Prayer Request

On Tuesday night one of mothers of the student leaders in our youth group was beaten by her drunk boyfriend. Since she does not have health insurance, she spent 16 hours in the waiting room of the LA County Hospital before she was treated for injuries to her face, including a broken nose. This is not the first time this has happened to this woman. Thankfully none of her 3 children were hurt.
Because this has happened before and because the boyfriend is connected with a local gang, the mother wants to get out of the neighborhood. Unfortunately she has no where to go and so is looking to stay at a shelter for battered women. There is also a possibility of the kids going into foster care. Obviously, our church would like to provide other alternatives to these scenarios but most of our church already lives in over crowded apartments that the social services would not allow this family to stay at. It would also be devastating to have to say goodbye to her children, who are a vital part of our youth ministries. So needless to say we need your prayers. Please pray that the mother would come to know Christ and his forgiveness and comfort, that her children (who are believers) will trust, find refuge in, and be protected by their heavenly Father and that our church, Christ's hands and feet in this neighborhood, can make responsible decisions that reflect God's heart for the widow, orphan, and abused.
on a personal note, this family is very close to Sarah and my's hearts and even as I write this my eyes are full of tears and my heart is full of pain and anger and desperation. I meet with the oldest son on a weekly basis and he has become like a little brother to me. To see them go through this pain is overwhelming. Please pray that I would see God's faithfulness even in this and that I would be able to point this family and others to that hope. Also please pray that I will have the ability to love even this boyfriend who I may see around the neighborhood (even in writing this request I feel the fires of anger against this man), yet still stand up for justice.

With hope in the Holy One
jrf