Missionary Update: Paul & Wanda Hatcher [March 2013]
Paul and Wanda Hatcher have been serving the Lord together in Brazil for 36 years. Paul pastors Tabernacle Baptist Church in Manaus, Brazil. Their main ministry is church planting.
March 4, 2013
Dear Friends,
Greetings, the new year is well on its way. It has been great with many exciting things happening.
During the month of January, it was great to see the new believers who were saved during the Christmas program and end-of-year activities beginning discipleship classes. I am always thrilled to see their joy as they come to realize all that Christ has provided for them – forgiveness of sin, the indwelling of the Spirit to help them in their daily walk of faith in Christ, loving like Christ loved them and the hope of resurrection. Their joy is contagious even to those who have been saved for many years.
I have heard from the pastors of the churches organized last year; and the Lord continues to give them increase in the number of Christians and their growth in Christ. Pray that the Lord will continue opening doors and raise and send laborers to the fields white unto harvest. We would encourage you to pray for this always.
Even in very difficult situations, it has been good to see how God’s people have responded in a joyful way. One of the young families in the Manaus church had gone through a difficult bout with breast cancer; their peacefulness was notorious as she went through surgery and subsequent therapy. Just as she was finishing her treatment, their oldest child, Juliana – 15 years old now, who was studying in our Christian school, had a seizure and was hospitalized. Through exams and brain scans, doctors discovered she had a very deeply-located brain tumor. There are many small details that showed God’s goodness and constant care. She was eventually flown to Sao Paulo, about 1500 miles from here. There were many delays; but eventually, God brought together a fantastic group of six neurosurgeons to perform the surgery. She came through the surgery with no side effects. Testing revealed the tumor to be malignant. She has begun chemotherapy and other treatments which should last about six months. Juliana and her entire family have had such great peace and very evident joy through all their trials and suffering, which they recognize and attribute to God. Juliana, on the phone said, “I understand and know God is answering prayer. Thank the church for praying for me.”
All of our family, children and grandchildren are well and serving the Lord. We thank you for your prayers. Pray for us when you think of us, and think of us often.
Your missionaries from north and northeast Brazil,
Paul and Wanda Hatcher
Avenida J. Carlos Antony, 172
65063-150 Manaus
Amazonas, Brasil SA
hatcher[at]argo.com.br
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Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher [March 2013]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
February 25, 2013
Dear Brethren and Fellow-Workers:
Here in Urai the sun is shining brightly and it is a beautiful summer day. You may remember that when it is winter in the States it is summer for us here. It has been a hot summer with sufficient rain for the crops. The fields are very beautiful and harvest of the soy bean crop has begun.
PERSONAL–Alta and I are doing well for two oldies. Her eyes continue in perfect condition after the two cataract surgeries. My physical condition is going down slowly. We have been able to go to the city of Assai each Sunday.
ASSAI–Praise the Lord for His blessing for the work in Assai. This month a family from the Chapada Church is being sent to take care of the work here. The family is a young couple with two children. Please pray for them.
URAI–The church in Urai, under the leadership of Marcio Moraes, is doing well in the home church and in the three congregations. There is a wonderful group of young people, both men and women, who are dedicated to serving the Lord. The Seminary Classes begin again this month. Please pray for the teachers and eight to ten students.
PHYSICAL NEED–Sonha dos Santos, wife of Valdir dos Santos, pastor of the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Cornelio Procopio, had her left breast removed because of cancer. She is going through much suffering with the chemical treatment. Please remember to pray for this wonderful saint of the Lord.
WORK IN BRAZIL–Remember, the country of Brazil is larger in territory than the 48 continental United States. The works that have been started by missionaries of BFM or that are being started are going very well and some have grown to thousands in attendance. You who have given for this mission work can be proud of the families you have supported and the result that God has given. Alta and I count it a great privilege to have served the Lord in this country for over 58 years.
Your servants in Christ,
John A. and Alta Hatcher
Caixa Postal 112
Urai, PR, Brazil 86280-000
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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Missionary Update: John Mark & Judy Hatcher in France [March 2013]
Missionaries John Mark and Judy Hatcher have been serving the Lord in Tournefeuille, France since 1999. They define their ministry as “disciple-making,”
February 26, 2013
Dear Fellow Team Members,
We are grateful for the privilege God gives us to be bearers of the the Good News to folks that live in Southern France as well as in other parts of the world. The four weeks since we last wrote to you have gone by quickly, but we have seen God at work.
