Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher in Brazil [August 2012]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
July 31, 2012
Dear Brethren and Fellow Workers,
Greetings from Brazil in the Name of our Great Savior. Alta and I have had a good month and have gone to our mission in Assai each Sunday morning. Our attendance has not grown but we have the promise that where two or three are gathered together in His Name He is present with us. His promise is His Word will not return void. We are trying to be faithful and one day the Isaac will be born.
God has blessed us in the old age of our life. It is a great joy to look back over the years and see how God has been faithful in all His promises. Our children are serving the Lord, all of our grandchildren are faithfully serving the Lord and our great-grandchildren are being saved as they come to the age of accountability.
Another great thrill is to see how God has blessed and is blessing the works that He gave us the privilege of beginning. Those works have also begun and are beginning other new works. We want to encourage you young persons to surrender your lives to serve the Lord. Make the surrender while young; you will never regret doing the best for your Lord and Savior.
(Just had a wonderful interruption of fifteen minutes–a phone call from John and Judy in France. The Lord knows how we love them and miss them.)
Last week we had a wonderful two-day visit with David. He came down to our State for the dedication of two new buildings: One in the center of Parana and the other in Curitiba where Bobby and Charlene Wacaser work. We praise and thank the Lord for how He is using our children in His vineyard. They are all so far away and sometimes the heart aches to see them. Kathy is the closest and we get to see her every two or three months.
All of the work is going well in this part of Brazil. In Urai the work is going well. The pastor, Marcio, is doing a good job. There are about ten young people and two young married couples who are faithful and working in the church and congregations. There are six or seven who study in the Seminary. Pray for us. At age 87, things are not so easy.
God bless you, we love you,
John and Alta Hatcher
Caixa Postal 112
Urai, PR, Brazil 86280-000
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher in Brazil [July 2012]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
July 1, 2012
Dear Brethren and Fellow Helpers,
Praise the Lord; He has given us a wonderful month. Proverbs 17:6 speaks of the children’s children being a blessing for the old. This month our twenty-second great grandchild was born in Manaus. His name is Noah. His parents are Leigh Ann and Michael Samples. Leigh Ann is Paul and Wanda Hatcher’s daughter and Michael works with Paul in the School and Seminary. There were some complications in the birth but Mother and Baby are doing well after being born by C-Section.
Another good news is about the two younger daughters of Amanda and Philip Hatcher who live in France. The two older girls were saved and baptized last month. This month the two younger girls told their Mother and Dad they had trusted Jesus as Savior. We are thankful.
DRIVER’S LICENSE—In my last letter I mentioned the difficulty in getting my Brazilian Driver’s License. I received it after almost three months; it is good for two years.
ASSAI—Alta and I still make the trip to Assai every Sunday morning and we rejoice that we are still able to go. Please pray for this city of 20,000 people. Three different families whose children started coming have taken them out to take them to another church; they never attended any place before the children started coming to our Sunday School. Alta plans and has a great lesson for the children each week. Pray that the Lord will change the hearts of those parents.
URAI—The work is going well in Urai and the missions in Sussumo and Rancho Alegre. There are five or six young people who attend the Seminary and they are very active in the Lord’s work.
Great news from Manaus. The work where Paul pastors is going great and the Chapada Baptist Church where David and Pennie work is being greatly blessed. This month there were 360 people who trusted the Lord. All of these are followed up with special classes for new converts. Last Sunday there were over 3,000 in Sunday School. They have two services each Sunday night and they will soon have to go to two Sunday School hours in the morning.
The OLDIES—We praise the Lord we are still able to do and go. For our joy and contentment Alta and I still play for half an hour four or five times a week. She plays the organ and I play my Sax.
We thank you for your prayers and support.
Sincerely, in the Name above every name,
Caixa Postal 112
Urai, PR, Brazil 86280-000
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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Missionary Update: John & Alta Hatcher in Brazil [May 2012]
Missionaries John and Alta Hatcher have served the Lord in Brazil since 1955, planting over 70 churches that are still in existence.
Dear Brethren and Friends,
Greetings once more from Brazil in the precious name of Jesus. On April 30th I had my 87th birthday. No celebration, just thanksgiving to God for His many blessings in my life.
In the month of December our immediate family spent ten days together in the home of David and Pennie in Manaus. Needless to say, every moment we had together were joyous and precious. We praise and thank God every day for our wonderful children, our grandchildren and our great-grandchildren.
Annual Family Camp
The first week in January was the family camp directed by Pastor Valdir dos Santos of the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Cornelio Procopio. Our son, Paul, was the special speaker for the week. His messages on rewards and crowns were very profitable and of course Alta and I were thankful to have Paul and Wanda for the camp and with us a few days at home.
Thankful for the Blessing of Serving in Brazil
We thank God many times for giving us the joy and privilege to serve as missionaries in Brazil. When we have camps and gatherings that sometimes have about 400 persons, we recognize that all have come from churches that God has used us to sow the first seed. During our almost sixty years here we have not started works from other churches’ members nor begun works in cities that had a Baptist Church.
Present Works
We are presently members of the Urai Baptist Church. Marcio Faria Moraes is the pastor. He was saved in the Duartina Baptist Church we started years ago. His wife Carol was baptized at nine years old in the Garca Baptist Church. The church has three missions and other evangelistic activities. Alta and I are still able to go each Sunday morning to Assai Mission. Praise the Lord I am still able to drive the forty miles. I am in the process of renewing my driver’s license this week.
Pray for us. We seem to be getting older and have some aches and pains. We are thankful to God, our Heavenly Father, for your faithfulness in praying and giving to supply our needs in His work in Brazil.
We love you,
John and Alta Hatcher
Caixa Postal 112
Urai, PR, Brazil 86280-000
jhatcher[at]uol.com.br
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