Missionary Update: Mike & Beverly Creiglow in Brazil [January 2016]
Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together since 1971. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.
January 13, 2016
Dear Brethren,
What? Half way through the first month of a new year already! Closing out the old year was busier than ever. Besides making the rounds taking care of churches and congregations, counseling pastors and missionaries, I helped out with the Musical de Natal (Christmas Musical) at our home church. Fortunately my part is building the stage and props. My daughter Crissy and her team write the script, select the songs and produce the whole thing. There are teams that do advertising, direct traffic and parking, care for the motorcycles and helmets, crowd control, reception, nursery, children, reception, ushers, decisions, counseling, stage hands, refreshments, besides all those who participate directly in the production. We have over 350 people working.
The preparations start out a year in advance. Every year is a new story and all original materials. The last three months are crazy. Then with a month to go we have to alter our services and all activities at church. There are activities going on for 20 hours every day right up to the last dress rehearsal. I put in some 16 hour days along the way.
This year we had one night just for members. Since the whole program is visitors only we have had quite a bit of griping from some members over the years. That night was Saturday, December 19. It rained and yet the building was full. Then we began the official program on Sunday, December 20 and ran it through Christmas night. It ended up being a whole week this time. From Sunday through Friday we did not have any rain at night. It rained almost every day, but not at night. The main building was standing room only every night. We have overflow on the third floor of the annex. We can seat 600 there. It too, was standing room only on Sunday and Christmas.
We can gauge the crowds by counting the number of motorcycles in our parking garage. I’m sure that sounds strange to all of you. Small motorcycles are still the most common kind of personal vehicle in Cruzeiro do Sul. Our previous record had been 122. The first night we had 136. The last night we had 181. Since we can’t really count people in the two venues, we count motorcycles. Cars also line the streets for blocks from the buildings. It was tough to see hundreds of people turning around and going home, because they could not get in. The good news is that 37 people were saved. Some of these are already in discipleship, small groups and have requested baptism.
In January we give folks a break. We only have Sunday night services. That means that five other regular weekly services are put on hold. All the training programs stop. There is still a lot going on, because this is when we do all of our planning and preparation for the year. The two Sunday services of the year have been overflow crowds. Pastor Pedro and I are doing all the preaching this month. The other pastors, all the ministry leaders and teachers are all resting up. We have already had 5 more saved, 3 new members by letter and several requests for baptism.
Please pray for Beverly. She has been diagnosed with diabetes and a couple of other things. Her treatments start today. She is really tough, but right now she is discouraged.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.
In Christ,
Mike Creiglow
Mike and Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Jud & Raquel Hatcher Stateside from Brazil [January 2016]
Jud and Raquel Hatcher serve the Lord in Manaus, 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.
January 5, 2016
Dear friends,
Thank you for your faithful support and prayers, for they are greatly appreciated.
Family
Melissa is sick. She woke up last night with an awful laryngitis cough – she sounded like a dog barking. We pulled out the vaporizer we brought from Brazil to provide the much needed relief. She cried and breathed in the medication for 20 minutes. In the midst of her struggles, Raquel and I were encouraged to hear her say: “Jesus is going to help me get better.” Certainly a healthy dose of applicable theology in her statement. I was reminded that we must trust Him for salvation, but we must also trust Him in times of need. We must have childlike faith, every day, every time and all the way. He cares for us.
Everyone else is in good health.
Sarah, Laura and Benjamin’s English has progressed extremely well. Every time I hear them speak in English I am surprised by their diction and ever expanding vocabulary. I am thankful for all the teachers at school and folks around us who instruct, chat and encourage each one of them as they catch up on their language skills.
I am recuperating successfully from the fracture to my right fibula and from the damage to my ankle’s tendons. The physical therapy is helping regain full movement and muscle confidence. Raquel is always healthy. Overall, I am thankful unto the Lord for taking care of our needs.
Jud with Dave Adams, Quincy Thomas, and Sam Stone
São Paulo, the 7th largest city in the world with 29 million people, is where the Hatchers plan to relocate in July 2016 to plant churches.
