New Facility, Discipleship, Family Camp, Mentorship, & More
April 2, 2025
Dear Friends and Supporters,
Greetings from Brazil! We are excited to share how God has moved in our ministry over the past few months. Your prayers and support have been instrumental in these blessings, and we are grateful for your partnership in the Gospel.
Christmas Evangelistic Production
December was an incredible month. We hosted a Christmas evangelistic production that was attended by 406 people in two presentations. We rejoiced to see 16 individuals make decisions for Christ! Praise God for the work He is doing, and please continue praying for these new believers as they take their first steps of faith.
New Church Facility and First Wedding
In January, we had the joy of moving into our newly leased church facility! This was a milestone moment for our people and has already been a tremendous blessing. We celebrated our very first wedding in the new location—what a wonderful way to maximize the usage of this space!—we received extended family members and friends of the couple with the opportunity to share the Gospel message during the ceremony.
Discipleship Class for New Believers
After the big Christmas production, we continue to focus on spiritual growth and launched a discipleship class for those who have recently come to Christ. This has been a great time of grounding them in biblical truths and preparing them to walk faithfully with the Lord. Please pray for these new believers as they grow in their faith.
“Zeal” Family Camp
We had an amazing two-day youth camp called “Zeal,” which was filled with fun, fellowship, and most importantly, a deep dive into God’s Word. The energy and enthusiasm of these families was contagious, and we are encouraged by their desire to live boldly for Christ.
Soccer Evangelism and Discipleship
Our evangelism and discipleship efforts through soccer continue to thrive. The outreach is growing, and we are seeing lives transformed through the relationships built on and off the field. Please pray for endurance, wisdom, and continued fruit in this ministry.
The Togetherness Network
Pastors and churches part of the Togetherness Network continue to grow and collaborate with each other on building projects and other evangelist and discipleship efforts. Pastoral mentorship and fostering relationships are a significant component of my ministry to these pastors. The church plant in Marilia is growing steadily and has partnered with Heritage Baptist Church in Lexington, KY for prayer, support and mission trips.
Family Update
On the home front, we have much to celebrate! Our daughter Laura is preparing to graduate high school in June and will be heading to Liberty University in August. We are incredibly proud of her and excited to see what God has in store for her next chapter. We also had two birthdays recently, Sarah turned 20 and Benjamin 17. We thank the Lord for the blessings of family and the joy they bring to our lives. Melissa is in 7th grade and has grown tremendously in her academics and has become a key player in the sports competitions against other schools in São Paulo.
Raquel is actively training foster care parents, social workers, and childcare givers through online and in-person training modules and seminars. She also leads the fantastic children’s team leaders as we work with kids through our current church plant.
Thank you for praying for and supporting us. We are grateful for your faithfulness and encouragement as we continue the work God has called us to do here in Brazil. May the Lord bless you abundantly!
Prayer requests
1) Judson is recovering from left knee surgery and may have to operate on the right knee.
2) Laura twisted her ankle during volleyball practice at school, the MRI shows two torn ligaments.
3) Church growth, evangelism and discipleship.
4) Meetings with the Rawlings Foundation regarding camps in Brazil, networking and local church discipleship of kids who accept Christ during a camp.
5) Assisting with the translation of materials for the first Masters in Youth Ministry in Brazil that begins in August 2025.
Always grateful,
Judson & Raquel
Missionaries to Brazil
JUD & RAQUEL 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.
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Spring Conference 2013 [Wednesday Evening]
The Spring Conference came to a close tonight with hearts stirred for the work of the Lord to be revived.
The final session opened with two congregationals: Blessed Assurance and And Can It Be? followed by three specials: Be Thou My Vision, His Eye Is On the Sparrow, and I’m Feeling Fine.
Pastor Richard Westfall from Hardman Fork Baptist Church in Normantown, West Virginia, brought the final message from Nehemiah 4:1-6. Before he got into the text, he shared how the Lord has taken him to school over the past few years by facing some health problems of his own and also by waiting by his son’s bedside 29 days in ICU after an auto accident that left him with a traumatic brain injury. “Sometimes in this life all you have is your faith–and that’s enough.” God answered the many prayers of his children to restore Bro. Westfall’s son!
Sometimes in little churches, preachers feel almost like Hospice workers instead of pastors. It may be that the Lord has paused, but He’s not quit working. It’s not His fault if things aren’t getting done.
“For the people had a mind to work.” –Nehemiah 4:1-6
When we wonder why the work is slow, could it be because we’ve become weary in well-doing? We must guard against becoming weary. Sometimes we don’t feel like we’re making a difference. But we ARE making a difference. His Word won’t return void. The problem is, we have become so obsessed with the results we think we ought to get. The Lord has not called you into the work to have results. His work will ALWAYS have results if we faithfully do what He has told us. His work will always accomplish something.
We must deal with wrong thinking. You’ve got to get your mind right!
Ways to get your mind right so you can continue in the work:
- Renewed Mind (Romans 12:1-2) Have we let our devotions become rote, routine, and dull? If you want your mind renewed, you must cleanse it continually with the Word of God. The garbage thrown at you by NBC, CBS, ABC, and and FOX will taint it. When we get in the muck and mire of this world, it becomes hard to keep our feet shod with the Gospel of peace (Like stepping in muck in a bog–you can’t keep your shoes on.)
Pastors: Is the only reason you spend time in the Word to prepare your message? Read the Word for the pleasure of your soul. Read God’s Word recreationally as well as devotionally.
As the Lord gives light, we can walk in the light. Don’t let the devil rob you of joy by trying to exist on the garbage of the world. - Willing Mind (1 Chronicles 29:5) Who’s willing? “I just need a little ME time.” No, you must take up your cross daily and follow Him. We rush and tear through our days and then wonder why the Lord isn’t working. The eternal souls around us depend on us being willing to take the Word to them. Ezekiel sat in the midst of the bones. We must compel them. It’s not compelling to have the lights on and the doors unlocked. We must be willing for Him to use us to accomplish His work. He’ll do what it takes to get you to the point where He’ll use you–or He’ll take you out.
- Seeking Mind (Luke 15:4-10) Maybe your wallet is important to you, but it’s not nearly as precious and valuable as the souls around you.
- Humble Mind (Romans 12:3) Don’t think you’re some big thing. (Philippians 2)
This is not about you. This is about Jesus. And if it’s not about Jesus, then it’s a waste of time.
Am I serving the Lord out of a pure heart for His glory or am I cutting deals with God? This is worshiping the Lord, not Storage Wars. The best deal ever is that He calls you to serve maybe 80 or so years and then takes you to live with Him for eternity. It’s not about what you can get out of it, but what you can do out of appreciation for the One who’s done everything for you. - Focused Mind (Colossians 3:1) We allow our minds to stray from the important things to the temporal things. What do you think about? What do you occupy your mind with? Don’t we spend a majority of our time thinking about earthly things that won’t matter in the long run? Then we get aggravated when something eternal comes along. We must look unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. He’ll lead us straight as we look to Him! (Like plowing a field…)
- Above all else, we must have a Compassionate Mind (Acts 16:9). Has our hearing become so dull that we don’t hear the lost all around us crying “Come and help?” Are we so busy in our little lives that we’ve lost our ability to hear them?
Oh may God revive His work!
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