Celebrating Children’s Day and Seminary Graduates
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
November 9, 2017
Friends and family,
Well I am sitting here in Lexington, Ky, being somewhat cold. It’s just amazing how different the temperature is here and in Caraguatatuba.
While in Caragua we were very busy working on the Church building trying to complete many small projects that needed to be completed. As it is with all buildings, you fix one thing and there are many more that come up.
We arrived there in time to help in the Children’s Day activities. We had around 90 children on Children’s Day and it was AWESOME!!!! There were almost too many children in attendance, but that is an AWESOME problem to have. Children’s Day in Brasil is similar to Christmas Day here in the States. They don’t celebrate Christmas in Brasil like we do in the States. We had sandwiches, pop, and cake for them to eat for breakfast. Then we had games and popcorn and cotton candy. They received beanbag animals and a small bag of candy. Then we sent them home on a sugar high to their parents. These children are all underprivileged children, so whatever they receive is a blessing in their lives. But what they need more than food is love. A smile and a hug does better for them than anything else. So, we spent the day hugging them and playing with them. We are sending some photos so that you can see some of the activities.
All enjoying the food on Children’s Day
The children praising the Lord
Serving the kids on Children’s Day
The graduating class in Orlandia
Our bus is a very needed part of the children’s ministry there and the last few months there have been various problems with it—leaking oil and water pump problems to name a few. We were able to get the things fixed but the next problem is to pay for the work. Thank you to those who have sent money for the work on the bus—and if you would like to help financially, that would be greatly appreciated. As I said earlier, this bus is a needed part of the children’s ministry, so your precious prayers are needed. The bus is a 24-passenger bus that most of the time carries up to 50 children. And with that many on the bus, we still are making two trips to pick up and to return them home. As you can guess, that brings with it a big gas bill per month. This is also becoming a concern. Prayers please.
Well the Seminary we began in Caragua has just grown beyond belief. Just this year we have had three graduations: Caragua, Nativity da Serra, and Orlandia. All of these locations are in the state of São Paulo, but they are not close together. There are more than 7 hours travel time between them.
The last graduation class was in Orlandia and there were 24 who participated in the graduation process. It is hard to describe the appreciation these pastors and church workers have for the training and instruction the are receiving at Caragua Baptist Seminary. This year there have been 55 people graduated from the seminary.
While in the States, we are working on getting a Masters of Divinity added to our program. What this amounts to is that we are having to jump through a lot of hoops. I never realized the amount of red tape that can be involved in seminary accreditation. Now I have an even greater appreciation for Lexington Baptist College that we had here in Lexington. As
Mary & Walmir graduated
of now all things are going AWESOME!! However, when we get one requirement met there seems to one more and then one more. Please keep Caragua Baptist Seminary in your prayers as we are reaching many Brasillians through the pastors that are attending this Seminary.
Here is just one of the many stories that have come out to these classes: one of the Pastors who has attended the Seminary is also a long-haul trucker and he has begun using his trips to get to know the other drivers. When he empties the trailer, he then puts chairs and a pulpit inside and when he goes back to the truck stops, he opens the back doors of the trailer, sets up the chairs, and invites the other truckers in and preaches to them. This has been a blessing and he is reaching many that would never come to a church. Pray for God to go before him in this labor of love.
Continue to pray for my health that God can continue to use me in Brasil as we continue taking the Seminary to the Brasilian pastors all over Brasil.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Seminary Graduations; Stateside for Doctor’s Visits
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
September 15, 2017
Dear friends and family,
This month has been a little different. We came to the States the first week of the month to be able to do the doctor things. We have had a good report from the cancer treatments and the psa is at 0, but that is to be expected as I am still taking the hormone shots–there cannot be a true number until I am off those shots for 6 months.
I also went to a heart doctor as I have been having some chest problems. We are waiting for the results of the tests. As per usual, it is always hurry up and wait. Your continued prayers are appreciated.
I am going back a month to tell you about some me of the great and AWESOME things that are happening in Brasil and the Caraguatatuba Baptist Seminary. In the last two months, we have had the first and second graduation of the seminary.
The first was in Caragua, as this is where the Seminary began. There in Caragua, we graduated 6 with 14 others receiving a certificate of participation with the hope of completion later. We thought it very appropriate to have the first graduation here in Caragua because the dream for a Seminary was founded here. Then the second was in Natividade da Serra where 24 people graduated. This is AWESOME because our purpose for having a Seminary was and is to train pastors to preach the Word.