Liberty University
The partnership with Liberty is a tremendous blessing. I am truly grateful to my dear friend, Dave Adams. Without him and the support of BFM directors this wouldn’t have occurred. The first semester was a great success. I was involved in five courses and am individually mentoring several students. I was blessed when Dave Adams thanked me in front of the freshman class of pastoral leadership students and received a standing ovation. I am grateful for the opportunity to be involved in the lives of future senior pastors, for the connectivity with other professors, for meeting area pastors, and being introduced to pastors from across the country as they visit the university. I am also grateful to pastors Jonathan Falwell, Matt Wilmington, Charles Billingsley and Scott Phillips at Thomas Road B.C. for their ministry into my life.
Traveling
During the month of December we drove to Clermont, FL to be with my parents (Paul & Wanda) and with my grandparents (John and Alta Hatcher, and Willa McGary) during Christmas break. We enjoyed the time with them and my mother’s exceptional cooking. While we were there we visited Chapel Baptist Church, where Chris Lupino is senior pastor. We also enjoyed visiting with Pastor Doug and Ramona King. To this day, I remember a deeply moving conversation I had with Bro. King concerning missions/ministry while sitting in his silver Lincoln TownCar, I was twelve years old at the time.
From Florida we drove to Virginia Beach, VA to visit some dear friends and supporters, and to attend Atlantic Shores Baptist Church’s first Sunday service of 2016. It was good to see pastors Scott Dishong and Jerry Flug. I was ordained at this church.
We are back in Lynchburg, VA now and the kids have returned to their regular school routine.
Fire at the Estação Luz subway station in São Paulo.
Church Planting in São Paulo City
I am excited about what the Lord has planned for us upon our return to Brazil. As you may already know, we plan to relocate to São Paulo city upon our return in July 2016. São Paulo is the 7th largest city in the world with 29 million people. Two weeks ago fire broke out at the “Estação Luz” subway station. According to the local newspaper, the station receives 200 thousand people into the subway each day and houses the Portuguese Language Museum. This is a historic site in central São Paulo built 148 years ago. A firefighter died of cardiac arrest due to smoke intoxication.
We plan to church plant within the area of the subway network stations, “Estação Luz” being one of the 67 sites. Please pray for us as we make plans and raise additional support to reach this city.
Facebook
Let’s stay connected. Please, friend me on facebook.com/judsonhatcher.
Grateful,
Jud Hatcher
Furlough Address:
216 Mill View Ln
Lynchburg, VA 24502
(859) 608-4742
judsonhatcher@gmail.com
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Missionary Update: The Wacasers Stateside from Brazil [January 2016]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
January 4, 2016
Dear Friends,
Welcome to 2016! The last month of last year was very productive for us in several ways. We had the privilege of hosting some of the best missionaries in the world, Bro. and Sis. David and Pennie Hatcher of Manaus, Brazil. We also got to share the gospel on a personal level to a few people involved in the hospice care of my dad in Plant City, Florida. Our outreach teams in Brazil had opportunities to present the love of Christ in 4 different cities in 2 separate states. Overall, the gospel was shared with over 4,000 people in one month.
After coming to the US in March to help my siblings with the care of my ailing father, Charlene and I still were able to return to Brazil twice to help tend to our outreach ministries there. Those works are doing very well and we are excited about the opportunities to continue those partnerships this year. My father’s health continues to decline as his need for assistance increases. Please keep him and my family who cares for him in your prayers.
In a couple of weeks I plan to attend the Winter Missions Conference on behalf of Baptist Faith Missions at the Park Ridge Baptist Church in Gotha, Florida. Bro. Benton Glover, the pastor, was gracious enough to invite me and I’m looking forward to reuniting with some wonderful friends and brothers and sisters in Christ and also to meeting some new ones.
Our outreach teams, Projeto Vida, spent several weeks on the highway in December taking the gospel message to 3 Brazilian cities in the states of Minas, Gerais, and Parana. Those trips were very fruitful and the teams had the privilege of leading 54 individuals to Christ as their Savior and Lord.
During the month of January the teams will take a short break and then return to do maintenance on the vehicles and begin practice for their gospel skits before going out on the highways again. We are looking forward to a challenging and productive 2016 with God’s blessings with us at every step.
