Ministering in Native Villages in Argentina, Paraguay, & Brazil
April 4, 2024
Dear Friends,
What a joy it was to minister alongside a fine group of visiting brothers and sisters from Virginia last month. We had doctors, lawyers, nurses, pastors, and students all working together to share the gospel in several native villages in Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil. It was quite an experience to see how the Lord used people from 4 different languages and cultures to communicate His love through His Word and our efforts. We especially rejoiced that He saw fit to bring several people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Our traveling evangelistic traveling team, Projeto Vida, has grown from 12 to 17 full-time volunteers. We are preparing to multiply into a second team in the very near future. Requests from public school principals have already filled the 2024 calendar for one team and part of 2025. In order to attend to more requests, we need to launch another team of 12 members, thereby doubling our ability to reach more schools and towns with the gospel. We only need 7 more full-time volunteers and there have been several college-aged boys and girls who have spoken with us about coming on board. Most of these are young people from our own church, so vetting and preparing them is less time-consuming. We have known them for years and they have demonstrated their character and relationship with Christ. It is such an encouragement to see that young men and women are seeking to serve the Lord and use their lives for His glory. We trust that there will be a bountiful harvest of souls coming to Christ through these dedicated servants of the Lord.
I was put in a position on this last mission journey that showed me that I need to learn to speak Spanish fluently. All of Brazil’s neighboring countries are Spanish speaking, as well as Spanish being the second language of most of the native tribes we ministered to. Also, with America’s southern border being as porous as a sieve, even in the USA, Spanish is almost as common as English in many communities. Rather than bemoan a situation that can’t be reversed, I believe I can better prepare myself to use it for God’s glory. At one of our recent evangelistic events, a preacher from Virginia brought a very clear and powerful message from God’s word in English, but the translator to Spanish struggled to convey the precise message to the audience. The Lord still used that less-than-perfect message, but I was stung with the urgency to learn Spanish well enough to fill in the gap next time. May the Lord help me to wrap my old brain (and my slightly limited hearing) around this challenge and be better equipped to make Him known when the next opportunities present themselves.
Charlene and are very grateful to you for your faithful prayers and support. We look forward to meeting many of you in person on our upcoming visits.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Contact Info:
Bobby & Charlene Wacaser
Currently Stateside on Furlough from Brazil
Phone: (813) 501-9328
E-mail: bobbymichael_1@hotmail.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
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News & Reports – April 2024
The Online Edition of the April 2024 BFM News & Reports is available at the link below.
*Remember you can click on any headline to view the post/letter on our website.
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Scenes from São Paulo
Here are some recent snapshots from their ministry.
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A Trip up the Juruá River into Peru, Training Leaders
March 21, 2024
Dear Brethren,
Another wonderful mission trip this month. This time up the Juruá River. For this trip I prepped my boat. It took a couple of days to get the engine running after the long stoppage because of my health issues. Pastors Ezi and Benjamim went with me for the very long run to Tipisca, Peru.
On a Sunday night I preached to a crowd of over 600 at First Baptist Church. On Monday morning at 5:00AM I was up and getting my boat down to the river. We got away after 6:00AM. Just before 5:00PM we pulled up at Foz do Breu on the Peruvian border. Our congregation at the village there is almost 300 miles upstream.
We spent next 3 days with our missionary José Costa and the congregation there. We held a baptism service on Tuesday afternoon.
On Thursday we continued on into Peru, still on the Juruá River. This short section took less than an hour. For the first time in a long time, I was able to get there without some kind of interruption. Many times I have had to stop to rescue or help somebody in distress. The last trip a group of Peruvian soldiers’ boat had sunk and I hauled them back up river to their post.
We spent the next 5 days with missionary José Maia and Silvánia. We three pastors spent the next 3 days teaching a small group of Hunikuim Indians from our congregations on the Breu River. Let me explain why we had to do this training in Peru rather than at their villages on the Breu River.
We have a large congregation on the mid-section of the river and preaching points on all the middle and lower river. However, there are 5 small villages on the upper section of the river that we had not reached yet. Our Hunikuim pastor is in poor health and has his hands full taking care of the villages where we already have a presence. A Pentecostal group got into these 5 villages and stirred up trouble with the federal government. They wanted to tell the women what kind of clothes they have to wear, putting women on one side during services and men on the other and forbidding the Indians of singing or praying in their own language. A judge heard about this absurdity and laid down the law that until further investigation no more “white” people are allowed into the tribe.
For this reason, we had the leaders come to Peru for us to teach them who and where the Baptist came from and what we believe (basic doctrines). We also needed to inform them of the origins of the Pentecostal movement and what they believe. We sat around a table for 3 days teaching and fielding their questions. We were pleased to see how Baptist these young Hunikuim leaders are.