Caragua Baptist Seminary is starting to make a major difference for the pastors located in the state of São Paulo, Brasil. The dream started 3½ years ago and is exploding into other regions. How AWESOME is the God we serve.
So with these two classes completed, we are looking to the future as we have another class in October that will also have a graduation ceremony. This is about 6 hours from Caraguatatuba.
It seems like we just turn around and the month is gone. I don’t know if it is really true or it has something to do with age. I’m thinking it is the first, what do you think?
We will be in the States for a little over a month and then back to Brasil for that next graduation, so maybe we will see you during that time, but if not, we will try to see you on the return trip.
Continue praying for my health and God’s work here in Brasil.
If you would like to see what God is doing with your Mission offerings to BFM, come on down. The lights are on and the food is on the table. In His service, Aj and Barb
In His service,
Aj and Barb
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Blessed by Group of Men from Durbin Memorial
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
August 15, 2017
Friends and family,
I would like to write one letter without having to say that something has gone wrong with one of our vehicles but this month is not going to be that month. This time it is Barb’s car—it is the wheel bearings and it is running hot and leaking oil. The tropical climate could have something to do with the hot problem and the speed bumps are the culprit for the leak. Long story short, we will fix the cooling system, replace the wheel bearings, and repair the leak…just another month (old cars are old cars).
This month we have had a group from Durbin Memorial Baptist Church with Pastor Russell Zik. What a blessing these men were for us. The Indian ministry was greatly blessed by this group. They purchased food baskets for the reservation. This time, instead of putting the food in baskets, we just divided the food into stacks. This way thirty families could receive the same thing.
These Indians do crafts so sustain themselves, so they depend upon visitors to purchase their items. We did not disappoint them, everyone made purchases. This tribe, although they live near other people, they live very primitive. Some live in just simple bamboo huts, one room, with an open pit for cooking in the middle of the room. We were able to visit in two of these homes. Taking the food gave us entrance to the homes where we prayed with these families and personally gave them their food. This is quite an eye-opening experience. This always leaves everyone remembering just how truly blessed we are. This tribe serves many different gods—but over the past five years we have seen seven of them come to know the one and only true God as their personal Savior. AWESOME!!!! The chief is one of those who now knows Christ as his Savior.
Talking about the Chief, he had requested that we bring him a guitar and he specified the colors to be BLUE and YELLOW. With the help from the group from Central Baptist Church in Paris, they were able to get the guitar to this group and we took it to him. He was totally surprised when we presented this guitar to him. Now here is an amazing fact about this Chief: he is 116 years old. He is now moving around slowly and this time he had to sit in a chair while we were presenting the guitar to him, but he is still active in the tribe. He and the others around him loved the guitar. They were excited to receive the guitar as the one they had had only few strings and it could not be tuned for them to make presentations in the city.
This group was an all men group. I especially had a great time as three of this group were firemen and we had worked together for the Lexington Fire Department. We spent many late nights talking about old times.
On Sunday, these men taught all the Sunday school classes except the small children. Then on Sunday night Pastor Zik brought the message. What a blessing!
These men came to work and work they did. They finished laying the floor tiles in the upstairs and it is beautiful. They were able to do some painting also to finish some projects that we had not been able to get to. The church building is really coming alive. How AWESOME is the God we serve!
Thanks Durbin Memorial Baptist Church and especially Pastor Zik, his father Bob Zik, Ron Logan, Charlie Davis and Bob Hendriks.
As always if you are thinking about a mission trip give us a call and come on down.
You will never know just how much Barbara and I appreciate your prayers and financial support. Without you and BFM, we could not do the things that we do here in Caraguatatuba, Brazil.
In His service,
Aj and Barb
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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God is at Work—Even when the Devil Sticks His Nose in Our Plans
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
July 17, 2017
Dear friends and family,
Most of the time all I have to say is how AWESOME is the God we serve—the same still applies for this month. However, it has been a month in which the devil stuck his nose into our plans. So, where do I start?
1st—BUS: We have a great bus and it is an awesome tool for our church to “reach-out” to our members and the community. You name it and we have had a problem with it. The problem with the brakes is solved. Then there was the problem with the suspension, springs and bushings (riding like a wagon). While fixing the springs, etc., we discovered that we need shocks. We are managing to pay this on our credit card. During all this we missed having the bus for another week but the Lord provides with our two cars and several trips to pick up the people. If anyone would like to contribute to the Bus Ministry, start with prayers and then let the Lord lead you in what He wants you to do.
