Seminary Graduation Marked by Faith and Sacrifice
October 6, 2025
Dear Friends and Family,
Well, October is here, and the Bluegrass Baptist Seminary has celebrated its graduation for the Master of Arts degree program. How exciting for these graduates!
This graduation included two degrees: one for pastors (Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministries) and the second (Master of Arts in Biblical Studies) for church workers and others interested in learning more about the Bible.
The ten who had pre-registered were the ones who participated in this graduation. The number may seem small, but think of the dedication of these students—the time to study, the expense, the workload at home, family time, ongoing ministries, etc. It can become overwhelming while pastoring a church.
The 2025 graduation was held in São Paulo at the Bible Baptist Church in the Indianapolis neighborhood. None of the graduating students were from São Paulo, demonstrating how the seminary—through its online class format—is reaching Brazil, Africa, and Canada with biblical education. This program has unlimited possibilities. AWESOME!
Then you ask, “How many were able to participate in person?” — only four. The other six will receive their diplomas via the post office. Of the four, three were pastors and one was a church worker—my daughter, Mary Katherine Hensley Quaresma. In total, six pastors and four non-pastors received their degrees. This reflects the economic realities of the times. Please PRAY for these students.
The graduation was AWESOME, and there were many stories from pastors about the challenges they faced to attend. One story stood out to me. As I stood in the crowd listening to these men speak, a pastor who had traveled from North Amazonas to São Paulo—a great distance—testified about how God had provided for him and his wife to make the journey. He spoke of the trip, the cost, and the pain of not having the money. I felt his sorrow.
His desire to be at the graduation was amazing. He had spent 10 years working toward his diploma and wanted to receive it in person. AWESOME! But even more amazing was his faith. He had spent nearly all his money to get there and stayed in private homes and churches to conserve travel expenses. When someone asked how he planned to get back home, his answer made me feel small (I cried inside). Simply, he replied, “With what money I have—and FAITH.”
And now, the rest of the story: You—givers and contributors to BFM—helped him with his return. Sometimes it’s AMAZING, AWESOME, what a good Kentucky handshake can do! You were part of his faith. God uses many people to show His mercy and goodness.
We do not realize the blessings that will be credited to your account in Heaven. Simply giving, simply praying, simply sponsoring the BFM missionaries and the projects they undertake—AWESOME!
I don’t have words to express my gratitude for your support, so I will just say thank you and ask for your continued support and prayers that make this ministry work.
In His service,
AJ and Barbara
P.S. Here are some photos from the trip, with more to come in future letters. We also got to spend some time with our grands on this trip.
Contact Info:
AJ & Barbara Hensley
30524 Mimi St
Sebring, FL 33870-0530
AJ: 859-539-2302 | Barbara: 859-539-1424
ajcaragua@gmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click the yellow “Give” button on our homepage.
Read more
Honoring Faith, Family, and Seminary Milestones
September 8, 2025
Dear Friends and Family,
Graduation is upon us! Notices have gone out to all who have completed their requirements for the master’s program. There are fifteen possible graduates, and with one week left, only ten have contacted us. Monday is their deadline to register for the graduation ceremony. We need their registration because of the apostille required to certify their degrees, which must be obtained from Frankfort, Kentucky.
However, for me, even ten is an AWESOME number! As of Saturday, we have four candidates for the Master of Arts in Biblical Studies and six for the Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministries!
I’ll admit I’m a little disappointed that not all have responded, but then correct myself and tell myself: “Don’t get ahead of the Lord—it’s all in His timing.” And we are in Brazil! I also need to remember the seven students in the Doctoral program. So yes, I may be hung up on numbers.
Moving on—next week is graduation, plus four conferences about the Seminary in Paraguay that could greatly benefit its future. We’re also scheduled to meet with a Bible college to discuss incorporating our Master’s program into their seminary for their advanced degree.
I had a wonderful surprise from our daughter—she’s signing up for graduation this year! She’ll be receiving her Master of Arts in Biblical Studies. How AWESOME can it get?!
I’d like to ask everyone to pray for these students. Sometimes we (especially me) forget that they have families, workloads, and are taking classes to deepen their theology. AWESOME! This past semester concluded with 37 enrolled students, plus the seven in the Doctoral program—bringing the total to 44. God is good!
Please pray for us as we travel to Brazil—leaving on September 9th and staying for about four weeks. There will be lots of in-country travel as we seek more students for the Seminary. Pray for good health, and for God’s grace and mercy. A special blessing for Barbara and me is that we’ll get to spend some time with our two Brazilian grandbabies while we’re there.
We continue to pray for Dr. Raymond Edge, our Hebrew instructor and Dead Sea Scrolls authority, in the loss of his wife.