On the weekend we held services for the folks at Tipisca. The building was packed for the 3 services. There were a few saved.
The river was at mid bank when we started our trip. In fact, it was the same level all the way, which is very rare and a huge blessing. The rains came in a deluge just after we got there. It rained for 4 days non-stop. By the time we left 8 days later the river was raging and out of its banks. This happened across the whole state and has been hard on the river folks. Even so the people came out to hear the Word. Some even came through chest high water at night. Awesome.
In fact, I wish I had space to tell you about an Ashaninka Indian named Joana who came to visit me. You will have to live with the tease until I can tell you her story someday.
Thanks for all your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.
In Christ,
Mike Creiglow
CONTACT INFO
Mike & Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
69980 Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre
Brasil, SA
mdcreig@hotmail.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.
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A Wonderful Month + Fruit of BFM
March 19, 2024
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
This month has been a wonderful month with many wonderful moments in our ministry. We pray and hope you all have had a wonderful month also.
We are working more and more to help our members work together and have more fellowship. Since everyone lives far away from each other it is great to have fellowship. This week a lady in our church wanted to have a thanksgiving dinner and service. We had the service. A husband who also went wanted to have a surprise happy birthday for his wife. The time together was wonderful.
There is a man who has a tourist business. Every year at the end of the season he has a thanksgiving service with all his workers and their families. He invites us every year. We always try to go. It is a wonderful time of fellowship. What is so wonderful also is that the pastor of the church there is fruit of Baptist Faith Missions. The first pastor there was Bro. Hatcher and the father of the pastor who is there now. One of the ladies who was there was saved when Bro. Hatcher was preaching. God continues blessing BFM. May this ministry continue reaching lost souls.
This Sunday we did something totally different with the Sunday school group. We had Sunday School at our house. We have lakes that have fish. So, we had our study by one of them and everyone went to the lake to fish for their lunch. Everyone had fun and caught enough fish for lunch. Then we went and prepared lunch. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed the time for fellowship. Kathy and I thank God for this land we live on and the area that can be used for fellowship with others.
The camp we are building is coming along. We already have three buildings covered. We can already use it for a day together. As we can, we will close the building to have camp.
We want to thank all of you for your prayers and support. God continues to bless our lives and ministry and giving us wisdom and strength each day.
Love in Christ our Savior,
Odali and Kathy Barros
Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.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.
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French Ladies Express Interest in Reading the Bible
March 18, 2024
Dear Fellow Servants of Christ,
Judy and I hope you are enjoying the Spring of God’s creation. We are delighted to have you as partners in the service of our Savior.
The past few weeks have been an encouragement to us. A good illustration are the events of our last Bible study in the city of L’Union. You may remember us mentioning in our last letter that the lady who hosts this meeting expressed her desire to be baptized. Typically, the Iranian couple who never misses was not there because they were hosting an extended family member who lives in Iran. The three other ladies at these studies are French ladies who were drawn to the Bible study by what they see in the hostess.
In these meetings, we are studying through the Gospel of John. We were approaching the end of our study of chapter 12 when the ladies began asking us many questions. The Good News of Jesus Christ is clearly touching the core of their beings. One of the last who originally presented herself as syncretist, appealing to eastern religious philosophies, is now expressing her delight in what she is reading in the Bible. Another lady was catechized as a child in the Catholic religion of her mother and predecessors. She stopped participating at the age of 17 because she saw no hope in the rituals. She told Judy that she bemoans the years that she wasted because she did not know there was anything else. We arrived home from that study at 12:30 a.m.! The following day I received a lengthy text from her stating that she had decided to read the Bible and wanting a recommendation of where to start and a good sequence for reading the books of the Old and New Testaments.
For more than a dozen years we have been having well attended youth meetings. Most of those who participate are in middle school and high school. These have been very effective in evangelizing and discipling these age groups. Last week Philip and Amanda hosted the first meeting of university-aged young adults. There were 11 young adults present and the meeting went very well.
Our other regular meetings in a half dozen different places are going quite well and we are greatly encouraged by what God is doing.
With much gratitude,
John and Judy Hatcher
Contact Info:
John & Judy Hatcher
2 T Impasse de la Picardie
31830 Plaisance du Touch
France
JMHatcher@aol.com
Present USA phone 1-812-416-1033
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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Life Can Be Strange
March 10, 2024
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ,
Life can be strange, can’t it? How often do you stop and think to yourself, “how in the world did I end up here, doing this, at this point in my life?” If you’re anything like me, then you do this often. When I was eighteen and going to college for the first time, I never would have thought that at fifty-four I would be in Africa, teaching at a Bible college, and pouring my life into Bible students and future Kenyan ministers. Maybe you are where I was thirty-six years ago – not thinking about ministry work, not thinking about missions, not thinking about Africa – only thinking about finishing school, making money, and girls. Maybe the Lord will lead you in strange ways too. Maybe He will lead you to the mission field where you will be doing strange things as well.