2nd—School Project: Our plans were to go to a public school and do some painting and do a Bible School with our visitors from Central Baptist Church in Paris, Kentucky, and Pastor Steven heading the group. When we got there, there was a contractor that the city had hired to do some much-needed work. So, we pitched in and started to pressure wash the walls that we had planned to paint. But the contractor came and informed us that the cleaning and painting was in his contract so we put up the pressure washer. The principal of the school came to us and told us that the caretaker’s house in the back of the school property needed painting and asked if we would consider painting it. The devil tried to take away our pleasure in helping and God gave us another avenue to help. During this time, the others were having Bible School with the students. It was a great success and the children were able to hear God’s Word from someone other than us. The ways of God are AWESOME and we just have to be still and listen.
3rd—Member’s House: Central Baptist came prepared to put a roof on Martha’s front porch and there we encountered some minor problems with family trying to delay the project (her husband). We eventually overcame the problems and got the roof completed and in the end, we were able to get her husband to attend church. Pray for Jose as he needs salvation.
Our visit to the Indian tribe was our best ever. Another Bible School success!! While there I was summoned to the house of the Chief, and I did not know what to expect. It turned out that the Chief wanted to give me his testimony regarding his salvation. Absolutely wonderful, AWESOME, hearing a 116 year-old Indian Chief talking about his faith. This tribe believes in many gods but this Chief believes in the REAL GOD. Sometimes words are not enough to express or tell about how Lord and Savior is working in Brasil. Before we left, some of the tribe’s younger adults sang several songs for us. The Chief asked or told me that he needed a new guitar for the group. The guitar that they were using was held together with wire and string. He asked specifically for a guitar and the colors needed to be blue and yellow. How many guitars have you seen that are blue and yellow? Central Baptist Church has solved the problem when they returned to the States, one of the members bought a guitar and took it to a body shop and had it painted! You guessed it—Blue and Yellow. How AWESOME is the God we serve. This week we will receive another group from Durbin Baptist Church and they will bring the guitar. We will be able to present the guitar to the tribe and the Chief. We will send pictures.
We were also able to work at the Church building one day with some needed carpentry work. Sometimes I stand amazed at how things get done, people get used, and the Lord gets glorified. AMEN!!!
Come see what God is doing with your missionary dollars.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Full Month of Remodeling; Pray for Bus Ministry
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
June 20, 2017
Friends and family,
This month has been very, very full. We have been working on the house, remodeling and cleaning it for the visitors. I guess all of you know how amazing it is the STUFF you can accumulate over 20 years. Well we have removed several years and have some more to go.
Speaking of the house, we have taken out our wooded windows and replaced them with new ones. What a mess!! We are not talking about wooden walls, etc., but masonry. Can you imagine the mess when the windows you bought are not the same size as those you are taking out? What a mess I have created!! After the replacement, I have created much more work—patch, sand and paint. I painted around the windows and, guess what, need to paint the house. Now the walls are beautiful but the soffit is ugly, so I put vinyl siding around the soffit. It is amazing how things snowball when you get into remodeling. There seems to be no end. But the house now looks great and the outside is beautiful. AWESOME!!!
As most of you know, when there is a transition of pastors some of the people do not stay. We are now in the rebuilding phase and things are going good. We are having visitors each service and many of them are looking for a home church. God is AWESOME.
My health is holding its own. Good days and some days not so good; however, the AWESOME thing is that God is in control and I have a good prognosis. My treatments will continue until February 2018 so continue to pray for my health and for all those that are in a battle with cancer.
Seminary is an AWESOME endeavor. The last class we had 28 people and 18 of them were active pastors. Continue to pray for the Seminary as we endeavor to expand the reach of the present work. We have had the blessing of being taken under the wing of New Orleans Baptist Seminary so that we can offer a greater range of classes here in Brasil. As of this year we are working on offering a Master’s program. We are also working on offering classes in Manaus and Sao Paulo, and returning to Orlandia.
Last month we told you of the many things that had to be fixed on the bus—this month is much better. It only needs 2 new tires. This bus is a necessary tool for us here in Caraguatatuba. Pray for our bus ministry because part of it is children. These children come to Sunday School and this is where they learn of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is an AWESOME ministry. We are reaching the children to be able to reach the parents. We have various examples of children that we have worked with who are now teenagers and are faithful in church now.
It is always great to hear that people are praying for you. So Barb and I request your prayers. And we thank you soooo much for your financial support—without you our work could not happen.
