Missionary Update: The Wacasers in Brazil [April 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
April 3, 2014
Dear Friends,
A gospel skit performed in a public school
I have to make a correction to my letter from last month, but it’s a positive correction. I mentioned that we would be sharing the gospel in public schools where we’d have contact with about 4000 students and teachers. It turned out that we were able to speak with over 6000! Each year for the past nine years, the youth group from the Bell Shoals Baptist Church in Brandon, Florida has come to interact with us in sharing the gospel through our translators and partners in ministry, Projeto Vida. Every year has been a blessing and this year was no exception. In the public school presentations, where we use skits, testimonies, and a gospel message preached by one of the leaders, several hundred students at a time get a chance to hear a biblical presentation of the gospel. In these large school events, we can’t persuade those who hear and believe to make their decision known publicly. Many do surrender their lives to Christ at these events, but to know whom, we have to encourage them to seek us out privately after school hours. This setup makes it difficult for us to know just how many conversions occur during these public school events. Although we can’t always follow up every conversion with personal discipleship, we realize that those who truly come to Christ as Lord and Savior are saved eternally. In many cases we are only able to plant a seed, but we trust the Lord to see that someone else may water it, or even that we ourselves may be able to meet with them again and be instruments in their growth in Christ. This has happened on numerous occasions. No matter what, we know that a large number of people who had not heard the truth of God’s grace have now.
A gospel message shared in a public school
Charlene has been teaching English as a second language for several years. She is an amazing teacher because most of her students have become very fluent speakers. Her English classes have become one of our main avenues of having intimate contact with people on a continuing basis. Because she has classes with these students for several years, we become personal friends to almost all of the students. These friendships open doors of opportunity to share Christ with those who don’t know Him and for us to offer biblical counsel with those who accept Christ as Savior. Quite a few of her students have been saved and have become members of our churches through the years. Ana Paula is one of her most recent students to surrender to Christ. She was baptized a few months ago and has grown tremendously in her faith and obedience. Before, Ana Paula had a tendency to date really “rough” guys, who were not followers of Christ. She seemed to have a need to connect with guys that would distract her from living for Christ and who would play on her desire to help them with their emotional needs. Through her participation as a translator in our recent week of working with the youth group from Florida, she saw what a joy it was for those youth to boldly share the gospel and she heard many testimonies from girls who had thrown away too many years being hooked up with guys who didn’t seek Christ first in their lives. Ana Paula messaged me recently sharing how thrilled she was now because she is finding Jesus to be her source of joy and purpose and doesn’t need to derive her sense of self-worth from some co-dependent guy. She isn’t dating anyone right now and she said that she feels completely happy being that way because the Lord is giving her a joy that she never experienced before.
The youth group from Brandon, Florida with translators and Projeto Vida in the public park
The Lord is continually blessing our church in many ways. Last week our team who handles organizing the auditorium for services got a little nervous because we were running out of chairs for seating everyone. One of the most encouraging things about this was that we were not holding any special event. Of course, every time we meet to praise the Lord and study His word is special, but we had not made any special program to draw in a larger crowd. What the Lord is using to draw larger crowds is the excitement and joy displayed in the lives of those folks who are being transformed by the power of Christ in them. We praise the Lord and thank Him for the privilege of being His instruments of this grace!
Thank you for your prayers and support.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)436-9980
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher of Brazil [April 2014]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
March 31, 2014
Dear Brethren and Friends,
Alta and I greet you from the Mission House in Lexington, KY. We arrived in the States on the 28th of March. Paul and Wanda had made arrangements for us to come to Manaus to bring Alta and I home for furlough. David came to Urai and helped us on the trip to Manaus. We were in Manaus for eight days. On our last Sunday before leaving Urai, the Church in Urai had a special service for us with pastors and people from all their missions and churches we had begun. It was an emotional experience.
The next day we flew from Londrina to Manaus. On the 28th of March, we arrived in Nashville where Paul rented a van. We arrived in Lexington with all our baggage on the 28th. We are living in the Mission House that was prepared and waiting for us. We plan to be in the Mission House for at least two months and to attend the Spring Missions Conference at Thompson Road Baptist Church on April 28, 29, 30.
