Churches Taking Steps to Expand the Kingdom
February 21, 2023
Dear friends,
Thank you for praying and supporting us. We are truly grateful.
It has been two months since we returned to São Paulo. Our kids are in school and have settled into academic life. Everyone is in good health. Raquel celebrated her birthday this month. We have many things to be grateful for, particularly God’s providence in our lives. This month also was the one-year mark since the completion of my chemotherapy. Having gone through a battle with cancer brought a new perspective to this life and a sense of urgency in pointing people to the Savior and living generously. Every moment with the family has become more precious, friends more important, and speaking of the Gospel and mobilizing for Christ’s cause more vivid.
This month was productive as the churches, part of our Life Together Network, have taken significant steps to expand the Kingdom. I am grateful to invest time with pastors who desire to become more effective in the Gospel strategies. This weekend we have our next Network meeting as we prepare for a pastoral conference in April and actively work on shaping a leadership reproduction and multiplication culture. Additionally, several churches have taken bolder steps with evangelistic strategies within their communities. Last week I had several meetings with leaders in church planting here in São Paulo to iron out details to grow our discipleship gatherings further.
Grateful always,
Jud Hatcher
On the Sao Paulo subway en route to a visit a family. 
Traveling by bus, visiting churches and pastors. 
At the market, making my prayer rounds and meeting people.
Contact Info:
Jud & Raquel Hatcher
São Paulo, Brazil
judsonhatcher@gmail.com
(872) 400-6522
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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The Seed Factory Church Plant Initiative
November 19, 2022
Dear friends,
Thank you for supporting and praying for us. We return to Brazil on December 19, 2022. Pray for us as the country is living through a season of unrest due to the recent presidential election and freedom of speech infringement by the supreme court. I often get asked by dear friends who pray and support us, “What do you plan to do once you return to São Paulo?” We are part of “The Seed Factory Church Plant Initiative.” Our vision is to have a church planting church in the capitol of every state. From the state capital, expand into other cities by sending church planting teams to make disciples and plant church planting churches where each church has its Seed Factory Training Center & Bible Institute/Seminary. A constant cycle of reproducing churches, leadership multiplication, team building, and Christ’s Kingdom expansion. Our purpose in Brazil is to recruit, train, place, and network pastors and leaders globally. Globally? Yes, we pray for Brazilian missionaries with the same vision and purpose to go to neighboring countries and other parts of the world.
Pastoral & Team Training
Pastoral leadership provides vision, Scriptural direction, and acceleration during church planting phases. A church planting team delivers the required synergy to plant and develop a multigenerational strategy.
Equipping & Sending Church Planting Teams to Every State
Theoretical & practical formation through mentorship nurtures the necessary framework for teams to function creatively and cohesively. Churches planting churches, each one with a Seed Factory Training Center to reach other cities.
National Leadership Network
Pastors train pastors & leaders train leaders. Developing a leadership pipeline within the local church that values theological integrity, spiritual accountability, formative mentorship, and metacognition / critical thinking skills under a steward leadership construct that delivers the necessary foundation for a continual leadership formation cycle, multiplication, & succession.
Foster Care Coordination
Foster care in São Paulo remains a novel concept. Through a divine appointment, Raquel engaged in foster care mobilization and coordination, and serves as a strong advocate for at-risk children. Metro São Paulo has 28 million inhabitants and has a large amount of vulnerable & at-risk kids.
Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI) Training
Earning and developing a child’s trust often comes with complex challenges and must be overcome relationally. TBRI is a trauma-informed care & empirical intervention approach developed at Texas Christian University. Raquel is a practitioner for TBRI training nationwide.
Salvation Decisions in the Northeast
Last weekend I received news from Pastor Raimundo Pinto and his team in Aracajú, northeastern Brazil. They had a Saturday night youth rally with 40 teenagers and eight salvation decisions. Pray for them as we have embarked on a building project that costs $35,000. If you’d like to assist with resources, please designate your contribution through BFM to “Jud Hatcher – Aracaju Church Plant.”