We are looking forward to the visits that we will have here in Brasil this year. You are always welcome!!!!! The lights are on and the bed is turned down, so come on down.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Trying Month of Bus Problems; Encouraged with Seminary
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
May 13, 2017
Friends and family,
This month has been one that has been somewhat trying. Our church bus has had a minor problem with the air brakes. Well, we were told that all we had to do was take off the part and replace it with a new one. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Well, we were told by the mechanic what part to purchase, so we call the parts store in the next city and ordered the part. We go get the part on Tuesday and bring it to the mechanic (good—this is one day before we will need the bus for Wednesday night). But they call us on Wednesday to say that the part is the wrong one. So, Thursday we make the trip up to the other city to get the new part—which they don’t have—so we order the new part. So, this is the first week that we will not have the bus to pick up the children on Sunday. When we ordered the part on Friday, we were told that there would be a delay in the order because this is a holiday and there would be no mail to get the piece to the parts store. So, we would have to wait 5 days for the part to get to the store. This takes us past Wednesday again. When it arrived and we went to get it, it was for the wrong side. So, they ordered it again.
By this time, I have to go up north for the seminary in Orlandia and the part has not come yet. I was there for a week and upon my arrival, the part had not come yet. Now we are in the third week without a bus for the kids. We were called and told that the new part was at the parts place so Barbara and Edson make a trip up the hill to get it, hoping that this Sunday we will have a bus for the kids. Guess what—this piece did not fit either. Now we discover that someone has worked on the brakes sometime in the past and none of the pieces would have fit so we tell the mechanic to cut the new piece and make it fit the bus.
The blessing in this story is that the bus company that we use when we have big groups has generously loaned us one of their buses on Sunday morning to pick up the kids, but not for the people on Sunday night nor on Wednesday night. But on the last Sunday they could not loan a bus, so we made trips with 2 cars to pick up the kids. We have around 80 to 100 kids that attend Sunday School every week–so you can imagine the amount of kids we had in each car. We were so busy getting the kids to church that no one got pictures.
The bus was functioning on Wednesday night and we are looking forward to a full house on Sunday!!! Sometimes things so simple can become so complicated. Oh well, we are still so blessed that it is unreal. And even in all this mess we have had numerous visitors in the church each week.
Now on to more blessings. At this session of the seminary we had a group of students, 26 in number, 18 of which were pastors and 8 church workers. The classes were taught by Dr. D. Colman from Gardenside Baptist Church in Lexington, Kentucky, and Dr. R. Edge from First Baptist Church in Bastrop, Texas. What a blessing these two men are to the seminary. The seminary now has accreditation given by the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and this has helped us to gain more students. These students are now asking if we can add a Master’s Program to our original classes. You know that with God all things are possible! We are working on this as you read this letter and by God’s grace we will have the Master’s Program included for the classes that start in 2018. How AWESOME is the God we serve.
Pray for our Seminary: Caragua Baptist Seminary as we continue to train Pastors—specifically for us to be able to reach more Pastors to train them to take to gospel to Brasil. In 2018 we will be offering the classes in São Paulo City, Orlandia, São Paulo, probably in Manaus, Amazonas, and maybe in one other location. We are taking these classes to different regions to make them more available to the areas where the pastors reside. That way more pastors can attend and then take the teaching to their areas. This will be an AWESOME blessing to them and their churches.
We always ask for prayer for the Seminary everywhere we go so we now have 70-100 pastors praying for Caragua Baptist Seminary. Won’t you join with them in praying for the seminary also? For the pastors and the workers that participate in the Seminary, for the teachers and for the translators, and the churches that these Pastors return to after they finish the classes. Please include in your prayers Barb and I, our church here in Caraguatatuba, Pastor Walmir and all the works here in Brasil.
To end the letter on a note of a blessing, this month we have had one more soul added to God’s kingdom. Praise His Name.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Praying for Sunday School Teachers & Helpers; Planning for Seminary
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
April 12, 2017
Dear friends and family,
What an AWESOME God we serve. As we left the States I completed my last shot (I thought); however, when I received that “last shot” my doctor said, “SORRY, but I would like you to have TWO more shots.” Oh well, life has turned around. I am so thankful for all the prayers for me during these cancer treatments. I would also like to exalt my God for the GOOD reports from the doctor. So, these TWO more shots will be on August 3, 2017, and the LAST one on February 3, 2018. God is AWESOME!!! So, thanks one more time for all the prayers that have been sent on my behalf. With Him all things are possible.
The ministry here is going wonderfully. Pastor Walmir and Mary K. are working very hard and the Sunday School has doubled. Worship service is also growing. They have started a Children’s Church on Sunday nights and this is going good. One of the kids came for the first time last Sunday night and the first thing he asked was, “Is there children’s church tonight?”