On February 9, we had “young people’s evening in our home”. It seems that the quality of these meetings has continued to improve and the young people who come are attentive and are always interested in the date for the next meeting. Of the young folks who come, only one, has made a public profession of faith and followed the Lord in baptism. The passage we considered two weeks ago included “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” This is certainly the invitation of the Gospel for those who are lost as well as a reminder for those of us who are God’s children.
One of the many towns near us that need the Gospel.
Our oldest granddaughter brought a neighbor friend who had not previously been to a youth night. One the way home, this friend was so excited about the evening that she could hardly wait to tell her brother about it and invite him for the next time.
This past Sunday, one of the teen age girls who attends with her family brought a friend. Last Tuesday in Mazere, a young man, father of three, came for the first time and was quite attentive. He was brought by a couple who have participated with us in this Bible study from the time it was first implemented. We are encouraged by the desire the believers have to share their faith and introduce others to Christ.
This past Saturday, we had a pot luck dinner to conclude a three week Bible reading adventure. The purpose of this adventure was to encourage believers to grow in knowledge of God through the study of His Word. We chose key passages (one to four chapters per day) to be read daily. These covered the historical periods from Abraham to Nehemiah. Fourteen people read together and we discussed what they had learned during the dinner. Those who were involved testified that it was a great blessing to them. We want to do something similar several times during the coming year. This should help emphasize how important it is for God’s children to “know the scriptures” and to “study to show themselves approved”. One lady, who, was not involved this time, asked me Sunday, “When are we going to do this again?”
The Lord has recently given several good openings with neighbors and acquaintances. We would like for all of these and many others to be saved. Thank you for your faithful support which enables us to be here to communicate the Good News.
City of Mazere – We have Bible study near upper right hand corner.
Your fellow servants in France,
John and Judy Hatcher
4, rue d’Aspin
31170 Tournefeuille, France
JMHatcher[at]aol.com
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Ada Mayfield Hunter is now with the Lord
Ada Mayfield Hunter, who faithfully served 22 years as a missionary in Peru with her husband Del, entered the Presence of the Lord on Saturday evening, January 12. Brother and Sister Mayfield went to Peru in 1961 and served the Lord there–principally in the two cities of Pucallpa and Iquitos–until she returned to the States in 1985. Brother Mayfield went to be with the Lord in 1978. The Lord blessed them with a fruitful ministry both in believers brought to know Jesus Christ and churches established.
The family has requested that memorial expressions may be made by contributions to Baptist Faith Missions. Those contributions may be sent to P.O. Box 471280, Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280 or by online donations.
You can send correspondences via USPS to their daughter, Loretta Hokenson, at 305 South Street, Coffeen, IL 62017 / 217.851.0843
Arrangements
Visitation with the family: Friday night 4 – 8 pm
Memorial service: Saturday morning, 10:00 am
Both will be at the Bass-Patton-Dean Funeral Home
624 South Main, Hillsboro, IL
217-532-3636
You can view her full obituary here.
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Missionary Update: John Mark & Judy Hatcher in France [January 2013]
Missionaries John Mark and Judy Hatcher have been serving the Lord in Tournefeuille, France since 1999. They define their ministry as “disciple-making,”
January 3, 2013
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We are back home in Tournefeuille, France. We left Chicago early on the first day of 2013. The Lord has continued to bless the church here while we were gone. The faithfulness of those who are a part of the congregation encourages us. Our goal is to establish congregations that are independent and self-supporting with local leadership. Thank you for your faithful support which enables us to continue working toward this God-given goal.
The month of December was spent enjoying the fellowship of our family and friends in the Chicago and Evansville area. The time with our three children and their families who live in the United States was priceless. What a blessing it is to have children who are serving the Lord. Making the most of these rare moments with our grandchildren was a source of great joy.
John & Judy Hatcher with their children, children’s spouses, and grandchildren on Christmas Day
Judy and I were able to spend several delightful hours with Erna and Joe Stibi who are now members of First Baptist Church, Niles, Illinois. About the time we came to France, Erna worked as a crossing guard on the corner next to East Maine Baptist Church’s building in Niles, IL. Judy was entertaining some of the Ruth and Bob Rossman’s children while we met in the church and introduced herself to Erna. Since I was spending some time with the church there, Judy suggested that I might like talk to Erna some more. I followed her advice. Speaking to Erna, I learned that she had immigrated to the US with her family from the former Yugoslavia when she was just a girl. She was open to the Good News of Jesus Christ. I mentioned this to Emily Keys, a member of East Maine Church. She picked up the baton and was soon having Bible studies with Erna. Soon, Erna trusted Christ. Not long afterward, Joe, her husband trusted Christ and they were both baptized in fellowship with the East Maine Church. In December they took us out for lunch and we were thrilled to hear the story of how God moved both of them from Eastern Europe to the United States where they came to know and trust Christ personally. There are a lot of people who need to hear about Christ living around us. May God help each of us to “reach out and touch someone”.
