30 July, 2002

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

Just before setting down to write you, I received the blessing of reading my favorite monthly, "Baptist Faith Missions Sheets". The news of what God is doing through His children in many parts of the world causes us to be encouraged and rejoice in the Lord. We wish special blessings of comfort from God for Kenneth White who is now separated from Jo. What a blessing these two people have been to missionaries. This very morning I read in my French Bible that "Dieu n'est pas Dieu des morts, mais des vivants; car pour lui tous sont vivants." (Luke 20:38) It is not over when our first body is laid in the grave! This is one of the reasons why serving the Lord is so meaningful.

This past month we have enjoyed the presence of first time visitors at each of our worship meetings. It has been a blessing to have Lydia (our youngest daughter) with us for the summer and to have her help with the children's class. She has served as a teacher in Sunday school (as have all of our children) for several years. She and Judy work together. One prepares the lesson in French and the other in English (for the children who don't understand French). We have people from several nationalities who attend. Sometimes God moves people outside their own country to bring them to Himself.

This brings me to something Judy and I want to do. We want to encourage children to see their value in the Kingdom of God. So, here is a special message to any of you who are between 0 and 18 years old. Write us by regular mail or email and tell us of a person mentioned in the Bible that served God while still young. If you need to, you may ask your parents to help. Parents, if your child has not yet read this letter, why not read this portion to them? If they are able, let them read. God is interested in you and so are we. We will mention in our next letter what we have received and will pray for you in our daily time of prayer. Wouldn't you like to have someone in France praying for you? Young person, don't forget to include your name and age. Tell us a little about yourself.

Until next month, may you enjoy God's blessings!

Enjoying the Lord in France,

John and Judy Hatcher

Activity at weekly youth outreach

One of the weekly Bible studies