Bringing Hope to the Hopeless
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
Contact Info:
Jud & Raquel Hatcher
São Paulo, Brazil
judsonhatcher@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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Missionary Update: The Tates in Kenya [May 2016]
The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is indigenous church planting.
April 28, 2016
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
As most of you know, our main ministry in Kenya is church planting/teaching the Bible and the Gospel/discipleship training. However, in the course of being here for 8 years, Julie and I have accepted other ministries as well; though I hate to even call them “ministries” because they’re not really “part of the job”. They’re just something God has opened our hearts to because we are followers of Jesus and followers of His ways. Since being in Kenya, God has opened our hearts to the plight of orphans in this world, and we want to do what we can in order to help them. Is this “ministry” or is it just the heart of God?
Orphans who were in the Tates’ home this past month: Chloe, Clinton, & Sasha
This past month we had three “orphans” living with us at various times and for a few days all at the same time. Let me introduce them to you. To the far left of the picture is our precious Chloe. Hopefully, she needs no introduction to you as I have written about her often and related her story in detail in previous newsletters. She has lived with us now for over a year and a half. In our hearts she is our daughter, and when the Kenyan government lifts the moratorium on adoptions in this country, we will make her our daughter officially and legally. In the middle of the picture is Clinton. His full name is Bill Clinton Muhkwana. Can you guess the US president he is named after? We love Clinton. He is ten years old and has lived at a children’s home since he was an infant. His extended family situation is very dangerous to him, and so on occasions when the children’s home is closed he comes and lives with us. He lived with us for two weeks this past month. In the picture you can see that I took him to play golf (yes, we have an old golf course here built by the British during the colonial days). What an experience! On the far right of the picture is Sasha. What a cutie! She came to stay with us over a weekend when the children’s home she lives in was moving from one location to another. I don’t necessarily enjoy middle of the night feedings, but what a joy to be able to care for one of God’s little ones. You might say, “Oh, what a blessing you are to these children”. But if you say that you would be wrong. They are a blessing to us!
When I was living in the States, I never much considered the plight of orphans. It’s just not something that is before our eyes on a daily basis. Not so in Kenya and much of the rest of the world. Kenya has a population of 44 million people and the number of orphans in the country is estimated to be around 3 million. That’s 7% of the total population of the country. In comparison, the US has 319 million people and only around 400,000 children in foster care. That’s only .1% of the population. If 7% of the US population was orphans, that would come out to over 22 million orphans in the US. Can you even imagine? Consider these additional Kenyan statistics: 13.5% of children aged 0-18 are orphaned; 15% of all Kenyan households are headed by an orphaned sibling; 700 children are orphaned every day. The main reasons for so many orphans are poverty and AIDS. It is estimated that Kenya has close to 1,000,000 orphans due to AIDS, the third highest rate per population in the world. And the problem is compounded when the society acts impervious to their plight. This sets the children up for easy exploitation, and makes them soft targets for child trafficking.
Why do I bring this up in this newsletter? Mainly for awareness. As I said earlier, when I lived in the States this problem seemed a million miles away. Now it is very close. But also because God loves these children and wants to show them his love through you and me. They are very near and dear to the heart of God. What does this mean to you? Maybe you adopt one. Maybe you foster one. Maybe you protect or care for one. Maybe you find out what you can do to help. And if you’ve made it this far into my newsletter please, please do not say, “That’s just not our ministry”. Remember what James said: “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble” (James 1:27). And remember this also: To do so is a joy and blessing!
Until next month, beloved.
May God’s peace and joy be with you.
For the glory of God in East Africa,
Roger & Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy, Josiah & Chloe)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
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Missionary Update: The Radfords in Kenya [August 2012]
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
August 3, 2012
Dear praying friends,
It is now the month of August, and we are past halfway through the year 2012. What a blessing it is, the time that the Lord gives us to serve Him. May we be faithful to serve Him, whenever or wherever that is. One of my favorite Scripture verses is Isaiah 6:8, where the Word of God says “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.” I hope and pray this is our desire before the Lord.
In ministry news, the church in Shangalamwe is continuing along well. Over the past few weeks, I have really seen how the people here need Biblical teaching from the Word of God. My good friend Roger Tate and I have been working with the people for months now, and it has been exciting to watch them grow spiritually, take in the Word of God, and follow it. Our challenge to them is not only to know the Word, but follow it, practice it, obey it, and reach others. Several have been visiting, so we are thankful for this. We ask you to pray for us, that we would have His help in all areas and progress of this ministry. Please pray for us as we teach, that the teaching would be understandable and that they would not only hear the Word, but be doers of the Word. Please also pray that the people would trust the Lord, wholly and completely. Isaiah 26:4 states “Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.” We will keep you updated on the progress of this ministry, and we appreciate your prayers.
The hospital ministry is going well. My wife enjoys this and has been doing this work with the mothers and babies for a few years now. It is a blessing for her to be able to be involved with this. Many of the mothers and children there have been reached with what God has provided, and what a joy it is to serve them. Proverbs 19:17 says “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” What a challenge from Scripture this is. Thanks to each one who has sent supplies or given sacrificially to this ministry. Some of the babies there are abandoned, and have many struggles, so we would appreciate your prayers for them also. May God bless you for your heart for missions.
The Annex prison is continuing well, for which I thank the Lord. The Lord has provided good students of the Word, those who seem to be genuinely interested in knowing and obeying the Bible and what it teaches. We are now in the New Testament of the teachings, and will soon be looking at the ministry Jesus had while on earth, as well as other teachings. Just recently, I taught some from Luke 1:37, which states “For with God nothing shall be impossible.” What is impossible with man is possible with God. We serve an all-powerful God!
Please keep our family in your prayers, for safety, health, faithfulness to the Lord and the work here in Kitale, and that we would be the examples before our children that we need to be. Camille is now nearly walking, which does not seem possible. What a blessing she is to our family. McKenna is the typical little girl, lots of energy and into many things. They keep us on our toes, to say the least. Pray for us as we seek to lead them in the ways of the Lord. God bless you all so much, and we will keep you updated.
In Kenya,
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa 30200
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