Leadership Pipeline Training Series
Our current leadership pipeline series (recorded on Zoom and posted on YouTube) was kicked off by two guest speakers: Jason Estes and Bill Repke. We are discussing the need to nurture a strong Biblical Leadership Culture within the local church’s leadership pipeline. The recordings are available on YouTube for pastors to use as a resource and have several hundred views.
Grateful always,
Jud Hatcher
Contact Info:
Jud & Raquel Hatcher
São Paulo, Brazil
judsonhatcher@gmail.com
(872) 400-6522
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.
Read more
Bringing Hope to the Hopeless
Jud and Raquel Hatcher are third generation missionaries serving the Lord in São Paulo, Brazil. They are part of the “SeedFactory” church planting initiative, which is a movement to plant churches in all 26 Brazilian capitals. Since 2006, 43 churches have been started in 5 states.
CODE RED
The COVID scenario appeared to be looking better because of the vaccines currently being distributed in Sao Paulo. Then, reports came out at the beginning of March stating that deaths by COVID are higher than ever and that more severe lockdowns are scheduled. As of this letter, we are in code RED for all of the city and state of São Paulo. Critical care bed capacity in our city hospitals are beyond 150%. Please, pray for the health workers in São Paulo, infected people, people we minister to, and our family´s health.
PRESSING FORWARD
We continue with online meetings for worship, prayer, discipleship and team planning. We assist several families with monthly groceries, housing rent, and emotional support. So many people have lost their source of income and several have lost loved ones. My heart breaks every time I hear of someone´s dire Coronavirus infection and in several cases death. It feels overwhelming because it is. Thankfully, we trust in the one who holds our future. The one person who holds us and everything together is the Lord. He is our steadfast hope. But not everyone we minister to believes this way. It is very hard for those who fear death to face the “end”. Our role is to keep pressing forward and pointing people to Jesus, for He alone is the only hope for this pandemic and for the greatest pandemic of them all that rests in people´s hearts.
IMMERSED
When not in lockdown, we actively pursue community engagement. While our kids play, we connect with parents and this has led to many new friendships and opportunities to share Christ and invite people into our home (please see pictures). “Jesus and a table” – this is such a rewarding ministry opportunity. As it is an incredible evangelism strategy is to invite people to our home to play games, eat dinner, and point people to Jesus (see picture). Pointing people to Jesus is our desire through occasions such as these.
HOPE FOR ORPHANS
In the last 18 months, Raquel (my wife) has taken on a new project. Raquel assists in placing orphaned children with loving foster parents. Foster parenting is still “new” in São Paulo and most children are sent to an orphanage and get lost in the system. She is serving as an advocate for orphaned children, raising awareness with judges; recruiting, training, and certifying parents to become legal foster parents through “Aslan Brazilian Beneficent Association” for local courts to assign children into loving families with homes.
Raquel is a licensed psychologist, holds a doctorate in psychology, is a member of “World Without Orphans”, and “Orphans Rights Movement”. She is earning the trust of local judges and city authorities as she works with them. The legal process in the court system is often challenging, as most judges find it easier to send the child to an overcrowded orphanage instead of a foster family. The benefits of a child placed with a foster family instead of a government orphanage are obvious – foster parents embrace, know them by name, and love the child as their own.
Raquel has received (court-assigned) newborn babies at local hospitals to place them into the arms of loving foster parents equipped to nurture them. We need your help. I ask you to consider a monthly contribution for this project. Please, designate “Judson Hatcher – HOPE Kids”.
Please, continue to pray with us.
Grateful,
Judson and Raquel Hatcher
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.
Read more
Comfort Found in God’s Word
November 17, 2020
Thank you for praying and supporting us and our ministry.
In the midst of the lengthy pandemic, I find myself rereading Philippians and listening again on my audio Bible as I wake up in the morning and while going to bed at night. Divine words of comfort bring healing to the heart and soul. Philippians is my default Scripture reading when my heart is heavy laden and seeks comfort. I often listen to Colossians, as my audio Bible continues automatically into the next book. We stand on solid ground. Christ’s supremacy supersedes and exceeds all, in all things. He is what holds everything together and brings it into reconciliation unto Himself. God’s fullness dwells in Him. Considering all the strife going on in US elections and now in Brazil elections for mayor and councilmembers, it can be very distracting from life’s main purpose – Jesus. I am reassured to know that in Christ´s new earth we will no longer have to deal with sin, pandemics, imperfect systems, and crazy elections. What Scripture brings you comfort and joy during trying times?
