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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Missionary Update: The Hensleys in Brazil [January 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.
Dear Friends and Family,
December was an excellent (AWESOME) month to be working for the Lord here in Brasil. We had the pleasure of shopping for the children in our Church to be able to give a present to each one of them for Christmas. These children are from homes with low income. So when they received their gifts it was AWESOME to see their expressions and to just see the anticipation while they were waiting to hear their name called to receive a gift. We had one child who wanted to wait till Christmas to open his gift because he had never had a gift on Christmas Day, and he wanted to experience the Christmas Day experience. This plus the message of the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ just made Christmas for me.
We had the privilege of taking our Sunday School to Mt. Zion Recovery center (on a small farm near our city) and presenting our children’s Christmas Cantata and the Christmas Story. This is the center for persons with alcohol and drug abuse, ages ranging from 18 to 55. Several of them were and are suffering from lack of visits (not any from family or from friends). And for the first 6 weeks they are not allowed any visits at all. We have been working with the men there and trying to help in any way we can. We will be teaching this group some vocational skills such as masonry, electrical, and carpentry. God is opening many doors. We preach once a week there and they are allowed to frequent our church on Wednesday nights. On Wednesday nights, they sing for our people. The men at our Church had a pizza supper for them and they could not believe that Church leaders would cook and wash dishes for them. There were about 30 plus people for this supper. We all had an AWESOME time, and the pizza that Pastor Rosevaldo made was very good also.
Along with about 60 other Pastors here in the region, we have been attending classes for Chaplains. This has been sponsored by several Churches in Sao Paulo city and was approved by the State. This will allow us (our Church Pastors) to visit inside prisons and hospitals that are State regulated. Also this makes it so that we do not have to do all those months of paperwork to visit in these areas. The graduation of the Chaplains will be held at our Church, IBC. AWESOME!!!
As a mission Church we will be celebrating our first year in January. God is so good to us. For our New Years Eve service at Church, we had a delicious meal and at 12 minutes before midnight we began to pray, and prayed the old year out and the new year in. It seems like the time is going by faster and faster.
We pastors (I, Jason, and our Brasilian pastor Rosevaldo) are working on our seminary that is planned to start on March 17, 2014. This will be led by Dr. Derick Coleman of Gardenside Baptist Church in Lexington, Ky. This will be to help our Brasilian Brother Pastors. The courses will be taught on a Master’s level. Pray as we are trying to increase training and education to further the kingdom of God.
Our Church are experiencing several medical problems; Mrs. Gloria is receiving chemo, and soon will add radiation to her treatment for her cancer, Kiser is suffering with heart problems, and we will take him to a heart hospital in Sao Paulo this month, Leo has stomach problems and has undergone surgery, Jandira is still on total bed rest with circulation and infection problems, Dameon is going for hearing surgery this month, Ma Evete has problems with her knees and is doing physical therapy, and Rosevaldo with joint problems and Cesar with back problems. Barbara is on the road about 2 to 3 days per week with Gloria running after blood tests and treatments and Dr. appointments. These problems are keeping us busy and on our knees. Pray for us as we minister to these in our Church. As in many Churches, there are always needs physical and spiritual.
We are planning another baptism in January. AWESOME! It is just great to see the Church growth and watch people begin to get involved in the ministry..
It looks like January will be a very busy month! Our grandchildren will be here after the 1st and they will bring their parents with them for a visit. Edson is here on break from college, and we have a couple from Cornerstone Baptist Church that are going to spend 3 months experiencing the mission field. PJ and Jenny Thompson will be ministering alongside of us here in Caragua.
Pray for the ministry of Igreja Batista Caragua, our church, as we begin a new year of reaching Brasil for Christ. In Feb we are planning a revival and evangelism outreach with Pastor Mike Dorough from 2nd Baptist Church in Warner Robbins, Ga. And the Seminary will start in March. So as you can see there is no lack of prayer requests for us here in Brasil.
Thanks to all who have helped and are helping and will begin to help in this ministry. It is all happening because you care enough to give of your finances and your prayer support. Again, THANKS SO MUCH!!!!
The year is just starting, and if you have not scheduled your visit to a mission field, the red carpet is out for you and your Church. Come on down and see your mission dollars at work. We will turn the bed down and put a mint on the pillow in expectation of your visit.
In His service,
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher in Brazil [December 2012]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
December 1, 2012
Dear Brethren and Fellow-Workers,
At the age of eighty-seven a person talks a lot, usually about things that most do not want to hear. It is a little more difficult to write. I will do my best. Alta and I are doing well. Her vision is perfect after the cataract surgeries. We are thankful and praise the Lord. My health has suffered some in a weaker body and some mental anguish. I am still able to drive and tie my shoe strings. Alta does her own cooking and has a great appetite.
THE LORD’S WORK – Alta and I go every Sunday morning to Assai. The work is still at zero with only one lady who is saved and baptized. We meet each Sunday for Bible study and Alta’s class. It is wonderful to have the promise that where two or three are gathered in His Name He is with us. With joy and thanksgiving we make the trip and worship together. The city of Assai has 20,000+ inhabitants. Many false churches. In our years in Brazil it is the most difficult place we have worked. This city was founded by Japanese 104 years ago. Ours is the first Baptist work in this city. We continue because we know it is God’s will to do so and one day He will bless the seed to His honor and glory.
URAI – This work is doing well and there is a group of great dedicated young people who are serving the Lord. Three of them work in two Congregations. Five study in the Seminary. We are encouraged for the future with this group.
One of the Seminary teachers, Sonia dos Santos, had cancer of the breast. She had surgery last week, removing the breast. Her husband, Valdir dos Santos, is pastor of the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Cornelio Procopio. Please pray for Sonia and the family in this trying experience.
FAMILY – We are expecting the births of three new great grandchildren: One from Kriston and John Victor McGary, one from Lydia and Adam Reese, and the other from Amelia and Ivo Oliveira. We praise God for His work of grace in the lives of our grandchildren. All are serving the Lord; some in the States, some in France, and some in Brazil. Our hearts a filled with gratitude that our great grandchildren are being saved and baptized. How rich we are in His eternal blessings.
VISITS – David and Pennie plan to visit us for a few days the last of December. Paul and Wanda will be with us the first of January when he comes to be the main speaker in the annual Family Camp that Valdir dos Santos and Tabernacle Church sponsor.
Pray for our health and ability to continue active in His Work until He comes or until He takes us. Thank you for your many years of financial support and prayers. We love you and realize that what we do depends on your help and love.
In His Name,
John and Alta Hatcher
Caixa Postal 112
Urai, PR, Brazil 86280-000
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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