In His service,
AJ and Barbara
Contact Info:
AJ & Barbara Hensley
30524 Mimi St
Sebring, FL 33870-0530
AJ: 859-539-2302 | Barbara: 859-539-1424
ajcaragua@gmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click the yellow “Give” button on our homepage.
Read more
From Graduation to Greater Vision: God’s Work in Paraná and Beyond
August 7, 2025
Dear friends and family,
This has been another busy month planning for the graduation and the Pastors’ Conference we are going to be doing in Paraná, Brazil. The graduation has grown from nine to fifteen. How AWESOME is the God we serve!!!! And another blessing is there are 40 pastors already signed up to participate in the conference.
With this class that is graduating in September, there are nine Pastors receiving their Masters of Arts Degree in Pastoral Ministries and the other six will be receiving their Masters of Arts Degree in Biblical Studies.
The new program we are starting to use (experiment with) is proving to be a great addition for the Seminary. Changing times, changing methods—but the message remains the same! Our translators are, however, being used even more now as their duties are also occasionally to monitor the classes. Sometimes the Biblical terminology is difficult to translate, and since they are all live, we do not have time to lose in searching for an easier translation; there needs to be a more ready translation for them. So, this new program is that ready translation.
Speaking of speed, I think about the end times, how everything is faster (communication, travel, etc.), and that helps me to be more focused on the Seminary giving pastors more tools to help them reach the people effectively, which is needed as never before.
As we are talking about reaching more—out of the September class, we have four of the pastors who have signed up for our Doctoral program. Again, AWESOME!!!!!!! That brings it to 10 Pastors in the Doctoral program!!! That has almost doubled!!!
Now I could use a lot of prayers because I will be giving the challenge to the September graduating class. That seems like an honor, but I am a little bit ANXIOUS. So take me to the Lord in your prayers at this time please.
While on the topic of prayer, our family in Brazil needs lots of prayer. Our daughter Mary is having lots of problems with the pressure in her eyes. Our younger granddaughter Ashley—the problems she had a couple of years with intolerance of MANY foods has returned in a different twist. Our oldest granddaughter Chelsea is on heart meds and is now having eye problems like her mother. So, when it is family, it makes praying even more important. So, thanks to all for your prayer support. Keep praying for BFM, the contributors, our professor Dr. Edge in Texas as he just lost his wife to cancer, Bluegrass Baptist Seminary, our health, and our upcoming travels.
In His service,
AJ and Barbara
Contact Info:
AJ & Barbara Hensley
30524 Mimi St
Sebring, FL 33870-0530
AJ: 859-539-2302 | Barbara: 859-539-1424
ajcaragua@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
Bluegrass Baptist Seminary Prepares for Graduation
July 5, 2024
Dear friends and family,
As we here in the USA are getting ready to celebrate the 4th of July, Barbara and I are making our final plans and travel arrangements for the First Pastoral Graduation. This graduation will have 11 Pastors receiving their Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministries. This is such an accomplishment! These Pastors have been in class since before the Covid pandemic, which is the reason for the delay in this graduation. The first master’s class graduation was this past year and it was for the Master of Arts in Biblical Studies. In this graduation we had many church leaders and others who just wanted to extend their personal Bible knowledge, AWESOME!!!
These Pastors who will be graduating in July have had additional classes they were required to take for the Pastoral Ministries Degree, those being: thesis writing, Greek and Hebrew, and the completion of their chosen thesis. I send a hearty congratulations to them and thanks to all who helped sponsor, and for the many prayers sent up for this ministry. AWESOME is the God we serve!!!
I am trying to keep this letter short because the next one will be filled with pictures of this labor of love and the Pastors who have stuck to the plan. Bluegrass Baptist Seminary has many things planned for the rest of this year and the next! So as you go to your prayer closet, remember us in your prayers—the students, the professors, the translators, the volunteers, the facilitators, BFM, the many supporters of BFM, the AWESOME God and prayer warriors who make all this happen.
Barb and ask for prayers as we go. There will be many challenges on this trip. Also pray for our health as we are no longer in the spring of our youth. Pray for connections as we travel over the country of Brazil. There is one more request regarding our travel: we have just been informed that there will be a change in the cost of additional baggage. It has always been $100.00 for each additional suitcase but now they will be charging $400.00. And if you know how Barbara packs, you can just imagine that she has three we will be needing to carry and pay for—things the churches need, Seminary needs, and personal requests from Pastors and our family. This will add a great cost for this trip, but we know that God is in control.
Thank you in advance for the prayers.
In His service,
AJ and Barbara
CONTACT INFO
AJ & Barbara Hensley
30524 Mimi St
Sebring, FL 33870-0530
AJ: 859-539-2302 | Barbara: 859-539-1424
ajcaragua@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