I really do get to pour my life into future pastors and ministers. Lots of teaching, lots of mentoring and modeling, lots of counseling and guiding. But pouring into future ministers isn’t all study, teaching, and heavy theology. It also means some fun too. Last week I invited my mentoring-group of students to my house for the evening (see the picture I provided). This is a small group of students that I get together with a couple times every week to talk about their lives, their spiritual walk, practical ministry, and stuff. But the evening at my house was just for fun. You know – eat, play games, be goofy, relax, and get to know each other better on a personal level. Yes, missionaries and pastors can be goofy too. We ate a lot, laughed a lot, and played some games. We played a game called Snorta – a rowdy, raucous game involving quickly remembering another player’s animal and making their animal sound before they can make your animal sound. Sounds dumb, and it is, but it’s fun. I thought it would be easy, however, there was something about Kenyan guys that I didn’t know – they don’t have cutesy animal noises for animals. In America, we all know the cute animal sounds for various animals. Pigs say, “oink, oink.” Dogs say, “bow wow.” Ducks say, “quack, quack.” Frogs say, “ribbit, ribbit.” Mice say, “squeak, squeak.” You recognize all those, right? Well, in Kenya, as I found out, animals don’t say those cutesy sounds. So, my Kenyan men could only try and make the sounds that they actually hear the animal say. And, as I found out, they all sound the same. Kenya pigs say, “hurrrumph.” Kenyan dogs say, “harrumph.” Kenyan ducks say, “karrrumph.” Kenyan frogs say, “gggurrrumph.” And Kenyan mice say, “hurrrumph”…only at a little higher pitch. OK, it was crazy, it was fun, and we laughed at each other a lot. In the end I think God was pleased with our little get-together as He was probably laughing at us too. These are good men that I have the honor to spend time with and help shape them for their future ministry of spreading the gospel and expanding the kingdom of Jesus. Life is strange. Who knew part of my ministry in this world would involve sitting around a table with eight Kenyan guys making strange and funny animals sounds.
Not so strange is the activity I will be involved in tomorrow (Sunday). I will be taking another group of students (different from my mentoring-group) to a town about an hour from here, called Kinoo. We will be preaching and ministering there in Kinoo for the day. I will be preaching and one of my students who will be graduating in July will also be preaching. He has the great, Biblical name of Abednego. He is the only “Abednego” I have ever met in my life. You can’t pray for us for tomorrow as you will not get this newsletter until much later, but you can pray that the results of the gospel message and the proclaiming of the Word of God would be far-reaching and enduring for all those who hear it.
Blessings to all,
Roger, Julie & Chloe
CONTACT INFO
Roger & Julie Tate
Moffat Bible College
P.O. Box 70
Kijabe, Kenya 00220
rojuta@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.
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Brazilian Pastors Reaching People for Christ
March 9, 2024
Dear friends and family,
Who would have thought that a Seminary could have gotten started for the training of Brazilian Pastors to reach their people for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?! However, that is what is happening! We serve an AWESOME God!!! With Him all things are possible! “AMEN!”
We had one pastor who had signed to do the Doctoral Program and I prayed for the Lord to double the number of students. He did—and now—guess what! We now have four pastors signed to start the program this month—just saying, “What an AWESOME God we serve!!”
The last month we have been working on our tickets for travel to Brazil this year—boy, has it been a mess, for lack of a better word. Then “I” must remember who is in CONTROL.
This trip we will have 5 people traveling: two professors, a friend named Steve, and Barb and I. We are all from different parts of the country. We will have several different flights as we will be going to a Pastor’s Conference in Amazonas (and we can’t get there from here, so two flights to get there), then another flight to get to the graduation in São Paulo for 10 Pastors as they receive their Masters of Pastoral Studies. AWESOME!!! And these will be future professors for the Seminary. Then we will travel to different areas for the three different pastors to preach in different churches. God is at work in so many different areas. Then I remind myself, “Why not?” Oh me of little faith.
Now our prayer requests:
#1) I have completed most of my medical exams and all have come back NORMAL. I only lack the MRI, which won’t be done until April). Also pray for Barbara as she is suffering from vertigo.
#2) For the trip we will take in July as all the connections are critical with all that is planned.
#3) As with everything, the financial part is always a necessity for us and the Brazilian Pastors involved.
#4) The BFM support group on whom we depend for these different ministries and Bluegrass Baptist Seminary to go forward.
Each and every one of you are a part of our life and our work for God here in Brazil. We thank you for your love and prayers. Continue lifting us up to the Lord as we continue working in the fields for the Lord. Know that we love and appreciate you.
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.
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