Summer/Fall 2011

Our Faithful God

We have been "on the move" since we moved out of our home in FL this past spring. We returned to MI and have had an eventful summer. It has been good to see friends and family again and to be able to spend time with our children and grandchildren.

In unexpected event in August that was both sad and joyful was the loss of my brother, Dick. He had struggled lately with his breathing and as many of you know had been on oxygen for several years. During the hot days in July he really struggled and he went "home" to be with the Lord the first part of August. He was so peaceful in his last days and was so excited about going to heaven. We hated to say goodbye to him but rejoiced that he was finally not struggling physically anymore. All of our children came to his funeral and it was good to have that time with them and with extended family that we don't see very often. Uncle Dick was very special to our kids and they loved him as much as he loved them.

After the funeral we went over to MN to be with our kids over there to help with the County Fair. That was a fun time which we really enjoyed after all the events of the weeks earlier. Quinn and Christian took top honors once again with their poultry and they were qualified to take their chickens to the MN State Fair. This was the 2nd trip over to MN and we ended up going back over there this fall as well.

During these weeks we have seen God's faithfulness all over, in the way he provided for us financially, safety and protection as we traveled, for our van going several thousand more miles (we are up to 317,000 miles now), for many answers to prayer during Dick's illness, for family restorations and so much more. He is faithful and gives peace that passes all understanding. We have not figured out just where He wants us to settle down yet, so we head back to FL for the winter. We know He has plans for us and will show them to us when it is the right time. So we wait and live a day at a time. It truly has been a walk of faith.

Lois Ministries has also seen many answers to prayer in the groups these summer months. Several groups were going to take a break this summer but the gals decided they needed to keep meeting since so many grandchildren needed prayer!! One of the groups had a Grandmothers Tea and it was fun to be able to attend that. New women have attended all the groups as they hear about the power of God working in the lives of children and grandchildren. Another group was able to present LM in the worship services as a "Ministry Moment". A working gal came up to a leader and said she wanted to start an evening group so we see God working in many ways!! He IS faithful.

Updates

It has been awhile since I've given any updates for Lois Ministries. Actually I'm a bit behind on this blog so will try and get caught up here.

We have been back in FL now for almost 4 months and time has sure flown by. Can it really be February and in 3 months we will be returning to MI? After we got here it took us awhile to get caught up with the house and yard. Down here things grow FAST and even with the help of great neighbors who took care of our yard, much was needed to be done. We have since lost a lot of bushes and flowers with the 3 frosts we had this winter so we are beginning to work on the yard one more time!! I think we are getting too old for this.

Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays flew by and I just now got all of the decorations packed up, doing a little at a time. Now we have to think about packing everything up for good in order to make our move back to MI. It will be sad to leave here but feel it is the way God is leading us. We do hope to return here to visit, during the winter, for the next few years. The way things are happening in our world, you really can't plan on anything for the long haul, so let's just say, if it is God's will, we will return here in the fall/winter to visit.

Lois Ministries has grown, like the weeds, but this is all fruitful growth!! It has been a blessing to see groups sprout up and begin to pray for the children and grandchildren. There are 10 groups who are now praying or will begin meeting soon. I've been asked to present this ministry at several women's groups this fall at some Women's Conferences and we will have our first ever Lois Ministries Day Apart, in MI, this spring. So God is bringing Grandmothers together to pray for the needs of their families and we are seeing Him work in many ways in the lives of these family members. Our God IS an awesome God and we do praise Him for the many answers to prayer.

I came across a verse not too long ago that hit me different than it ever had before. It is from Proverbs 29, verse 18, that reminds us that for lack of vision the people perish and it hit me that if we are not seeing our children/grandchildren with God's vision they may perish!! I've since been asking God to allow me to see my children/grandchildren through His eyes. I need to know how to cover them in prayer so they will not perish. That was quite an eye-opener for me and the need to pray for our family members became even more intense.

Our world is becoming a place we hardly recognize anymore. It seems like it is becoming "a new world order" and that is scary. This "new world" is not under God's control very much anymore, except in a few places. BUT, we KNOW God's plans and purposes for this world will go forth and His will, will be done. During this time it seems imperative that we , as Grandmothers and Moms, cover our loved ones in prayer. The enemy does not stop trying to steal, kill and destroy them (us) and since he knows their (our) weaknesses he will use every way possible to do that.

