Bringing Hope to the Hopeless

Posted on 8Mar CATEGORIES: General, Jud & Raquel Hatcher [Brazil], Letters Tags:Tags: community engagement, COVID-19, foster care, Foster Family, HOPE Kids, Jesus and a table, Judson Hatcher, orphans, pandemic, Raquel Hatcher, São Paulo0

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