Thank you for your care and support through prayer and offerings.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Furlough Address:
3912 Casaba Loop
Valrico, FL 33596
Field Address:
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
Phone: (813) 481-7007
Cell Phone: (813) 727-6405
Email: bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Mike & Beverly Creiglow in Brazil [December 2015]
Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together since 1971. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.
December 9, 2015
Dear Brethren,
It has been exactly one month since my last letter, but it has been a short month. We have continued to have good services at First Baptist Church. We have had a few folks saved every week. Last Sunday Pastor Benjamin baptized 8 more. I served the Lord’s Supper. We had one more profession of faith during that service even though we never have an invitation on those days. Just before services a man named Ney came to me to talk. He has attended our church for 20 years, but just got saved Sunday morning and wanted to make his public profession of faith. There were 3 more saved in the evening service.
We finally got all the trusses and purlins on the building at Cruzeirinho. The roofing is going on right now.
Bev and I visited the church at Assis, Brasil a couple of weeks ago. They have a big building, but have purchased new property and are building an even bigger building. They continue to partner with us on several mission projects.
Zico is at Jordão right now. He reports that the new work there is going great. They have been averaging 55 people in Sunday services. Although we had made some trips there over the past 3 years the work was just really started this year when we sent Idevaldo and family to that field. Some have been saved already. Zico will be leaving Jordão for Santa Rosa do Purús this week. We don’t think there is any church of any kind there. I will report on his findings next month. Santa Rosa do Purús is one of the 22 cities of the State of Acre that we plan to start a church. First Baptist has sent missionaries to 7 of the 22 cities so far. We still have a long way to go.
We now have a new missionary to send to Foz do Breu on the Peruvian border. Mário and his wife came before the church for approval 3 weeks ago. That field has been without a missionary for 10 months now. During this time one of the local men has been taking care to hold services, teach and even make a few mission trips.
Our television program just celebrated 25 years. I have had a half hour program on a local station every Saturday and Sunday morning. I don’t know if anyone has been saved. The only real feedback is from folks I run into downtown who say they never miss a program. You and I have bought all the equipment, studio setup. The church here pays for the airtime. We will probably only be able to gauge results in eternity. Hopefully we will be able to keep the program on the air for a few more years.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.
In Christ,
Mike Creiglow
Mike and Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Odali & Kathy Barros in Brazil [December 2015]
Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.
December 4, 2015
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Time goes by so fast that it is hard to believe that it has been 2 years since we moved to Manaus, Amazonas. This past year has gone so fast. The Lord has blessed our ministry here in so many ways. We had visited different villages and communities near us. We wanted to start works in some of them and were praying for God to open the doors. Well, God provided 4 different places, all of them in very exciting ways. We praise God for His blessings! Many people have been saved and baptized. It has also been great to see members from the mother church getting involved and excited about the ministries in the church.
Children at the Mission in the city of Iranduba
We appreciate your prayers for each of these ministries. We have services every day except Tuesday and Friday. Last Sunday we had a baptism. Our baptism may be different for some of you. The last three times we had a baptism, it was down by the river. So we just took advantage and had a cookout for fellowship. Everyone has enjoyed the time of fellowship.
Tonight while we were waiting for church to start a teenager that comes to our house a lot called me to the corner and asked if he could ask a question. I said, “Sure.” He asked, “Pastor, what does it mean to receive Jesus as Savior?” Well what a blessing! At the end of the service when I asked if anyone wanted to accept Christ as Savior, the teenager promptly responded and came forward. Praise God!
Clemersom, the teenager who was saved.
Please pray for all the new converts as they grow in the Lord. We appreciate all your prayers and your support. May God bless each of you!
Love,
Odali & Kathy
Odali & Kathy Barros
Caixa Postal 1
Iranduba, Amazonas 69.415.000
Brasil, S.A.
odali_kathy[at]hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: AJ & Barbara Hensley in Brazil [November 2015]
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.
November 9, 2015
Dear friends and family,
Well another AWESOME month has become history here in Caraguatatuba, Brasil! It is just AWESOME what God is doing. Lots of physical labor being done on our new Church building. Just think, what used to be a soccer club building has been converted into an AWESOME sanctuary for the Church and the upstairs that will be used for Sunday School rooms and a kitchen.