I've heard some say that their grandchildren are too young to need prayer support right now. The time to begin praying for them is before they are even born. They need us praying that they will be formed perfectly, in God's image, that they will arrive safely and for protection from any plans of the enemy, even in the womb. We can be praying for the Dad's and Mom's to be the Godly parents they need to be for these new arrivals, that these new little ones will be led early to Jesus, that they will have good teachers, friends and will be kept from any plans of the enemy. I remember Dr. James Dobson, saying years ago, that the enemy stalks our children on a daily basis (I Peter 5:8) and we need to cover them in prayer from day one. That has stuck with me all these years.

So, begin today, to pray for your grandchildren, even if they haven't yet arrived. Get together with other woman and multiply these prayers as we cry out to God together for these dear ones. It is never too early or too late!!!

Have a wonderful spring.....it IS coming. It has been quite a winter and I, for one, can hardly wait to experience several springs this season.....from FL to MI.

We are back in Florida and enjoying the beautiful southwest FL weather. Sunny most days and flowers galore to enjoy and of course, lawn to be mowed again. I do have to say that we enjoyed the MI fall so much, with the wonderful colors and cool temps. The highlight was making our own apple cider. We even brought some back with us to FL to put in our freezer. We are really enjoying it.

Summer is now but a memory but we do have those memories and pictures to enjoy. We spent time with family and friends, swam in Lake Michigan, and connected with friends from as far back as 47 years ago. The Oatley Cousins reunion was time to spend with cousins we haven't seen in many years and connecting with church family was also a highlight as we caught up with what God is doing in their lives. All in all, God blessed our summer and we are so thankful.

I was able to meet with the local Lois Ministries group in Manistee each week and it was a joy to hear about all that God is doing in answer to their prayers for their children and grandchildren. God opened up doors for new groups as well and currently there are 10 groups meeting or about to begin meeting in the next few weeks in the northern MI area. Many more grandchildren are being covered in prayer by many grandmas!!!

Often in our prayer groups our hearts cry out for children or grandchildren that are making poor choices. The choices that are made and the effects of those choices can last a lifetime. I'm sure we can think back and know that some choices we made were not right and have had lasting effects on our own lives. But, praise God, He can take those circumstances from those bad choices and use them for good if we let him. This brings to my mind the story of Joseph, who suffered greatly from the choices his brothers made, but in Genesis 50 it says that what men meant for evil, God turned it around for good. That is comforting to know.

We DO need to pray that our children and grandchildren would make good choices and that most of all they would choose to serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:15) We also need to pray that they will choose God's instruction instead of the silver/gold that the world offers (Proverbs 8:10) and that they would choose life, so that they and their children may live and that they might love the Lord their God, and listen to his voice and hold fast to Him. (Duet. 30:19-20)

BE THANKFUL, for what God is doing and is going to do in the days and weeks ahead for our families. BE THANKFUL for a God who hears and answers our prayers. BE THANKFUL that you can meet with other women and pray for these loved ones.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU ALL!!!!!

Faith, Hope, Charity

FAITH, HOPE, CHARITY

I Corinthians 13:13

"Three things will last forever - faith, hope and love (charity) - and the greatest of these is love."

Boy, where did summer go....I am really behind on my blog. Cannot believe we are experiencing fall weather and it started before September. One day, late August it was in the 80's and the next day we had the wood stove going!! That is Michigan weather though. It really has been a glorious spring and summer this year so we don't mind the early fall. Matter of fact I kinda like the cozy feeling the wood stove creates in the house.

We've had fun with our kids and the grandkids and catching up with friends, some who we haven't seen in several years. God has blessed us with safe travels as we have traveled from state to state and city to city. The red van now has almost 282,000 miles on it and we still need to make a trip with it back to Florida!!! God always takes care of us and we are trusting Him for that trip as well.

One thing I have been doing this summer is following the Glenn Beck, Reclaiming America Gathering, and all that led up to that day on 8/28/10 in Washington, DC. Before the gathering in DC Glenn had encouraged everyone to fast and pray for this important meeting at the Lincoln Memorial. I was one of those who did just that. It was a desire of mine to attend, which did not work out, but I was able to watch some of it after it happened on the Internet. This was an amazing event. It blessed my heart as I'm sure it did our Lord!!

Now I know not everyone agrees on Glenn's church, but I do not doubt his relationship with the Lord after viewing his testimony on a video I sent for. I believe God has called him to bring about something that is almost like a re-awakening of America coming back to God. I watched men, women, children from every race gather together to worship the one and only true God and to pray for our country. Many, with tears, were crying out to God, asking for forgiveness and asking God to restore our country to the Christian principles it was founded on. Glenn has been reading letters lately from those who attended on how they have turned back to God.

