make it to school. Then on Friday, July 10th, we received an email from the embassy about the evacuation flight leaving on Monday, July 13th. Julie and I thought about it for two minutes and decided to get him on the flight. We booked the flight that day, Friday. Saturday, we spent getting everything ready for him to leave Kenya and get back to the States. Sunday, Josiah and I drove to Nairobi. Monday afternoon I put him on a plane leaving Kenya forever. This all happened very, very quickly, much too quickly for his mama and me. One day he was here at home with no idea of when he would be leaving and the next day, literally, he was gone – Flying from Nairobi to Qatar to the United States, flying for the first time by himself, and heading to America to start his new life without the help of mom or dad. Very hard for Josiah. Very hard for mom and dad. Please pray that God would be with him in a very special way, strengthening him, giving him courage, and filling him with His Holy Spirit. Pray for mom and dad too.
Blessings to you all,
Roger, Julie, Amy, Josiah & Chloe
Contact Info:
Roger & Julie Tate
P.O. Box 96
Kitale, Kenya 30200
rojuta@gmail.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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Brazilian Believers Living Out the Bible
July 3, 2020
Dear Friends,
We are so thankful to the Lord for how He has both guided and blessed during these months of living in challenging times. As I mentioned in my last correspondence, we began posting our services live and recorded on the internet and our outreach has continued to multiply. We now have over a 1000% increase in the number of people reached than we had before COVID-19! God is great! We have also learned how to get more usefulness out of our audio/visual equipment than ever before. Before, we used it as a secondary aspect of our services, but now it is our primary way of preaching, leading in praise, staying in touch with our members and evangelism. Even when we return to having our congregation present, we plan to continue using these tools that the Lord has shown us how to use for greater effectiveness.
Almost 29 years ago, the Lord gave Charlene and me the gift of our little girl, Jessie. When she saw some of my sketches, she asked if I would do one of her with me when she was a child. I was thrilled with the request and this one depicts me taking her on bike rides in a local park near where we live in Curitiba, Brazil.
I have continued to work on developing my sketching skills that I discovered a few months ago. I pray continually that God will show me the best way to use this medium to honor Him. I am very grateful to those of you who have expressed appreciation for the work I have shared.
Charlene and I have been blessed. She struggled with some allergy issues a few weeks ago, but has recovered fantastically, thanks to God. We are both doing well and are enjoying spending a little more time together since we can’t have as much contact out in public as before. At least, I am enjoying being around her more. I’ll have to let her speak for herself. 🙂
We thank you for your faithful prayers and support so that we may continue to minister here in southern Brazil.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Contact Info:
Bobby & 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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A Very Generous Legacy Gift to BFM
Brother Jerry Burkette was a long-time faithful and generous supporter of Baptist Faith Missions during his lifetime. Then, when he was called Home to Heaven, he bequeathed a generous portion of his estate to be given to Baptist Faith Missions. So, in response to his request, BFM has received the most generous legacy gift of $98,387.18. We are thanking God for this gift and we bless Brother Burkette’s response to the grace of God given to him.
Since Brother Burkette has long loved and supported the missionaries who have served in partnership with BFM, we have allocated this gift to be deposited in and added to the investment account that supplies the service pensions for our retired veteran missionaries.
So, we want Brother Burkette’s family to know that through his giving this gift to the Veteran Missionaries Pension Fund of BFM, his generosity will continue to give for years to come. It will not be itself spent down immediately, but rather it will continue to grow, multiply, and increase on itself so that many of the Lord’s faithful servants will be sustained and provided for in the years to come through his gift. His gift will continue to give and give for a long time to come.
2 Corinthians 9.10-15 – Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, 11 while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God. 12 For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God, 13 while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men, 14 and by their prayer for you, who long for you because of the exceeding grace of God in you. 15 Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!
May we encourage you to consider including BFM in your will or trust – or some other form of legacy gift? This kind of giving will ensure that your gift continues to give for the future time to come.
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Testing & Trusting
Dear friends,
This season of COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be a trying period. São Paulo City is a Coronavirus hotspot in Brazil. We went into an intense quarantine lockdown. Thankfully, we have a loving Father who cares for us and we can trust in His providence and sovereignty during uncertain times.