On our first Sunday home, we attended the Bible School and morning service at the Thompson Road Baptist Church where Brother Dave Parks is pastor. That night we attended the services at the New Life Baptist Church where Brother Steve Wainright is pastor. We were blessed to have fellowship with the dear people of these two faithful churches.
Paul, our son, and Wanda are on furlough, also. They are caring for us. We will probably be living in Florida part of this year also.
WORK IN BRAZIL – Praise the Lord, the work in Brazil continues to grow and reach out.
Alta and I thank you for your prayers and financial support through our sixty years as missionaries in Brazil. God bless you.
In the Name of our Lord Jesus,
John and Alta Hatcher
1012 Balsam Drive
Lexington, KY 40504
859.277.3716
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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Missionary Update: Paul & Wanda Hatcher on Furlough from Brazil [April 2014]
Paul and Wanda Hatcher have been serving the Lord together in Brazil for 40 years. Paul pastors Tabernacle Baptist Church in Manaus, Brazil. Their main ministry is church planting.
April 1st 2014
Dear friends,
God is always gracious and good. Each day He reveals His love and tender mercies. We are writing from the mission residence in Lexington, Kentucky. Wanda and I are in the states for a year furlough along with my parents, missionaries John and Alta Hatcher, and Wanda’s mom, Willa McGary, who had come to live with us in Brazil.
Dad and Mom have lived and served in Brazil for sixty years; Wanda and I have been serving there for 40 years. We are enjoying seeing old time friends and getting adjusted to a different pace and ways.
We had a wonderful trip, and the Lord provided great help along the way, as three were in wheelchairs. Everything went smoothly – planes on time, good connections. We praise the Lord.
March 24, we organized a new church in Coroado 1 subdivision. The church was organized with 45 founding members. Ivaldo Junior, the evangelist who started the congregation, was ordained to the pastoral ministry on the same day. We rejoice to see the kingdom of our Father grow and multiply.
Missionary Raimundo Pinto moved to Aracaju, capital of the State of Sergipe, in northeastern Brazil, to start a new church plant. Pray for the family as they make new friends and contact people to begin evangelizing and teaching the new believers. He is looking and praying concerning the best location to rent. Pray for this new church start and for the family that they will fully rely on God to overcome all the challenges usually associated with new beginnings.
We are available and will be glad to share and speak about missions. We would love to have the opportunity to talk about the great things that God has done and is doing as well as opportunities available to each of us, individuals and churches.
We are looking forward to seeing each of you during the coming year. See many of you at the Spring Mission Conference on behalf of Baptist Faith Missions at the Thompson Road Baptist Church in Lexington with Pastor Dave Parks.
Yours in Christ,
Paul and Wanda Hatcher
rphatcher[at]gmail.com
239.277.6551
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Missionary Update: The Hensleys in Brazil [March 2014]
The Hensleys have spent nearly 15 years serving in Brazil. They run a vocational school and orphanage in Caraguatatuba and have also established a church and mission points throughout the city.
March 10, 2014
Dear Friends and Family,
Well, with our church only a little over one year old, we have had our 1st revival. It was lead by Pastor Mike Dorough from 2nd Baptist Church in Warner Robbins, Georgia. Even being a young mission, we had many re-dedications and commitments. While he was here, we had a baptism, the second of the year, and now we are planning another on the 16th of March. How AWESOME is the Lord we serve.
While Pr. Mike was here, his church sponsored many food baskets. First, we were able to minister to the people in our church and then to the Indians in Parati. Many of our church family have physical needs, needs for food and clothing, and also spiritual needs. We are located in a very populated area. The city government has constructed many houses and are planning more. These are for the families that couldn’t afford to buy a home for themselves. They, the government, are planning more, and this is good for the residents as this is one of their greatest needs. This reminds me of the 70’s and 80’s there in the States when the government built the 235 homes. We are hoping that many of our members will be selected to receive one of these homes. But we are also looking forward to being able to evangelize in these new neighborhoods.