It was very inspiring and I even became more hopeful that we might have a revival begin in America. I will continue to pray that for our country and pray for our leaders as God has told us to do in II Timothy 2:1,2. I will also pray for the next generations that our Lois Ministries groups are praying for.....that they will rise up and take a stand for Jesus Christ and that American will experience another Great Re-Awakening, before the Lord returns.

God is at work, and I, for one, want to come alongside of Him and be involved in this great work. One way I am doing that is getting out the word about Lois Ministries. If another Revival is to take place we need to be PRAYING for that to happen within our families. At this time I have 3 Women's Ministry Groups that have asked for information and for me to come and present LM to their groups. Please pray that God will accomplish His work with Lois Ministries and that if the ministry should expand that I will be sensitive to His leading.

Well, a happy fall to you all!!!

Be praying that our children and grand-children will rise up and occupy this great land until the Lord returns.

PRAYER POWER

Acts 1:8

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.

In my opinion, prayer is one of the greatest powers of all. Yes, the atomic bomb can blow up an entire city or area, which is a natural power, but prayer power is spiritual, from God and nothing is as powerful as God's power. He created atomic power!!!

We've seen prayer do the miraculous and even change history. In the current Lois Ministries devotional the story is told about the results of prayer power in Romania. Up until the late 80's Romania was ruled by the communists and the country was collapsing. Churches broke out in prayer. The prayer times were lasting 24/7, prayer services began an hour early before the services began, and many came to Christ during these times. Finally, a break through for freedom came for this country. God opened a door, in answer to those prayers, and the people were freed after the government toppled. Prayer power completely changed history!

We are told in God's Word that we have available to us the "resurrection power." Now that's pretty powerful and if you are like me, we don't see that power often. Probably because we don't ask for it or live the way we should be living. BUT, I have seen and read about much power through prayer. With prayer, I believe we come alongside of God as we pray and He does powerful work in answer to our prayers. The miraculous happens!!! Maybe that is one way the "resurrection power" is shown in our lives.

In Acts 1:8 we read that we also have the Holy Spirit's power available to us as well. We can speak, have courage, boldness, insight, special abilities and authority with the Holy Spirit's power working in us. God does have work for us to do (like intercession) and He empowers us to do those good works. In Lois Ministries we are all about using the power available to us in intercession for our children and grandchildren. Many Moms and Grandmothers are seeing prayer power changing lives. We are coming alongside of God and interceding for these loved ones and God's power is at work in many lives. Miracles are indeed happening and prayer power is being used in a very effective, life-changing way.

Don't Give Up

Psalm 22:8

Commit your cause to the Lord and let him deliver...let him rescue the one in whom he delights.

It has been a busy spring and it has been hard to meet for prayer with my Lois Ministry group. I miss them and miss the prayer times we have for our children and grandchildren.

We left FL mid April, met some friends for Birding in the UP of MI, then returned to our home in Manistee only to discover that it had been junked by our renters. Some dear friends had already come in to clean it but there is still much to be done. We emptied out the house and have been cleaning, fixing, and restoring for weeks now, taking a couple weeks off to visit our family in MN. We are now settled in, well, as much as we can. Air mattresses are our beds, we can only cook by an electric fry pan or grill and just recently got hot water....so you might say, we are camping out at the farmhouse. We have what we need to get by, thanks to friends and Goodwill. Our hearts are in this job of restoration but our bodies are fighting it. We still don't know if we will even have this home a year from now.....that all depends on the bankers here in the area. Will they work with us, is the big question, and we hope to know more next week. The house is up for sale, but we are considering making MI our home state again and it would be nice to stay here. So that is the update from the Bos'.

In all this time away from FL, we have been able to visit the family. It has been good to see everyone and we look forward to more time this summer with them here at the farmhouse. Seeing the grandchildren, always reminds me the need for lifting them up in prayer......to never give up, even in these busy times of our lives.

I have been feeling a bit guilty lately about that.....as I said before, not being able to meet with other Grandmothers. Even though I have prayed on my own there is something about gathering together with others to pray for our own family members as well as others. As I have always said, there is "MUCH power in MUCH prayer". Yes, we will have busy times going on in our lives, BUT I will never give up!!! I can see the spiritual battle going on for these kids and I will fight for them in prayer!!!