We have had a wonderful time this month with our children’s ministry. Here we celebrate a holiday that we do not have in the States. It is called Children’s Day. It is a day bigger than Christmas for the children here in Brasil. Our attendance was 119, we had a special breakfast for the children and then each of them received a present. This was accomplished by the generosity of many Churches and individuals there in the States. The boys got soccer balls and the girls got Barbie dolls along with various other things. We include things like toothpaste toothbrushes and other hygiene articles. There were a bunch of HAPPY children on that day.
Back to the Church—we have sealed the walls where the roof has been installed and began the drop ceiling downstairs—this is to cover up the places in the ceiling where we removed 3 walls to make the room bigger for our Church services. We had to put in a steel beam as the walls that we removed were load-bearing walls. Overcoming many obstacles, these areas are now one big room. And this big room will soon be our sanctuary. The drop ceiling that is being installed is making an AWESOME difference in the interior appearance. Just beautiful if I may say so!
This construction and remodeling has at times been very trying. But through it all God is and has been supplying our many needs. How AWESOME is the God we serve. Here we get to see miracles almost daily. It helps one to see how the Apostles were in Bible times. When they would meet they would ask “How has your day been?” the other would answer like this, “Just one miracle after another.” Our God is AWESOME and He is still in the miracle business. We just have to have our eyes open to see what He is doing all around us. This could not happen without the prayer support of many praying saints back home. THANKS.
Another prayer request: pray for our “Pastors Conference” Nov. 10-13. We are planning for 200 to 250 Pastors and wives. This Conference is planned in conjunction with several Pastors in the States. They come down and do the classes for the Pastors. It is just heartwarming that these Pastors and their Churches are giving of their time and money to help train our Brasilian brothers. A big THANK YOU to Dr. Ji Perdue, Pr. Mike Durough, Dr. David Grantham, Pr. Jason Hamblin, Pastor Tim Price and Dr. Louann Purcell (she will be bringing studies to the Pastors’ wives) and their Churches. We see this Conference as one more way of reaching Brasil with the gospel. How AWESOME!!!!
Pray for Barb and I as when this Pastors Conference is over we will be coming back to the States for more Dr. appointments and possibly some treatment. Thanks in advance for your prayers. Thanks for your financial help and thanks for your encouragement. We need all three of these things to do God’s work here in Caraguatatuba, Brasil.
If you would like to see your mission dollars at work, come to Caraguatatuba and we will introduce you to the work that God is doing here. Come on down!!!!
In His service,
AJ and Barbara
Aj and Barbara Hensley
ajcaragua[at]gmail.com
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Missionary Update: Mike & Beverly Creiglow in Brazil [November 2015]
Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together since 1971. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.
November 9, 2015
Dear Brethren,
There is a little bit of everything to send your way this month. There is plenty of good news and a little of the other kind, too.
The ladies had their big retreat with about 150 women and several saved. We also had a couple’s retreat with over 30 couples. This was more of a teaching retreat than evangelism. There were a few lost couples present though who heard the gospel.
I missed one of this month’s mission trips due to an overload of work here in town and at camp. Zico and Nelson made the trip to visit our works on the Moa River. Nelson is one of our military guys who served as pastor in a church in Rio de Janeiro. We always have a few of these families who are with us for a couple of years and then gone off to some other town. Most of these come here for a 2 year tour. They can extend their time by a year and sometimes more. Once they see the church, they all put in for the extension and would stay on if their career would let them. This was Nelson’s first mission trip. He came back charged up. Almost all of these military families had heard about the church and the mission work here through the internet. We have been privileged to receive and train many over the years. We miss them when they are gone, but proud of the training and service they take to other places all over Brazil.
Pastor Dauro (Mike’s son-in-law) baptizing at First Baptist Church of Cruzeiro do Sul.
Three more ripe mangoes just came crashing down on the roof above my office. My yard is a mango lover’s paradise. There are tons of them on the trees and the ground. Although I try to keep the limbs trimmed back I still have a bunch of tiles to replace every year. Like the trees, but have come to pretty much hate the fruit. You probably really didn’t need that piece of news, but it is part of our life here in the rainforest.