While with Judy’s sister, Peggy, in Evansville we were able to see many of our loved ones in Christ. It had been quite a while since we had seen many of these brothers and sisters in the family of God and it warmed our heart. Separation is part of our earthly life, but we look forward to eternity when we shall be forever with the Lord and each other!
John & Judy’s latest grandson.
The six week sabbatical spent away was good for Judy and me. It is always good to have time to reflect on what the Lord has done, is doing and wants us to do. We have returned encouraged.
Please, ask God to give us wisdom to serve Him faithfully making the most of every opportunity. There are 60 million in the this country who need Christ and our efforts are like dust on the scale, but we have a wonderful Savior who “is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.”
Thanking God for your partnership with us in Christ,
John and Judy Hatcher
4, rue d’Aspin
31170 Tournefeuille, France
JMHatcher[at]aol.com
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December 2012 Mission Sheets [PDF & Flip-through]
Your December 2012 Mission Sheet is now available in PDF format. Follow the link below to view it!
BFM Mission Sheet December 2012
You can also flip through the mission sheet at the link below:
(Once you get there, click at the bottom of the page to flip through.)
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Missionary Update: The Radfords in Kenya [January 2013]
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
Dear praying friends,
Lord willing, by the time you receive this prayer letter, it will be the year 2013. I know at this time that many people make “New Year’s resolutions” for the upcoming year. My prayer is that we would make resolutions to follow the Lord closely this year, be committed to serving Him, and reaching the lost with the Gospel message. Would these be good resolutions for us to follow this upcoming year? I think so, and I hope and pray that these would be some of the goals for this year. May we have more zeal to serve the Lord this year that is ahead. Romans 12:10-11 says “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord.” This update will share ministry progress as well as prayer requests.
Before discussing ministry, I would ask prayer for two specific things. The first is our work permit. To legally continue in the ministries here in Kenya, a work permit from the government is needed. These usually expire every two to three years. Our permit expires in April of this year. Please pray that if it would be the Lord’s will, that the renewal of the permit would be granted with no issues or problems. We have heard of other permits having problems, so this is why I ask prayer for this specifically. We know the Lord is in complete control, and we trust Him with it. What a comfort it is to know that God is sovereign, nothing takes Him by surprise, and we can trust Him with everything in our lives. Psalm 115:3 says “But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” Thanks for prayers for this.
Also, the election of Kenya is drawing near. As you may recall from the previous election, the country had unrest and certain areas were dangerous. We praise the Lord that during the last election Kitale was calm and peaceful. I believe the election is scheduled for March, so please pray for the whole election process, that it would be done fairly and that it would remain peaceful. During our recent missionary community meeting we discussed the election and it was recommended to have additional supplies at home to last one to two months. This way, in case of any unrest or problems, we would have our necessary supplies. Even while Kitale is usually peaceful, other communities on the route from Nairobi to Kitale aren’t and this causes problems for the delivery trucks, thus a shortage of supplies. How thankful we are to have a close missionary community who takes care of each other. We are truly blessed. John 14:27 says “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” What a great verse for us to know and claim, wherever we are or whatever situation we are in.
The church plant in the village of Shangalamwe is continuing along. There have been definite challenges along the way such as high dependence on the missionary, and I am so thankful for my good friend Roger Tate and our co-laboring in this village. I thank the Lord for his family’s willingness to live and serve here in Kenya. Life here is difficult as we are often homesick, lonely and experiencing culture fatigue but what a blessing they are not only to us, but so many others.
Please pray for this church in Shangalamwe, that they would follow the Scriptures in their faith and practice. There are many requests such as that they would recognize the authority of the Word of God and follow it wholeheartedly. Also that they would have a heart to serve others and that they would seek to be independent of us and rely on the Lord. Please pray also for us as missionaries, that we would faithfully teach the Scriptures in love and that we would be an encouragement to this church. Please pray that we would be a good example before others and be the “salt and light” that the Bible calls us to be. There are so many things to pray about, and these are just some of the current prayer requests. A quote I like is “There is much to pray about and nothing to worry about.” We will keep you updated of this ministry.
The Annex prison is continuing along well. We are now near the end of the “Firm Foundations” course. It has been exciting to watch the growth spiritually in these men. The next plan is to teach the men how to study the Word of God inductively, verse by verse, chapter by chapter. In this way, Lord willing, when they are released, they can go and teach others in their areas and villages. These men come from all over the country, and when I discussed this option with the men, they were very excited about it. I thank the Lord for the cooperation of the main office and the chaplains. We will keep you updated of this also.