Now for an update on the Indians in Parati – we don’t realize what poverty really is until we make a visit to these Indians. There we see profound poverty. After a visit to these people, we, as a Church, realize that we can and are making a difference in the lives of these people. We always take something when we visit. Sometimes it is food, clothing, and other times we take Bibles and Bible studies. But as you have heard me say many times, we can’t help with their spiritual need until we help with their physical need. This month we took some of our youth and they came home with a different outlook. They realized that they are truly blessed. And they were encouraged to do more for the Lord.
Now for the rest of the story about this particular visit. On the way to visit these Indians, Barbara was sitting with one of the youth and was witnessing to her about our Lord and Savior, and this young lady accepted Christ as her personal savior. AWESOME!!! How great is our Lord!!! And just to think that this happened when we were going to visit with a people group that serve many gods. Our God is alive!! So, as you pray for our work here in Caraguatatuba, don’t forget to pray for these people. And pray for the missionaries that work with them. Their labor is hard as they have seen maybe only 6 come to know the Lord.
These Indians are not the only group here who need our prayers. We work and minister with a group that are in recuperation from drugs and alcohol. They are really special for me as they are wanting to change their lives. And in this group, the only medicine they receive is Jesus Christ. We pick some of them up on Wednesday night and take them to Church. This is the ones that want to go, and there are about 15 to 23. When they go, they are our responsibility. There in the recuperation center, they live under a very strict routine. While at Church, we have to monitor them so that they don’t leave the building. But all that is worth it when you hear them praising the Lord in song.
This week we had a going home party for one of men. We served cake and ice cream, and we presented him with a study Bible. This was a gift from our Church as he has been one of the faithful ones. He broke down and cried. He also gave his testimony and it was AWESOME.
We have been doing lots of work on the Vocational School this month also. The dorm house and the shop where lots of training will happen. The group in rehab are anxious to start classes here. This week they volunteered to clean and maintain this property.
We have been working on the papers to make our school and our church legal in the eyes of the government. We are jumping through many hoops. Pray as we are submitting our paperwork this week. We know that God is in control, but He loves to hear from His servants, so PRAY.
It would take lots of paper to tell you everything that God is doing here in Caragua. So it would be a good idea to come on down and experience the many blessings and miracles we get to experience on a daily basis. We are not saying we do not cry sometimes or that we do not experience problems–that is just a part of life–but seeing lives changed–that is what it is all about.
Find out where God is working and get involved.
Keep us and our work in your prayers.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Missionary Update: The Wacasers in Brazil [March 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
March 9, 2014
Dear Friends,
It is good to hear someone say, “God is good, all the time.” It is a needy reminder to me to reflect on the fact that God isn’t good only when we get a surprise financial gift, or some good health report. He is always good, even when we are struggling financially or when we are suffering terribly from some sickness. I’m as human as anyone else, so it’s easier to recognize God’s blessings when they relieve some lack or ailment we have been enduring. My concern is that by saying that God is good only when these improvements in our situation come is that we dishonor Him before a world that is watching how we Christians live to determine if they are interested in what we have. But with this kind of gratitude and praise only when the extra benefits come, even they would be grateful then. It is when we praise Him for being good while we are still in the middle of our struggles that really magnify how strong our Lord is, in whom we place our faith. So I say it now, God is good, all the time!
That being said, it has been great to enjoy the goodness of the Lord recently in the saving of two more people through our work. Next week we’ll be baptizing a man and his teenage son who professed Jesus as their Lord and Savior. On the same weekend that these two men professed Christ, I had the opportunity to share the gospel with a young man who has been suffering with deep depression for about 7 years. He came to offer to help as a translator for a team of youth from the U.S. who are spending their spring break evangelizing in the public schools in our city. His name is Eduardo. The friend who brought him told me that he was in a separate room crying and that he often would just start crying for apparently no reason. I sat with Eduardo and began to ask him what he thought made him sad and he said that he didn’t know, but that his depression began shortly after a severe auto accident when he lost the hearing in one of his ears. I had supposed that he was a Christian by his coming to volunteer to translate the sharing of the gospel, but in my conversation with him I learned that he had never surrendered his life to Christ. I used that information to let him know that he could not know true joy or overcome his sadness until he given his life to Christ. It was a simple thing for his friend to bring him to participate in our spring break evangelism, but the amazing thing that the Lord did was to send us a translator to hear the gospel when his interest was only in improving his emotional state of being. He had imagined that he could be happy if he could just get his hearing back, but the Lord helped me to show him that what he truly needed is a relationship with his Creator.
