What Does Being a Missionary Entail?
August 9, 2023
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We hope this finds you enjoying your summer. Judy and I walk daily for exercise and to keep our bodies from getting too creaky. It is a joy to talk to the Lord as we walk thanking Him for the beauties of creation He has placed around us. The good health God has given us is a great blessing.
You may wonder from time to time what being a missionary entails. We can not speak for others, but our lives involve people and the Lord. One aspect is keeping our eyes and hearts open to contacts that God brings across our paths. Seeking to display the love of God in actions and words is very important. We look for opportunities to tell about our Savior and what He has done and is doing for us and inviting them to trust Him.
We look for ways to connect regularly with people and seek opportunities to give a word of testimony here and there. A list of these activities would be quite long. One that we have been doing for about a year now is weekly English Conversation with two ladies who are 60 years old. One of them we crossed a few times in our daily walks. One day we began talking when we met and she indicated that she would like to be able to speak in English because her daughter’s future husband was Australian and could not speak French. The other lady was someone we had known for years. We crossed her one day in our walks as she was heading into the community center to sign up for English conversation classes so that she could speak to her only grandson whose father is Malaysian. Since the son-in-law doesn’t speaks French, their family language is English. So, each week we meet for one hour and speak only English. We have talked much about spiritual matters, not just in English, but outside the “hour” in French. We hope and pray that both of these ladies will trust Christ as Savior.
One part of our lives for Christ in France is leading three different groups in different cities to know God better through His Word. These are much like the Bible studies the Apostle Paul had daily in Ephesus when he was thrown out of the synagogue. Two are primarily groups of believers and one is all people who God has stirred to seek Him through their friendship with the hostess who really wants to see them saved.
We do counseling with believers to help them deal with issues in their lives and become God’s light where they are. We have prayer meetings and live Bible studies at a distance using the internet.
God has blessed us more than we can explain. He fills us with hope and encouragement and you are one of the ways through which He does this. May God continue to bless you.
Your sister and brother in Christ,
Judy and John
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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Bro. Mário Rodrigues, Missionary & a Hero of the Faith, Called Home
November 23, 2021
Dear Brethren,
We are home, earthly home, that is. It took us 54 hours. It was raining in all six cities that we went through. It was freezing in Kentucky. It is 80 degrees here in wonderful Cruzeiro do Sul. The trip was an ordeal, but He worked things out. I won’t bore you with the details. We are home! Thanks to all our family and friends who were so gracious to us in this long 3 months away from our home and life work.
We arrived here on Saturday, November 20th. The services at First Baptist Church were just amazing on Sunday. It was so good to hear a church really belt out praises to our wonderful Lord. Our church is known for how well she sings. Not always perfect pitch, but you can hear them! They wanted me to preach, but I declined. We had 4 adults saved, there was one request for baptism and another young woman for membership. Wow! What a homecoming.
On Sunday night one of our missionaries died. Brother Mário Rodrigues, 56 years old, died of cancer. He had been sick for many months and suffered terribly. What a story though. Let me share it with you. When Brother Joe Brandon came to Cruzeiro do Sul in the mid 1920’s, besides founding First Baptist Church (May 12, 1929), he also traveled the rivers with a small group of believers preaching the Gospel. He had a boat called “Peregrino” (The Pilgrim). It had a small inboard diesel engine, which was rare for that remote place and time. Everyone knew about this boat and her crew. On one of those first mission trips Brother Brandon planned to preach at a small village named Porto Walter. This is about 100 miles upstream on the Juruá River. As they approached the riverbank to land, Brother Leônidas grabbed the rope and prepared to jump ashore. Brother Leônidas was one of the original 13 members of First Baptist, a poet, musician and preacher.
However, there was a mob waiting on the riverbank. This mob had been sent by the Roman Catholic priest to prevent any “invasion” by the “crentes”, believers. One of the men in the crowd, wielding a machete, told Leônidas, “If you come ashore, I will chop the rope and chop you.”
Brother Brandon decided to back off and continue on upriver. From then on, the village continued to be sealed off and off limits to the Gospel. That was decades ago. For a long time, I was troubled by this. After much prayer and preparation God made it clear that “enough is enough”. When the time came for us to send a missionary there, Brother Mário Rodrigues stepped up. I personally went there ahead of him to survey the village and get property and a house for his young family. I went with him in 1994 to kick things off. He worked there faithfully for 15 years.