We have been in planning mode for next year’s classes for the Seminary. Two classes have been planned and we are just waiting to have the dates confirmed for two more. Here we need lots of prayers because this is an AWESOME way for us to reach Brasil. Training new Pastors and helping old ones to be more grounded in the Baptist doctrine.
Along with the ministry there is lots of maintenance and construction going on. The work on our new building is going very good, but as always there is more work to be done. We can always use more help in this. Are you thinking about a mission trip? Put us on your list of places to go. We are praying for more financial aid for the completion of the building. Maybe you or someone you know would like to be a part of this.
We started a training program for us to have more Sunday School teachers and helpers. This is one of the areas where we are lacking as some of our teachers have upwards to 40 students in their class and only one helper. So, we are in great need for more qualified teachers. God is great and He will supply our needs. Of this we are sure.
As usual car and bus maintenance are an everyday job. You can get one thing fixed and turn around and there are two more to fix. The urgent need for the bus at this time is new tires. We have noted since our return this time that everything has gone up–not only things for the vehicles, but food, Sunday School supplies, electric, water, and the list goes on and on. I would like to say thanks to Grasp International for help on the bus maintenance. Thanks Jason and family, you are greatly missed here in Brasil.
We would like to ask for special prayer for our granddaughters, they both have been having health issues. The doctors are not discovering what the problems are and, on top of that, they both have been suffering with a virus. The healthcare here is not like the States. If nothing else, I can tell you that “social medicine” is terrible. Treatment is minimal if at all—don’t let me get on my soap box about that. Just remember Chelsea and Ashley in your prayers please.
Like I say, come on down and see what your mission dollars are doing here in Caraguatatuba, Brasil. We will leave the light on and put some more water in the beans. As Barbara’s dad always said, we will treat you so many different ways, you will have to like one of them and come back.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara Hensley
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Children’s Ministry Growing; Running Out of Space
The Hensleys have spent nearly 20 years serving in Brazil. They have established a church in Caraguatatuba and mission points throughout the city. They have also recently started a seminary to train pastors.
February 4, 2017
Friends and family,
Well January has been a very active month. We have been trying to complete needed construction for Sunday School space upstairs. We had a group from Mt. Eden Baptist Church that came to celebrate the New Year with us. While with us, they helped us with this construction. They helped with painting, electric problems, doors, fans, closets, shelving, and they provided the financing for these projects. Also this church, under the leadership of my longtime friend Pastor Foy, helped the missionary to the Indians in Rio de Janeiro with their home.
We continually live and worship around and in construction projects. The upside of dust, walking around materials and lots of cleaning in the kitchen when we feed the children on Sunday mornings is that we are a growing Church and our members are very understanding. HOW AWESOME is the Lord we serve!!!!
Speaking of children, what a blessing. Pastor Walmir has been talking with a couple in our area who also work with children about bringing those children to worship with us. They were very happy to find a Church that would welcome them as they had been rejected by various other Churches as they had been told that to many children would disrupt their services. These children, about 20 to 25, live around our neighborhood so we were a great match. With this joining of work, our Sunday school grew about 30%.
Pray that the Lord would supply more space for their growing children’s ministry.
Well, while this mission group was here we had planned to have a Vacation Bible School. So we planned to have the children to come in the afternoon and stay through the church service on Wednesday night. We visited the neighborhood nearby and was expecting around 40-60 kids. But oh me of little faith. As the Bible School was beginning, I was taking care of a transportation problem, so when I finally got upstairs, WHAT A SURPRISE. We did not have enough chairs, much less enough space nor enough teachers nor materials. While we were expecting 40-60 children, imagine my surprise when I saw that there were 108 children packed in our upstairs.
Well we began to divide and conquer—we put some downstairs and left some upstairs, ran out and bought more hot dogs and drinks, and an AWESOME time was had by all. GOD is so AWESOME!!
Now Sunday school is more challenged and with one class offsite already, we are out of space again even before the building is finished. These are good problems to have, don’t you think? Just so you know, we have a lot behind our building that would solve these problems (hint, hint, hint). Pray with us for the Lord to supply.
I will be in the States for the next shot (which I thought was to be the last) in February, but I had to come home sooner as I was having some severe pain, not necessarily related to my cancer problem. Because of this pain I had to have lots of tests. Though they did not find the cause of the pain they have been able to tell me that they see no cancer in these tests. God is so good!!!
Plan a mission trip, see the work, have fellowship, make friends that could change your life and get out of your comfort zone as Barb always says. Come on down to Caraguatuba. The light is on and we will turn your bed down. Come see what your mission dollars are doing.
In His service,
Aj and Barb
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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