That team of youth who are here on their spring break brought us two very special presents, our kids, Jessie and Brennen! Jessie is the coordinator for the interaction between the American youth and the Brazilian translators who volunteer to help us each year. Brennen just moved to the U.S. this past December, so it was a treat to us for him to return again so shortly after leaving home. God is good, all the time! He showed His goodness again by allowing us the privilege of working together for a week with our kids in sharing the gospel to a people we love about a God we adore. We still have 6 days to work together with them side-by-side and this is truly a blessing to us.
Yesterday we took the group of youth with their translators to a large and busy park to share the gospel. We started out by handing out cups of water to the joggers, bike riders and walkers. Along with the water, we also gave out tracts that contained a clear presentation of the gospel. It was very encouraging to see some positive reception to our attempts. We saw several people who had accepted both the water and the tract still have the tract in their hand on their next lap around the park, even though they had finished their water and had thrown the cup away. The youth also shared the gospel through skits and testimonies on an improvised stage in the middle of the park to an audience of over 300. It was a great start to an exciting week. We will be in many public schools during the rest of the week where we’ll be able to talk to over 4,000 students and teachers about the love of Jesus Christ.
Thank you for keeping us in your prayers.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)436-9980
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Odali & Kathy Barros in Brazil [March 2014]
Odali and Kathy Barros have served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together since 1987. They are currently in the process of transitioning to Manaus to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.
Manaus, Brasil
March 8, 2014
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Time flies by so fast that it is hard to believe that it is March 1st. We are getting adjusted to our home and getting repairs done. The Lord willing we will get the tile put done this week. The floors are just concrete floors. Our children have also started school and are adjusting well.
We have a van that we have purchased to use in the ministry. It needs some work done on it we have bought new tires for it. We have changed the parts on the sliding door and need to change the rubber around the doors. The van is for 16 passengers, a good size to use for having services in the new communities. There is room for taking instruments, chairs and some helpers also.
This week we are having a camp here at our place. There is a pastor of a church in Manaus that works in a poor area of town, who needed a place to have camp. They could not afford to rent a place so we let them use our place. We are glad that we can be of help to them and their church. We had a great time with them here. The church we attend came over on the last day to have fellowship with the other. The time together was wonderful.
Camp at their house–having fun with different sports.
The new church building they are working on.
Fresh fish grilled for lunch.
The church that we are working with, which we mentioned in our last letter, is coming along great. Since then we have put on the roof, poured the concrete on the floors and stuccoed the walls. Every one is excited to get down so we can move into the new building. We are already making plans to start new works in 4 different places at the same time. We have 4 different teams that will be working in these places. We will be working with each team.
Pray for us in these projects, that God leads us each step of the way. The area that we will be directly involved in will be a challenge. The village is known for drugs and homosexuals. But we know that God changes lives. We already have one family that lives there and that wants to get involved. Praise God!
In Christ,
Odali, Kathy
Titus, Jonas and Gabriel
Odali & Kathy Barros
odali_kathy[at]hotmail.com
Blog
Av. Victor Hugo Boaretto S/N
Garca, Sao Paulo 17.400,000
Brasil, SA
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Missionary Update: Mike & Beverly Creiglow in Brazil [March 2014]
Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together for 40 years. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.
March 8, 2014
Dear Brethren,
The state of Acre has 22 “county seats” (municipalities). First Baptist Church has planted churches in 6 of those, including the 2 largest -Rio Branco (347,000) and Cruzeiro do Sul (80,000). Most of the others have some kind of Baptist church, so we have not done much to get into those cities. There are still 2 of these cities that do not have a Baptist church. They are Jordão on the upper Tarauacá River and Santa Rosa do Purús on the upper Purús River and right on the Peruvian border.
We have taken the gospel to most of the cities through Projeto Ide (Project Go). This year we took Ide to the city of Jordão. Usually we take as many as 70 people. Since Jordão is so remote and hard to get to, we only took 35 people.