There is a story about never giving up and MUCH prayer:
In the summer of 1876, grasshoppers nearly destroyed the crops in MN. In the spring of 1877, farmers were worried. They believed that the dreadful plague would once again visit them and again destroy the rich wheat crop, bringing ruin to thousands of people. The situation was so serious that Gov. John S. Pillsbury proclaimed April 26th as a day of prayer and fasting. He urged every man, woman and child to ask God to prevent this terrible plague. On that April day all schools, shops, stores and offices closed. There was a quiet hush over all the state.
The next day dawned bright and clear. Temperatures soared to what they ordinarily were in midsummer, which was very unusual for April. Minnesotans were devastated as they discovered billions of grasshopper larvae wiggling to life. For three days the unusual heat persisted. (Despite all this the people continue to pray.) It appeared that as the larvae continued to hatch it wouldn't be long before they started feeding and destroying the wheat crop.
However, on the fourth day, the temperature suddenly dropped, and that night frost covered the entire state. The result - it killed every one of those creepy, crawling pests as surely as if poison or fire had been used. It went down in the history of MN as the day God answered the prayers of the people.

Always pray - never give up. Never doubt that God can do a miracle. His ways are so much higher and better than our ways. I say again......Pray always and never give up!!!

Praying Grandmothers

I just finished reading a book which was a sweet story about the relationship between a grandmother and a granddaughter. After reading the book I reflected on the story and began wishing I had this delightful of a relationship with all 11 of my grandchildren.

I began to think about my relationship with my grandmothers as well. I loved each of them and miss them greatly. It would be amazing to be able to sit down and ask them questions that I have about their growing up years and my parents growing up years.

I then began to think about what I do remember about them and why I loved them. It was always fun to go to their homes. They lived a few hours away from us so we always had to plan our trips to go visit which usually brought much anticipation and joy. I loved having all our families together as we ate, played, talked and stayed up late. Both Grandma's loved to bake and cook so they always had great food around for us to enjoy. I remember one cookie jar that was always filled with store-bought cookies which were a treat in those days. They did make their own bread and that was quite a treat too. We established family traditions which are still carried out in some of our homes today.

I guess the greatest thing I can say about my grandmothers was the unconditional love I always felt from them. In my later years I learned they always prayed for me too. They were Sunday School teachers and loved being in church to worship God and that impacted my life as well. I was the first one in our family that accepted Christ into my life when I was 10 years old. Subsequently, I always felt drawn to find a church to attend even if no one else in my family went. It was because I observed my Grandmothers doing that and I somehow knew I was to be attending church as well.

I've heard many stories about Grandmothers who never gave up praying for their grandchildren and have listened to many testimonies from adults who have said that they are Christians now because of a grandmother who never stopped praying for them. The verse comes to my mind that says, "The heartfelt, fervent prayer of a righteous man (woman) has much power."

One of my "verses for the year" a few years ago was Lamentations 2:19 and I've now re-committed myself to this verse for Lois Ministries and in praying for my children and grandchildren.
"Rise during the night and cry out. Pour out your hearts like water to the Lord. Lift up your hands to Him in prayer. Plead for your children (grandchildren) as they faint with hunger in the streets."

Our children and grandchildren are needing our prayers now more than ever. This world they are living in is changing right before our eyes. The enemy is working in a stronger way than I've ever seen. We, as Grandmothers, need to be pleading to God for their very lives - physical, emotional and spiritual lives. Recently, I heard on the news that a young teen girl committed suicide because she could not cope with what was happening to her at school. I've seen teens that are angry, hopeless, making bad choices and having no respect for God and His ways......even those that have been brought up in a Christian homes.

We cannot get so involved in our own lives that we don't have time to pray for these children and grandchildren. We need to be interceding on their behalf. It has been said that "History belongs to the Intercessor" and this could be said for us as Grandmothers. History for our next generations could belong to us. It has been proven that many events in history have had prayer warriors behind the scenes, interceding on behalf of their country and it's leaders. I don't know why God works this way but he does works in answer to our prayers!!!!

Yes, having a great relationship with our grandchildren is a wonderful goal. Showing unconditional love is very important too. But one of the most important things we can give, is our "heartfelt, fervent prayers!" Let's never give up, NEVER!!!!

PRAY WITHOUT CEASING

Join a Lois Ministries group near year or start one. Contact me at pbospraygap@hotmail.com