Our four kids began home online distance learning in mid-March. We only have two old computers, so we borrowed an additional two from friends. The first two weeks without all the necessary equipment was tough. In addition, the learning curve on how to use the educational platforms the school selected was rough, especially since the teachers were also learning how to use them and our internet speed did not cooperate. Thankfully, a technician eventually came to exchange the defective internet modem, the borrowed computers arrived, and teachers and parents learned the systems. Completing daily schoolwork assignments often took our kids 12 hours in a day. While this kept them (and us) “busy”, it was also concerning that it was so demanding on our time. Closing out the school year at home tripled our daily workload. As we reflect on all this, we are grateful for growing closer together as a family.
A couple months ago, Raquel suspected she had the coronavirus. She called the hospital to inquire if she had enough symptoms to go for a consultation and testing, or if she should remain in home observation. When she mentioned the hard time breathing the nurse said, “you need to come in immediately for testing.” The nurse went on to explain that difficulty in breathing was the requirement for going to the Emergency Room during the lockdown.
After arriving, completing the initial tests and waiting a couple of hours… test results returned positive… Raquel tested positive with a little baby. What? She didn’t have COVID-19, she was 4 weeks pregnant. Amid mixed emotions, we were overcome with joy and felt blessed with the gift of new life. We took a family portrait and celebrated the new family member with our children. Our four kids were elated with the news of a new sibling and family planning began for this next phase in our life.
At eight weeks of pregnancy, Raquel began to bleed… She went to the ER… The ultrasound detected no heartbeat. She had suffered a miscarriage. We were collectively heartbroken…
Every life is precious and celebrated. We know we will see this unborn child when in glory. In the meantime, we rest assured knowing the Lord is faithful and true. We trust in Him.
Ministry wise, we continue to meet with our people in quarantine through video-conferencing apps, social media alternatives, delivering ready-to-eat meals, assisting people with physical and spiritual needs. Hygiene kits and groceries have been delivered to elderly and people in need, as financial means are possible to do so.
Trusting in the Lord is our strong fortress as we live through a pandemic here in Brazil. We are grateful to you for your prayers and support.
Grateful always,
The Hatchers
Contact Info:
Jud & Raquel Hatcher
São Paulo, Brazil
judsonhatcher@gmail.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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H.H. Overbey Scholarship Recipients
Josiah Tate 
Amy Tate
Josiah Tate is our latest recipient of the H. H. Overbey Scholarship for the upcoming 2019-20 academic year. Josiah is the son of our missionaries, Roger and Julie Tate. He has served with his family in Kenya since his childhood and will be entering Cedarville University in August … as God makes the way for him to travel from there to here.
Also, we have granted Amy Tate another $1000 toward her upcoming 2020-21 academic year. We are so proud of and thankful for them both – and we urge you to pray for them both and consider contributing to the H. H. Overbey Scholarship Fund.
The H. H. Overbey Scholarship awards each recipient $1000 per academic year to continue their post-secondary education in a field that will further train and develop them for Christian service.
The H. H. Overbey Scholarship is named in the memory and honor of H. H. Overbey. Brother Overbey loved the children of our missionaries and contributed personally and generously to many of them for their Christian education and training – as well as others who are still today faithfully serving Jesus Christ. This is just one more way we can carry on his legacy of generosity.
We encourage you to pray for Josiah and also for his parents and family as they are separated from one another.
And, if you wish to contribute to the H. H. Overbey Scholarship Fund to assist Josiah and others of our missionaries’ children in future academic years, designate your contributions for “H. H. Overbey Scholarship Fund.” These funds are supplied only through your designated offerings.
You may read Josiah’s personal salvation and service testimony here:
Career Goals and Professional Aspirations
My name is Josiah Tate, and I’m not quite sure exactly what career I want to go into. I’ve always had carpentry, civil engineering, and youth ministry on the list of ideas. Career choosing has never been set in stone for me, and I’ve never really felt like God has revealed that to me yet. What I do know is that no matter what career I find myself in 10 years from now I have only one main goal: to praise God through it all. No matter what we choose to go into in this life, everything should point to God and His love for us. I don’t just want to be able to succeed in whatever career I end up choosing, but I also want to do it whole heartily. God tells us that whatever we do, we need to do with our whole hearts and with all our effort. It’s not just about excelling at what you do that counts, but about working hard and giving God the glory that really matters. I want to make sure that I am worshiping God through my career, showing His love, grace, and mercy in all that I do. Spreading his good news to workers and others around me should be my main priority, for that is the main goal.