Projeto Ide gives medical and dental assistance to the local population, with free medicine. We also have haircuts, hygiene classes and dental hygiene classes. There are arts & crafts classes, as well as culinary classes. Sometimes we distribute used clothing and have a soup kitchen. There are activities for the kids. We do door-to-door evangelism and hold services every night.
The first service held by a Baptist Church in the town of Jordao, Acre.
Jordão is a LONG way from anywhere. Thirteen of our team went by truck to Tarauacá. That is 150 miles from Cruzeiro do Sul. Then they took all the supplies and went up the Tarauacá River for another 215 miles in a big flat bottom boat. It took them 4 days. Hudson and I trailered one of my small boats with 25HP outboard to Tarauacá where we spent the night. The next morning we left early and it took us 10 and a half hours to Jordão. The next day we flew 20 more team members in on 4 MAF flights.
After all arrived and setup finished we started work. 800 people received medical and dental attention over 3 days. We had big crowds for the all the activities. The gospel was shared in every home. Our members had to wade some major mud to reach some of the houses. There were 157 professions of faith. 34 of those were made publicly during evening services.
The total population of Jordão is 7,147. Over half of these are Kaxinauá Indians. The need for a church there is great. At the close of our final service, after my message, Zico (our missions director) asked for a show of hands of those who wanted us to plant a church there. Every hand went up. Then a surprising thing happened. The crowd broke in to spontaneous applause. I think they want a church!
Last night we presented our report to almost 400 people during our prayer meeting. The church is excited about sending a missionary there. It was one great service. We are praying and fasting that God will give us the right folks to send.
The trip was hard on me and the equipment. I had to order $958.51 of parts for the outboard. A new prop shaft, props and seals. Ouch! It is worth the effort though. Thousands heard the gospel and 157 saved.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.
In Christ,
Mike and Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher in Brazil [March 2014]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
February 24, 2014
Dear Brothers, Sisters and Friends of Baptist Faith Missions,
It is a great blessing for an old man to be able to write another letter to dear Friends like you. Alta and I are eighty-eight years old and you have been our dear supporting and praying partners for over fifty-five years for our ministry here in Brazil. It is a very emotional moment for me.
As I was preparing to write, the phone rang. Sebastian Oliveira, a blind person from birth, was calling from two thousand miles away to greet Alta and me and to thank us for the blessing we had been to him. Sebastian was saved in the interior village of Mira Aua, about 1960, when we lived in Manaus and traveled to the interiors on the launch you dear friends helped to build. He has been a Baptist pastor for over thirty-five years.
Our first church plant was in an area called Chapada. It was in the boonies. It was begun through the Tabernacle Baptist Church where we were members. It was started with 24 members. Among the 24 were four future mothers of pastors; there were five future Baptist pastors, including Paul, John Mark, and David Hatcher. The mothers of Baptist preachers were Alta, Guilermina, our daughters, Lynn (now in heaven) and Kathy. We praise God for His promises and unfailing faithfulness.
God touched the Chapada plant in a special way with its pastors and work. On February 23, 2014, there were 5,000 persons in morning services and 6,300 persons in evening services. In the evening services there were over 300 decisions. Praise the Lord for the ministry of church planting!
Our praises to the Lord for His blessings to our family. Alta and I thank Him for our parents and homes who taught us the fear of the Lord and the power of His Word. God has blessed our dear children: three sons are Baptist pastors, two daughters are wives of pastors and mothers of pastors. We have fifteen grandchildren, all of whom are serving the Lord with their partners in definite church planting projects. We have 26 great grandchildren, and eight of those have trusted the Lord as Savior.
WORKS GOING WELL – The mission points are going well here. There are congregations in Assai, Urai, Sussumo, and Rancho Alegre. There are several faithful young pastors. Some are not married; please pray for God to give them the right partners.
The Lord willing, we hope to be at the Spring Missionary Conference in Lexington. Our son, Paul, is planning our trip with him and Wanda. We may be in the States by the time this letter gets to you.
God bless you each one. We love you in the Lord,
Caixa Postal 112
Urai, PR, Brazil 86280-000
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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