The ministry is moving forward with good progress. We’ve assisted many families over the course of the pandemic. Some of our gatherings are already back, but still several people choose to stay home. So, we try to minister to people individually as best as we can. We do a lot of meal care packages for our high risk sequestered families.
Our kids are coming along well in school. We are so blessed to have a school that was able to make online distance learning a reality back in March and continues to excel in these challenging times. The lockdown is still very present here in São Paulo as the second wave comes through. Public parks reopened 3 weeks ago, but with several restrictions. The economy suffers, but people suffer most.
My mother arrived today in São Paulo and will remain with us for 6 days. Our kids are elated that she was able to visit and invest time with our family.
If you’d like to say hello, send me an email at judsonhatcher@gmail.com or shoot me a message on FB Messenger. Would love to chat with you.
Grateful always,
Judson and Raquel
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.
Read more
Glimpses of God at Work in São Paulo
Jud and Raquel Hatcher serve the Lord in São Paulo, Brazil. They are part of the “SeedFactory” church planting initiative, which is a movement to plant churches in all 26 Brazilian capitals. Since 2006, 43 churches have been started in 5 states.
November 22, 2019
Dear friends,
FAMILY
All our children are doing well in school. Melissa (our youngest) is still working on catching up to her grade level. She has made great strides in comparison to where she was a year ago. Sarah and Laura just recently went on a trip to participate in the school’s junior varsity tournament camp with other schools. They returned home with the 2nd place trophy. A week later Sarah participated in the senior varsity tournament camp and her team returned with 1st place prize. Raquel and I are grateful and blessed by the academic, athletic and spiritual impact this school is having on our four children.
VISIT FROM A FRIEND
Several months ago, a friend asked if he could come to visit us in Brazil in October or November. We met Mike Secondino in 2000, during the time I served as youth minister at church in Norfolk, VA. Mike was in high school at the time. He was part of our ministry and twice traveled with us to Brazil in 2000 and 2002.
On this trip, Mike stayed with us for 5 weeks. Our children, Raquel, and I enjoyed his visit thoroughly. He ministered, sang and played the guitar at church and in our home, participated in ministry routines and activities. We were especially grateful for his time with us – as he ministered tremendously to our four children. Together, we have marvelous new memories for our family to cherish forever.
IMAGINE
During this last month, two new families invited us for dinner in their homes. The first family prepared a marvelous Brazilian BBQ (churrasco). Over the course of the afternoon, we shared a meal; talked about life, Skyped with friends, sang karaoke, swam in the pool and shared the love of Jesus. The second family invited us for a day at their fish farm, we toured the fish nurseries and the multiple lakes, played ball, went four-wheeling, visited a gorgeous waterfall and shared Jesus. It is amazing to see the doors the Lord is opening through friends.
Several other short visits to families in their homes and discipleship gatherings have brought a lot of enthusiasm amongst our steadily growing church plant. I also had a chance to take Benjamin (my son) to watch a professional soccer game with one of the guys I am discipling. Our team did not win the game, but the evening was awesome.
HOPE
Every week we get a chance to minister more deeply into the lives of the children and their parents. It is amazing to see how people love to come and participate in our Jesus gatherings. This weekend we have a guest ministry team coming to join us for some special memories, meals, and ministry. Everyone is excited.
CHURCH REVITALIZATION
This next Sunday, we have a day camp with 65 people. We are excited to see how the Lord is preparing this church as they prepare to receive a full-time pastor in January. I have served as an interim pastor since August 2019. I recommended a pastor (and friend) from Manaus for this church to consider as a candidate. After much prayer and getting to know him and his family, they called him as their pastor in September. This church has been without a pastor for 11 years and almost closed the doors twice. They have proven to be very generous as they prepare for him and his family’s arrival.