Many feel that the only way to worship God in their jobs is to become a missionary or a pastor, or something to do with the church in some sort of fashion, but that is not what I have found. If I do choose to go into carpentry for example, I could create things that have biblical messages in them; things that tell a story, that can lift others up. I can worship God in engineering as well; it could be as simple as talking to workers around you about your faith and your story. That can have the same effect as being a missionary somewhere far away in a remote place. No matter where I go or what I do, there will always be people around me to talk to and get to know. Many will not be Christian, and that is the perfect opportunity to spread the love of Christ to those around me. Being a Christian leader doesn’t always mean that you are in a leadership position. You can be a good Christian leader by leading by example: living your life in a way that is pleasing to God. If you do this, it cannot go unnoticed. People will start to get curious and ask questions providing the perfect opportunity to share your faith with non-believers around you. You can also help lift up other believers as well. You can become friends with those who are struggling with their faith and together become stronger and closer to God through all the hardships this world likes to throw at us. So, no matter what career you choose to go into, you can find people to share God’s love with, and that is what I want to be known for.
Most people do want to get wealthy through their job/career. I am no different, though my desire of what to do with that money may differ from some. I do know that all the wealth I attain in my lifetime is not mine but God’s who has given it to me to use in His name, and I should treat it as such. I want all that I make to be used for God’s glory ether funding hospitals, children homes, or supporting missionaries. Money and wealth is not to be worshiped, it is just a thing that we use to measure power, and I know that it can be used for bad, but it can also be used for good. God could even call me to sell everything and become a missionary myself; but, whatever money I obtain, I want it to be used in a way that is worthy of God’s love and approval.
Click here to make a donation to the HHO Scholarship Fund now.
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Doors of Opportunity Unlocked Amidst Lockdown
May 20, 2020
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ,
It’s still all Corona, Corona, Corona around here. And as a result of that not much has been altered since the last time I wrote a report.
Schools are all closed so the kids are all at home. Josiah is at home doing on-line schooling. He is finishing his final term as a senior at Rift Valley Academy. He has missed his interim trip, his senior trip has been canceled and his graduation ceremony is probably canceled as well. It is unlikely he will ever see any of his friends again before they all head off to their home countries and home continents. Chloe is home too. Julie is homeschooling her and I am assisting by teaching math.
Churches are all closed. I haven’t been able to meet with the folks at Upper Room Baptist Church for many weeks now except individually. Everyone I talk to wants to get our worship services started back up again but to do so would be against the lock-down orders. At what point do we say we have to meet anyway?
Nairobi is locked down. Nobody is allowed in or out.
At least we still have access to food, water, and medicines. Our supply lines are operating as normal and all the necessities of life are still readily available.
The one thing we are desperately trying to avoid is Kenyan quarantine. People who test positive for Covid19 AND everyone they come into contact with are quarantined in official Kenyan quarantine centers. We all hear that these places are nightmares – No care, crowded, Corona-contracting centers. Healthy people get quarantined and are not allowed to leave. They end up coming down with the virus. I was in town today and saw a sign at the store: “Help contain Covid19 – Donate here to send street kids to quarantine centers”. I had to shudder.
But not all is bad news. There are opportunities as well. The other day I was in town picking up some supplies and I was at the store of a Hindu proprietor. He started talking about Corona and I said, “All I can do is pray, and trust God, and leave the rest in His hands”. The Hindu store owner stopped and said, “Yes, thank you. I guess we should be talking more about God than about Corona Virus”. Now I know that the “god” in his mind is different than the God in mine but we have small opportunities to talk to people these days in a way we might not be able to during a normal time.
Another opportunity is to invest in the lives of other people. As a result of the schools closing, we have two Kenyan teenagers studying here at our house and Julie is overseeing their education and I am teaching them Geometry. One is staying with us around the clock, including boarding here and the other comes every day for school purposes and then leaves at the end of the day. Yesterday, during their morning break, the four of us (myself, Josiah and the two Kenyan teenagers) sat on the veranda while they drank their chai and we just talked. And the most amazing questions and discussions came out. We talked about salvation, heaven, missions, f=ma and e=mc2, the movements of planets, English idioms, biological taxonomy, sin, grace verses the law, Jesus’ interpretation of the 10 Commandments in Matthew 5, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and what happens to morally upright Muslims who have never heard about Jesus. It was all done in a casual way and I didn’t lead them to any of these topics. We just talked about whatever came up out of their brains. What an amazing time to try and make sure they heard wisdom from a Biblical perspective on all of these topics.
Let’s ask God to give us more of these kinds of opportunities during this chaotic and unnerving time of uncertainty.
Blessings to you all, Roger, Julie, Amy, Josiah & Chloe
Contact Info:
Roger & Julie Tate
P.O. Box 96
Kitale, Kenya 30200
rojuta@gmail.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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