November update

Dear Friends,

I hope that this email finds everyone well. We have been very busy here but are doing well.
The reason for this email is two-fold, the first is to give everyone an update on what has been going on here (I admit that I have fallen behind with our monthly email updates!) and the second is to respond to a letter that many of you received from Love and Hope International.

1. Love and Hope International (LHI) letter - I was made aware this past Saturday that LHI sent out a lengthy letter stating that they were no longer going to be handling the finances and overseeing Love and Hope Children's home as well as explaining their reasons why. Bobby and I do serve under the LHI non-profit as well, however, we want to assure you that the differences that LHI has with the Children's home has NOTHING to do with us or our ministry. Although our ministries both served under the same NGO, our ministries are completely separate and the LHI board of directors does not, nor have they ever, had any grievances with us or our ministry. Here in El Salvador, our ministries both serve under the same NGO as well; however, the ministries are in the process of being legally separated which will result in Bobby and I being able to appoint a local Board of Directors here in ES to oversee our ministry and hold us accountable here as well.

Right now we are asking for your prayers for wisdom and unity. We are in need of wisdom as we are faced with some big decisions and boards are in need of wisdom as they too make life-impacting decisions. It grieves us to see this end result and LHI's decision and we pray that God will be glorified through this.

If any of you have any questions, or would like to talk more specifically about this, please let me know and I will be glad to answer any questions or concerns that you may have. Please rest assured in knowing that us, the church, the youth we work with, and our ministry here WILL NOT change. We may have to change the NGO that we serve under in the States, but nothing else. We will continue to keep you updated on any changes, and we apologize for any scare that you may have received from the letter - we had no prior knowledge that it was going to be sent our or we would have forwarned you.

Until further notice, you may continue sending donations to support us to LHI. Please know that the donations that you designate to us, as always, will 100% go to us and our ministry. Once again, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to let us know.

2. The kids -

Beatriz - Bea has been doing excellent and her grades this quarter are very good! We are really very proud of her! She continues to swim with INDES five days a week and is excited about almost finishing her first year of college (only 3 more weeks left!). It is amazing to see how much she has changed and grown since she first came to live with us two years ago!

Samuel - Samuel is doing very well and is working at Pierre Cardign clothing store in San Salvador. As a result of poor grades last semester, we made a decision to have him "set" this semester out of college and work; which has been a tremendous learning and growth experience for him. He will be returning back to the university in January. He continues to be extremely active in the church, as he both sings and plays the guitar in the praise band and attends a weekly guys accountability group that Bobby leads.

Elias - Elias is doing well also and is excited to be finished with the school year this week. He continues to be active in his high school band and will be busy over summer break as they have several performances scheduled. He is also busy learning english as he attends the bi-weekly english classes that we are now offering at the church.

Jonathan - Several weeks ago Jonathan made the decision to move out of our home and is now living with his mom in Santa Ana. We are saddened, and do miss him greatly, but we are still in constant contact with him. In addition, we are working with Jonathan and his mom so that we can continue to support (emotionally and financially), encourage, and mentor Jonathan as well as encourage and support his mother.

3. The church - Three weeks ago I was finally able to begin teaching english classes in the church. The class filled up very quickly, and my original "maximum" of 10 students was quickly stretched to twelve with an age range of 9 to 65! The course is a 12-week beginners course that will end in early February and then an intermediate course will be offered. We would like to say a big "thank you" to Sam and Charity for donating the table for the english classes as well as to Luke and Laura Fischer for donating materials, finances, and wisdom! Thanks guys!

Another exciting event that recently happened in the church is the Expand Conference. The Conference was a three day training event for leaders that was offered at a large church in San Salvador. We were blessed with the ability to be able to go and to take along 8 youth leaders as well. Over 100 workshops were offered on every imaginable topic, so there was definitely something for everyone. Each person who went learned and was challenged in new ways. We hope to be able to attend the Expande 2011 event that will be held next year during spring break.

4. We got a car!!!! - Yeah! We are super excited because, after many many months of prayer, we were finally able to buy a car! Whoo-hoo! Things that were once complicated (like going to the grocery or meetings) are now soooooo much easier. Having a car also opens up our ministry in many ways. For example, several young ladies in our church have been wanting me to meet with them in their home for prayer every week, but I was never able to because of the limited bus schedule, but now I can! Bobby has also been wanting to take a youth into San Salvador for some counseling, but the counseling center was always too difficult and time consuming to get to by bus. He is now going to be able to do that easily since we have a car! Thanks so much to all of you who contributed financially to the purchase of the vehicle, we are extremely grateful!!!

5. Prayer requests - We ask that you would please join us in prayer in the following areas:

1. Jonathan - That his transition into his mom's home would be smooth and that she would have wisdom and patience in raising him. We pray for his heart to be touched and opened to receive Christ as his savior. Also, we pray for his physical protection and that God would give us wisdom as we continue to try and mentor him and be a part of his life. We pray for the financial resources to be able to continue supporting him as well.

2. The church - For revival amongst the youth and that they would know Christ intimately and have a truly personal relationship with Him. Also, for the programs in the church (music and english classes), that these programs would be used for His glory and that we would be able to reach people through the classes. Lastly, for continued financial resources to be able to continue offering the classes, as well as for upcoming events and regular church maintenance and rent.

3. The "kids" - That Samuel, Elias, and Bea would have an intimate personal relationship with Christ and that Bobby and I would be granted lots of wisdom and patience as we raise them. We pray for their friendships, and their families. We also pray for the financial resources to be able to continue meeting their needs and paying for their education.

Thank you so much to everyone for all of your prayers, support, and encouraging emails. It means so very much to us and we are truly truly grateful.

In Christ,
Britney and Bobby Hibbs