SEMINARY MOBILIZATION
In December, I will be in the city of Garça, São Paulo at the church my grandfather John Hatcher started in the ’70s. There will be a gathering with several local church pastors from the region. Pastors mentored by John Hatcher and Odali Barros have asked for months for me to come and invest time with them so we can dream about the future together. I am delighted to be with them. During my weekend there, we will participate in the graduation ceremony for “Centro de Garça” Baptist Seminary and hold meetings regarding seminary training at each church in the region.
Thank you always for your support and prayers.
Jud Hatcher
Judson & Raquel Hatcher
(859) 544-9040
judsonhatcher@gmail.com
Website | Twitter | Facebook
Click here to give now.
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2015 Thanksgiving Missions Conference
61st ANNUAL THANKSGIVING MISSIONS CONFERENCE
November 9-10-11, 2015 New Hope Baptist Church
Dearborn Heights, MI.-Pastor Terry Adkins
“FOUNDED ON THE WORD-FOCUSED ON THE WORLD”
JOHN 17:17
*For directions to New Hope Baptist Church or information on lodging please contact: Pastor Terry Adkins at 313-562-5579 or pastorterrynewhope[at]yahoo.com
MONDAY EVENING, November 9th
5:00 pm Dinner
6:30 pm Music
6:45 pm Singing
7:15 pm Message: Pastor George Sledd
Jordan Baptist Church, Sanford, FL
8:00 pm Singing
8:25 pm Message: Bobby Wacaser
Missionary, Curitiba, Brazil
TUESDAY MORNING, November 10th
9:15 am Music
9:30 am Singing
9:45 am Message: Pastor Michael Jones
Zion Baptist Church, Taylor, MI
10:25 am Singing
10:30 am Message: Pastor Doug Armstrong
Lake Road Baptist Church, Clio, MI
11:10 am Break
11:15 am Message: Pastor Bob Hopkins
Grace Missionary Baptist Church, Holly, MI
12:00 pm Lunch
TUESDAY AFTERNOON, November 10th
1:30 pm BFM Advisory Meeting
TUESDAY EVENING, November 10th
5:00 pm Dinner
6:30 pm Music
6:45 pm Singing
7:15 pm Message: Pastor Dan Hillard
East Keys Baptist Church, Springfield, IL
8:25 pm Message: Judson Hatcher
Missionary, Manaus, Brazil
WEDNESDAY MORNING, November 11th
9:45 am Music
10:00 am Singing
10:15 am Message: Kerry Smith, Assistant Pastor
New Heights Baptist Church, Ringgold, GA
11:00 am Singing
11:15 am Message: Pastor Harold Draper
7th Street Baptist Church, Cannelton, IN
12:00 pm Lunch
[You can download a Word document of the 2015 Thanksgiving Conference Schedule by clicking here.]
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Missionary Update: Jud & Raquel Hatcher [October 2012]
Jud and Raquel Hatcher serve the Lord in Manaus, Brazil. They are part of the “SeedFactory” church planting initiative, which is a movement to plant churches in all 26 Brazilian capitals. Since 2006, 43 churches have been started in 5 states.
October 5, 2012
THANKFUL HEART
Thank you for your faithful prayers and investing in missions.
Thank you Bro. David Pitman & Addyston Baptist Church, Addyston, OH for
taking us on for support. Thank you also to Atlantic Shores Baptist Church,
Virginia Beach, VA; Friendship Baptist Church, Bristol, VA; New Hope Baptist
Church, Dearborn Heights, MI; Darwin & Cathy Smith, Lexington, KY; and Ron
& Judy Logan, Lexington, KY. WE ARE TRULY GRATEFUL!! Now, let me tell you about family news and some exciting moments of our latest church plant.
FAMILY DETAILS
Everyone is doing well. Sarah is 7 years old and studies hard on her math. Laura is 6 years old and is reading and writing amazingly. Benjamin is 4 years old, is learning to read and knows all of his numbers. Melissa is 11 months old and has 4 little teeth. At times, Raquel and I feel overwhelmed with family and ministry, but wouldn’t change a single moment of God’s plan for us.