The rainy season has started with heavy rains. It rained a lot yesterday, but we still had really big crowds in all services. There were 28 more baptized in the morning and 2 more saved at night. It has been like that all month long: a few saved and great crowds with many visitors.
We have been working at the camp property and new church property for several weeks now. We have had a lot of cleanup and fencing on both locations. The dry season is almost behind us and there were some urgent jobs to be done while the weather is still fairly dry.
Damage to Bro. Creiglow’s jeep. The right rear rim was completely split in two.
One afternoon a few weeks ago I had just started down the highway when a pickup came flying over a hill and rear ended my jeep. No telling how fast he was going. He left over 100 feet of skid marks and his speedometer froze at 50 mph, so he was really moving when he piled on the brakes. He spun me around 180o into the grass on the other side of the road. He was carrying patients to the hospital in Cruzeiro do Sul. Fortunately, no one was injured seriously. His truck was pretty much totaled. The rear body and suspension on my jeep were destroyed. I have been without a work vehicle for 3 weeks now. Parts are coming from all over Brazil including the factory in Fortaleza on the east coast. Since my Troller T4 is built 100% in Brazil from parts all manufactured here it will cost less than half what any other vehicle would cost to repair. It still will set me back at least $2,000.00 just for parts.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.
In Christ,
Mike Creiglow
Mike and Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Jud & Raquel Hatcher Stateside from Brazil [November 2015]
Jud and Raquel Hatcher serve the Lord in Manaus, 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.
November 8, 2015
Dear friends,
Thank you for your faithful support and prayer. We are truly grateful.
FAMILY
The kids are doing well in school. Laura went on a field trip to the historic Jamestown settlement with her 3rd grade class. Sarah has a field trip this month too. Everyone is enjoying the time in Lynchburg, VA during our furlough. The kids’ language is coming along successfully, but I ask you pray for them to learn to speak English without an accent.
TESTIFY TO THE GOSPEL CONFERENCE
This last month I had the privilege of attending the Testify to the Gospel Conference at Grace Baptist 
Church of Fairborn, OH (Pastor Mark Pyles). There were several great speakers and we enjoyed listening to each one of them. I had the opportunity to speak twice. It was a long drive and well worth the trip. Mark & Valerie Pyles are dear friends, we’ve known each other since 2003. I love them a lot. I cherished every moment with the folks of the church, the guests, Mark and his family.
CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH
We were also delighted to be with our beloved friends and supporters at Calvary Baptist Church, Teays Valley, WV, where pastor Jeff Hurst is senior pastor and David Mitchell is an associate teaching pastor. We also enjoyed meeting Jeff Hurst’s wife, Kim. We had a blast together while at their home.
ELEVEN DECISIONS FOR CHRIST
I was invited to speak at the student ministry’s evangelistic event of Hyland Heights Baptist Church, Rustburg, VA. There were over 150 young people present. It truly was a great evening with much celebration in heaven. The reason for the celebration? Well, 11 decisions were made: 7 for salvation and 4 for reconciliation. I was delighted to be with Pastors Brandon Vieth & Brian Freeksen.
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
The Lord continues to open doors as I serve at Liberty University. I meet with local pastors on a weekly basis and with future pastors on a daily basis. Thomas Road Baptist Church has a yearly pastors conference called Refuel. This year over 1800 pastors and leaders attended. I was invited to the platform for introduction as a BFM missionary/church planter in Brazil. I am amazed at how the Lord is making these new connections.
A few weeks ago Dr. Jerry Falwell’s wife, Macel Falwell, passed away. The funeral service at Thomas Road Baptist Church was an encouragement to all who were present. It truly was a wonderful memorial and celebration of her life and ministry here on earth.
ACHILLES TENDON
Last week I was admitted to the Emergency Room at Lynchburg General Hospital. I suspected a fractured fibula on my right leg. Instead, it was a severe sprain of my Achilles tendon. The kids and I were playing football in the backyard when this happened. I am currently wearing a cast and expect to use it for a few weeks. Please, pray for healing.
ON FACEBOOK
If you’d like to know more information, please visit www.facebook.com/judsonhatcher.
Grateful always,
Jud Hatcher
Furlough Address:
216 Mill View Ln
Lynchburg, VA 24502
(859) 608-4742
judsonhatcher@gmail.com
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