The Hastings Family

Good morning everyone,

Some of you already know about this news but we wanted to write today to make this more public and to explain our decision regarding our upcoming furlough. As many of you know, next month will mark our 5th year here in Guatemala...how is that possible? As we look back on these years we are amazed at all that has taken place, at how God has taken care of us, and at how much we have learned from serving here with AMG International. We have been reminiscing with our girls lately about our time here and each time we do this we understand more and more what a privilege it is to be here and how much God has used our time here to change us, teach us and bless us.

OK, now about our furlough. We have decided to take a furlough in the states for the next school year - from the end of August to June 2010. We began thinking and praying about this during the second half of 2008, and also began seeking counsel from our mission, family and close friends during that time. Since then we have seen the doors open and even though it has been a difficult decision, we have peace that this is how the Lord is leading us right now.

There are several reasons for this and we will list them in no particular order:

To be very honest, we simply feel it is time to spend some time back in the states. We have been away from family and friends for 5 years and feel that we all need the time and opportunity to reconnect. We have been apart from Adam for a few years now as well and it will be great to be able to have time with him. When we first came to Guatemala we thought we would never be interested in a "traditional" fulough, as we thought it would be too complicated and life-changing, but during these past few years we have come to see the wisdom in why mission agencies suggest (and sometimes require) furloughs for their missionaries. It is something that is not easily explained, but after experiencing our time here we are ready.

Melody graduated from high school in 2008 and has now completed one year of musical studies here in Guatemala. As she would like to continue her studies in the US, she has been applying to several colleges and hopes to attend college full-time beginning in January 2010. Her desire at this point is to study music and missions. Having been here since she was 14, this will be a big transition for her. She will be leaving on the 16th of this month and will start pursuing some things that she would like to do before going off to college, like getting her drivers license and maybe having the opportunity to have a part time job. She will have about 5 months to spend in New Hampshire and most likely will start with some correspondence courses during that time. We would like to be there to help Melody during this time of transition. It is a big step for MK´s (Missionary Kids) to leave the field and it can be a very complicated time, hopefully our time on furlough will be a help in this area. This will also allow us time to be able to bring Melody to college when the time comes.

Having only spent short periods of time in the US since moving here, we have been able to visit some of our supporting churches but not all. We have a unique situation of having only a handful of supporting churches but many personal supporters. The churches we do have are quite spread out. We have supporting churches in New York, Ohio, Georgia and New Hampshire. This extended time will give us the opportunity to visit all of them.

There are, of course, other reasons but I think we have shared the major ones.
We would ask for your continued prayers as we continue to plan for this time away. Here are some requests...thank you so much for praying!

- We will be homeschooling Bethany during our furlough...her freshman year of high school. This will allow flexibility for time and travel. Please pray that this will all go well.
- Please pray for Melody as she continues her college search.
- Please pray for Adam as he gets used to the idea of having his parents around again! :)
- We are hoping to have someone stay in our condo for our time away. We have a good possibility, a young couple from our church. Please pray that the Lord would work out the details for this.
- We are traveling in stages: Melody leaves on July 16th, Robin and Bethany on August 7th and Bob on August 20th. Please pray for our travel and safe reunion in NH.
- With the economic crisis, this is a difficult time of financial support for many missionaries. We have lost some support and are aware of other supporters who will not be able to support us after 2008. Please pray that the Lord would continue to provide the support we need for our time of furlough and beyond.
- The Dennett family, our co-workers, will be here during our time of furlough. Please pray for Brian as he assumes the Director´s role here at the mission and for the entire family as they complete their first year here in Guatemala. They are currently spending some time in New England following the birth of their 6th child and will return to Guatemala in a few weeks.

There is one more piece of news we'd like to share. Many of you know the Hodges family, our co-workers who have been here for the same period of 5 years that we have. Recently they decided to leave the field and are flying out this morning to return to Arkansas, their home state. Please pray for them as they re-adjust to living in the states. This was a difficult decision for them but after prayer and consideration they felt that it was time for them to return. The Hodges have primarily hosted short-term teams for AMG for the past 5 years and we, like many of you, have so many wonderful memories of working together with them. Please pray for Steve, Kelli, Korri and Jake. If you'd like to send them a note of encouragement or to let them know you are praying for them, you can email them at skhodges@gmail.com

OK, that is enough for today! Thank you for listening, for praying and for being such a wonderful support network for our family. We never take for granted how God has used you all in this entire process.

See you stateside!

Love from us all,

The Hastings Family