CHURCH PLANTING: INITIAL PLANNING
On January 7, 2012 two couples, a lady, Raquel, the children and I went on a
van ride to pray and discuss where the Lord would lead us to start a church in
Manaus. I invited each one to make a personal commitment to join us and plant
a church. Everyone in the van that day committed wholeheartedly to start a
new church. The following weeks were filled with excitement as we visited six
different churches on Sundays and met from 5:00pm until 7:00pm to pray, study,
brainstorm and plan. During this time we also selected our name – Ativa: Uma
Igreja Batista (Active, a Baptist Church).
EVANGELISTIC COOKOUTS
During the weeks to come we organized several cookouts in homes where family
and friends were invited. Our contact list grew tremendously. Our fifth event was
a one-day camp where 95 people participated. Several people heard the Gospel
and made decisions.
MEETING AT HOME
Our first Sunday service was March 18, 2012 and met at our home. We had no
music, but the great food led to tremendous fellowship. A sense of belonging
began to grow amongst the team members, the newly saved and the unsaved
attendees. Excitement grew every week as people asked questions and decisions
were made. By the end of April, we had 30 people attending our home services.
During this period a member of the congregation asked “Where should I give
my tithe?” It is worth noting, we did not have a specific moment for tithes and
offerings during the service. We didn’t have a treasurer either. That week we
selected a treasurer and a vice-treasurer, and a box was placed on a corner table
during Sunday services. Those who attended began to give generously, even
though we never spoke of the matter. Six weeks latter we purchased a simple
sound system, three microphones, an acoustic guitar and a two-tone percussion instrument. With low monthly expenses our new congregation was able to save towards what the Lord was about to do.
BUILDING QUEST
Children singing on Sunday (building still under retrofitting)
In May, we began to search for a building to lease. We wanted a building on an
easy to find street, with good visibility. As we looked around the city we ran into
a serious problem – the outlandish cost of rental property. The reason? Manaus
is a host city for the World Cup 2014 and buildings are now exponentially
expensive to lease and/or purchase. Our small budget only allowed us to commit
to $1,000/mo and we needed a location to accommodate at least 150 people
(projecting growth over the next years). The cheapest we could find was $7,500/mo and with little to no parking. I even found a place that could accommodate 200 people and had six parking spaces for $15,000/mo. That’s right, fifteen thousand per month! And yes, that is the cost in US currency. To put the price absurdity into full perspective: the minimum wage in Brazil is currently at US$297.00/mo. Not encouraging… but we sure prayed and searched.
Despite the challenges, the Lord blessed! He gifted us with a small warehouse
to seat 140 people, with two small rooms, and a bathroom. The location is on
one of the main throughways of the city. Guess how much? Yes, $1,000/mo.
Unfortunately, it only has one parking spot. Yet again, the Lord blessed us.
Around the corner, within a hundred yards we found a walled parking lot for 30
cars! We met with the congregation and agreed to lease the lot at $25/Sunday.
BAPTISMS, ORGANIZATION & RETROFITTING
On August 12, 2012 we baptized 13 people (including our daughters Sarah
and Laura) and were organized with 37 members through Tabernacle Baptist
Church. It was an exciting Sunday for us all. We continued to meet at our home
while retrofitting the warehouse for services. Everyone came to help scrape the
old paint of the walls, repair the roof, clean, paint, and install doors and curtains.
Tabernacle Baptist Church donated the needed metal and the welder to build
and install a sign for on the front of the building.
Church building inauguration night with 102 people (84 adults and 18 children)
BUILDING INAUGURATION
On September 23, 2012 we had our inaugural service and kicked off a six-week Evangelistic message series. That evening we had 102 attend (84 adults
and 18 children). The Lord also gave us two salvation decisions that evening.
On the second week a tropical storm hit hard, and most of our invited guests
stayed at home. Despite the downpour of rain, we still had 63 attend and one
reconciliation. Pray for us this coming Sunday, it’s our third week.
PRAYER
Please, invest time in prayer for all of those who will need discipleship. Also,
pray for each one of us to continue in good health. Consider coming to visit us in
Brazil. And, continue to give generously to missions.
Grateful,
Jud & Raquel Hatcher
judsonhatcher@hotmail.com
Website | Twitter
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