Every morning at 6:00 0’clock sharp the priests and nuns wake the town up with praises to mother Mary on a loud speaker atop the tower of the Catholic church. It was not easy. Plenty of resistance and even persecution. Mário was a mild, softspoken man. He was the most unlikely person to succeed in such a hostile setting. But, greater is He who is in us. Succeed he did. Today the church has over 200 members installed in a big 2 story building right downtown. The church is doing mission work on the river and tributaries. There are 3 congregations with over 100 baptized believers.
Although Mário is a big loss to the kingdom on earth, he is a hero of the faith. I count it a great honor to have known him, worked with him, spent many tearful hours with him and be a small part in the ministry of such a giant.
Well, I must close, but I still have an unusual request that I must make. Bev had cataract surgery on both eyes while we were in the States. They also corrected her distance vision. She couldn’t see much at all far away. They corrected the astigmatism and the glaucoma, too. It was a total success, but it was also very expensive. Our insurance covered a small part of it. We had to cover just over $9,500.00. This had to be paid before the surgery, so we plopped down the ole credit card. We have since borrowed money to cover this. If the Lord should lead you to help us with this, we would be much in your debt.
Oh! And did I mention? It sure is wonderful to be home again! Thank you, Lord.
Thanks for all of 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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New Missionary & First Baptism Service of the Year
July 7, 2021
Dear Brethren,
Time flies when you are having fun. It has been a long time since I reported to you. For several months there wasn’t much positive to tell. For most of this year, it has been kinda rough. Things are improving a little though, so here goes.
After the last trip to the Moa the rivers went down quickly. Just as I was to go to the upper Juruá River the bottom dropped out and things opened up for us to start having public services again. For the first six weeks I put in a lot of long hours on the building and sermon/lesson prep. At first, we were having all the services streamed live until folks could get used to coming back to the in house services. Now we stream just the Sunday night service. Attendance has not yet gotten back to normal levels. However, we feel that things are looking pretty good, given the level of fear that so many people suffered. We have services on Wednesday, Sunday AM and Sunday PM. For the 2 months that we have been back there have been at least 300 people in every service.
We had our first baptism service of the year. There were 528 people present and 41 new members were baptized. Pastor Ezi baptized the adults, and I baptized the children. We also observed the Lord’s Supper.
Here is a little side story about this particular baptism. My granddaughter Kayla came to my office to talk to me. She had already requested baptism at church, but wanted to talk to me about her baptism. First she gave me a pretty good lesson on the doctrine of baptism. Not bad for an 8-year-old. Then she got down to talking to me about what she really wanted. She wanted to know if grandpa could “bapticize” her. Now I am not sure that I got the spelling right, but I got the meaning!
She is Crissy’s only girl. Later Andrew’s youngest came with the same request. So that is how I came to baptize (or “bapticize”) the 17 children, Kayla and Devin among them.
Last Saturday we had an activity here at the house. Occasionally we have what we call “Breakfast with the Pastors”. It is an opportunity for people to have some casual time with the 7 pastors. About 80 people showed up at 7:00AM. We spent a great couple of hours together. We had a surprise announcement during the gathering. One of our evangelists, who works at our chapel at Cruzeirinho, announced that he was going into full time mission work. His name is Jeverton. The pastor of the chapel and he had met with me 3 other times over the past few weeks to talk about the fields that are ready and waiting. He is going to be our itinerant missionary on the Juruá River from Ipixuna to the border. He will be checking in on all of our congregations and preaching the gospel house to house. Next, we need those other 2 missionaries, for those 2 other fields!
There have been one or more saved on all weekends since we started services again. Also, our youth (15-24) and Youth+ (25 and older) have started back. The nursery is also back. We are still not able to have our children’s programs, but hope to begin soon. The lockdown here has been severe, to say the least, but we are getting things back as soon as possible, trying not to have the authorities breathing down our necks. We still have whistle blowers reporting us all the time. We are doing our best at trying to be bold and wise at the same time.
Well, that is pretty much what is going on. Busy, tired and happy. Hope you are, too.
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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An Example of Love & Good Works
Missionaries John Mark and Judy Hatcher have been serving the Lord in Tournefeuille, France since 1999. They define their ministry as “disciple-making.”
March 9, 2020
Dear Fellow Disciples of Jesus,
This morning Judy and I received a very welcome call from Jean-Luc and his wife Rose. They are members of the church at Tournefeuille and were calling to see how we were doing and to let us know how much they missed us. We are truly blessed to serve with them and others like them in France.
Last week we had a great time of fellowship with the folks of New Life Baptist Church in Lexington. God has blessed them with an excellent building from which to minister and we enjoyed getting acquainted with new members in this body of Christ. The previous weekend we spent three days with Emmanuel Baptist Church of Bellbrook, OH discussing how to follow Jesus making disciples. Judy and I were very encouraged by the interaction with the followers of Jesus there.