In family prayer requests, one of our current requests is for playmates for our two daughters. Unfortunately, it has not been very easy for our children to have other children their age to play with. Most of the missionary children here are older. So, a big family prayer request is that our daughters will have children their age to play with. There has been a recent opportunity for them to go weekly to a nearby children’s home to play with the Kenyan children, and this has greatly helped. However, it would still be good for them to have American children to play with also that are their age. We would appreciate prayers for this, as this is specifically for our children.
In closing, may we all be zealous for the Lord this year. We do not know the day the Lord will return. It could be anytime. If the Lord were to come today, would He find us faithfully serving Him? I hope and pray so. There is no better time to serve the Lord than right now. I pray that we would be the living sacrifice the Bible calls us to be. I will close with Romans 12:1-2, which says “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
God’s blessings to each of you.
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa 30200
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Missionary Update: Harold Bratcher [January 2013]
Harold Bratcher has served the Lord in the Amazon Valley since July 15, 1959. His dear wife Marie, faithfully served with him for 52 years until her death in February 2011. The Bratchers organized over 20 Baptist churches and many other missions in Brazil, and he currently serves at the 24th of March Baptist Church in Manaus.
January 7, 2013
Dear Brothers of the Blessed Lord and Sisters of the Savior:
Once again I greet you not from the Amazon Valley of Brazil, South America, but from my cold Kentucky home where the sun is shining bright!
This Mission Sheets month began December 6th and finishes today, January 7th.. During this period I preached 2 sermons, one at the New Jerusalem Baptist Church in the interior town of the Vila do Engenho and the other one at the 14th of December Baptist Church in Manaus. These were special farewell services.
During this period I heard a total of 7 sermons preached at 6 different places. One was at the New Jerusalem Church, on Saturday night the 8th. The Church was celebrating their 18th anniversary. The three Sunday nights were at the Compensa Baptist Church where the president of the Brazilian Baptist Faith Missions, Bro. Ortan Barbosa is pastor, twice, and once at the Liberdade Baptist Church.
The last Wednesday night in Manaus, heard a sermon by evangelist Alessandro Braz of the 24th of March Baptist Church. On the first Wednesday of this year, I heard a sermon by the Assistant Pastor of the Porter Memorial Baptist Church, where I attended with our dear friends, Steve and Eva Blake. They have been a blessing to us in many ways already!
Yesterday, I had the privilege of hearing dear pastor Mickey Hyder at the 212 year old Historic David’s Fork Baptist Church.
On Friday, December 15th, we attended the third of five special farewell services. This one was at the Mount of Olives Baptist where almost 300 people representing all of the churches of the BBFM gathered to honor our missionary labors for the Savior. Very emotional and inspiring service. On Saturday the 16th, was the official farewell at the 24th of March Baptist Church where I served the last 12 years as pastor. They also honored me with a church wide supper. On Sunday morning, the 17th, attended the special farewell Breakfast and service at the Communion Baptist Church.
On Saturday night, the 29th, I left my home of exactly 47 years to begin our trip back to the States, after serving the Savior in Brazil for 52 and a half years. There were over 120 of our brethren from several churches there to see us off. I feel that in the past 3 weeks, I was probably one of the most photographed men in Brazil. We appreciate so much all the expressions of love and gratitude we received during these last 3 weeks. We left with mixed emotions, but with a profound sense of Mission Accomplished. To God Be the Glory, great things HE hath done!
After a safe trip and blessed trip with layovers in Miami and Dallas, we arrived at 6:30pm, at Bluegrass Field in Lexington. We were met by Carolyn Sue Bratcher, who was a blessing to us during this first week home.
On New Years Day we traveled in her car to Frankfort to my Brother Charlie’s home where we had a Delicious Dinner.
I conclude this letter asking that you pray for our future plans. We hope to soon move into the BFM Mission house in Lexington KY, while we await the sale of my house in Manaus, or the financing to go through to purchase one here. We have purchased a good car, thanks to the help of Bro. Glen Cummins in Richmond, Ky.
I hope to be a blessing to many of you, during this first year of my permanent furlough. I would like to report and thank each of you that have supported us during these past years.
Until next month.
Yours in the Service of the Savior,
Harold Bratcher
1012 Balsam Drive
Lexington, KY 40504
(859) 277-3716
(859) 806-9827 cell
harold_bratcher[at]yahoo.com
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