Though the word “missionary” does not appear in most translations of the New Testament, it is clear that all of us who are disciples of Jesus are His light on earth and we are instructed “to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called”. At the meetings in Bellbrook we became acquainted with Mike and Marci. They along with others shared how God had opened doors to communicate about their faith in Christ. I asked permission to share with you what they told us, and here is a bit from Mike and Marci in her words.
How it started –
Mike and I felt the need a few months ago to “reach out” where we can and thought home was the best, and, to be frank, easiest way to widen our comfort zone. I had been giving treats from baking to the neighbors in our condo so it seemed natural to have “Muffins and Prayer in the Stairwell”. Notes on doors for time and date and here we are. *It’s important to note that our first effort was ignored. But…God’s timing, not ours!
And… more recent news –
Thought I’d update on the “Muffins in the stairwell” happening. Monday before last we had three show up for what actually became coffee and brownies and prayers. Since there were only the five of us, we invited them in and it went great.
We met again last night and had two more! (Again, no muffins but great cookies from Kroger-God has given me grace on the scales!)
Last night it was decided that we would try to meet every other Monday. Prayer has been wonderful and the one couple that is moving has promised to keep meeting with us.
We ask special prayers for our young single neighbor upstairs. She is quite shy but seems to enjoy our “God talk”. We are hoping for God to lead us into a conversation on salvation soon.
We have what is a single gentleman downstairs who is an alcoholic and is basically walker bound. I leave goodies and encouraging notes for him as he seldom comes out or answers the door. Praying for him and patiently “wooing” him and trusting our God.
There is one other family downstairs that are polite and enjoy the goodies but show no interest. I’m sure God has His own plan and we’ll remain available.
Our current plan is to put chalkboard adhesive paper on our front door with a bag of chalk. We will put daily Bible verses on it and leave room for prayer requests when we aren’t home. We are learning to be hospitable, (I still tidy more than usual but I’m a work in progress.) And we are learning to REST in Him, not just SUBMIT!
That’s it for now. Just wanted you to know God used you to make an impact in our and other’s lives. Praying for you faithfully. God bless you!
Mike and Marci Walker
Well, I hope their words encourage you “to love and good works” as they have encouraged me. And… let others in your church and fellowship know how God is opening doors around you. In fact, I would be delighted to hear from you. I will not put it in my newsletter without your permission!
With you following the call of Jesus,
John and Judy
John Mark & Judy Hatcher
JMHatcher[at]aol.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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Every Disciple is a Missionary
Missionaries John Mark and Judy Hatcher have been serving the Lord in Tournefeuille, France since 1999. They define their ministry as “disciple-making.”
August 31, 2017
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The news from Southern France is good. Participation in the Sunday meetings has been good. This coming Saturday, September 2, will be the first youth meeting for the new school year. It has been a great blessing to have Philip and Amanda and our grandchildren serving with us. What great missionaries they are. Our Granddaughters have been very effective in reaching their friends in the public schools where they attend. Their parents have done and continue to do a great job in encouraging the girls in their walk with Christ and have been great examples as they reach out to their neighbors, co-workers and others with whom they have formed relationships in their community.
Our passion is to make disciples and every disciple is a missionary. This is how the Gospel impacted lives in the first decades following the baptism of the Holy Spirit at Jerusalem on Pentecost. Note Luke’s inspired words, “And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. (emphasis is mine) Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. (Acts 8:1-4) Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only. And some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which, when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord. (Acts 11:19-21)
Judy has completed the therapy following her kneecap surgery but continues to work hard at getting full normal use of her leg. We walk in the neighborhood and exercise at the YMCA in Evansville. In these two activities, we have been able to make many contacts and have had many good conversations. Judy is now meeting weekly with a lady she met who needs Christ. They are studying through the Gospel of Matthew.
Peggy is doing better. One of the blessings we have is to participate in a Bible study she has with a couple in her home. The lady trusted Christ after being in a Bible study with Peggy for over a year and a half. She has followed the Lord in baptism. The husband is very interested. Just since we have been here the study has gone through the two letters from Peter and is now in first John.
Thank you for your faithful participation in the ministry in France and the continued support as we serve here while waiting to return to France.
Rejoicing in Christ, John and Judy
Temporary Address
John and Judy Hatcher
1901 Shepherd Dr.
Evansville, IN 47715
jmhatcher[at]aol.com
Field Address
4, rue d’Aspin
31170 Tournefeuille, France
JMHatcher[at]aol.com
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Missionary Update: John Mark & Judy Hatcher in France [May 2013]
April 24, 2013
Tournefeuille, France
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
April 11 was Judy’s sixtieth birthday. We have had the privilege of spending a good many of those years together. The scriptures say that “A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown” and “a prudent wife is from the Lord.” I can undoubtedly affirm this tidbit of truth in testifying of God’s blessings on my life through Judy. When I was not yet a teenager, my mother emphasized in our family devotional time that we should pray for a spouse from the Lord. I began doing this on a regular basis and God fulfilled my request. So, if you are not yet married and want to be, I suggest that you ask God.
Just after I wrote the above paragraph, Dave Parks reminded us that this month, in honor of mothers, we were going to ask the missionary wives to write a few lines. So, I will let Judy share her thoughts.
Bonjour and merci from Tournefeuille, France. Each morning John and I thank God for you who give so sacrificially so we can share the gospel in France. Many of you we will never have the privilege of meeting until we are together in heaven, but know that today we are thankful for your many years of support. In my philosophical moments I ponder, “What influenced me, a common Kentucky girl from a not so known small town on the south side of the Ohio river to be a missionary in France?”
The answer is simple, my parents, Jim and Pansy Foster. How? By living out Christ in their lives.
Judy Hatcher with granddaughters who live in France, Amanda their mother and wonderful missionary, and Amanda’s mother, Lisa Fallwell, who is visiting her family in France.
What I learned from my parents… love the Lord your God with all your heart… it wasn’t just what they said, it was the way they lived. One of my earlier memories is of waking each morning and seeing my mom in her chair and my dad in his chair both reading their Bibles. God’s Word was important. Often I would hear my parents talking in their room as if someone else was there. One night, on peeking into my parents’ room, I saw them knelt by the bed, my dad’s arm around my mom, praying. “God’s will” was something active. You follow His path because He is good and He loves you, even when it meant blessing your 19 year old daughter to go to Brasil 6 weeks after marrying John Hatcher! (John wasn’t the question, Brasil was too far for an overnight visit.) Twenty-five years later, when I told my mom that we believed that God was leading us to France, her words were, “If that is what God wants, that is what we want.” My mom had just been diagnosed with cancer.
Love your neighbor…even though my dad pastored the First Baptist Church, Garrison, Ky and later Emmanuel Baptist Church, Oldtown, Ky., it was after I was grown. My parents had a lumber and hardware store. At times this meant being kind to those who were demanding, being “at your service” whenever, and paying off bills that were owed by someone else. I saw “love covers a multitude of sins” in action! Visiting the sick, nursing homes and giving a helping hand to those in need was just what you did because it was the right thing to do.
I was given “missionary eyes”. Often in the evenings I would sit with my mom looking at the Compton’s Pictured Encyclopedia. We would examine far away lands. The question would usually arise, “Do these people know about Jesus?” Often the answer was, “No, not unless someone goes and tells them.” Closer to home, my dad spoke of the areas in eastern Kentucky with no gospel witness. Whether across the sea or across the street, it was emphasized that people need the Lord.
Often people ask, “What can we do for you?” Moms and dads, live Christ before your children, give them missionary eyes, grandparents, share with your grandchildren what great things God had done in your lives, aunts and uncles, influence your nieces and nephews to follow God wherever He leads, Sunday School teachers and neighbors, share the love of Christ with the children whose lives you touch. With God’s help we can pass on what has been so freely given to us.
With love and thanksgiving,
Judy and John Hatcher
John and Judy Hatcher
4, rue d’Aspin
31170 Tournefeuille, France
JMHatcher[at]aol.com
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June Bean is with the Lord
June Bean, who faithfully served 31 years as a missionary in Brazil with her husband George, passed away peacefully the morning of Wednesday, December 12.
In 1964, the Beans went to serve the Lord in São Luís, capital of the northeastern state of Maranhão, Brazil, until their retirement from active missionary service in 1995. They also spent a couple of years relieving furloughing missionaries.
Bro. George Bean went Home to be with the Lord in May 2000. Sis. Bean had dementia for several years and had declined rapidly in the last six months. Her daughter Mary Ellen [Bean] Jerden faithfully cared for her in her home, which was one of Sis. Bean’s wishes.
There will be a memorial service on Saturday, December 15 at 2:00 p.m. at Rudder Funeral Home in Scottsboro, Alabama. Visitation will be held prior to the service from 1:00-2:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to Baptist Faith Mission General Fund.
“Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”
This previous post contains notes of appreciation from their daughters.
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