Relaxing? Praying? Waiting?

Jim and I are trying to relax while the boys are home over the Christmas break. They went home on the 21st and will return to the ranch on the 2nd of January. One of the boys parents called today and said he was in the Emergency Room with one of our boys. We found out after a ct scan that he has a kidney stone and infection. They will treat the infection and he will need to drink plenty of water to try to pass the stone. Please pray for him, that he will be able to pass the stone with no complications.

We are also waiting for 3 more cows to have calves that are due on the 31st. The dairy barn has been flooded 3 times since the boys went home, our daughter went to the hospital with a false alarm, because she is due on the 11th of January. Her doctor said she will probably not see her at her appointment on the 2nd because she will probably have it before then. So we are waiting for another grandson to be born anyday.

We are also praying and waiting for our friends, they have a 25 or 26 year old daughter, who just had one of her lungs removed due to a growth that was in the lung. She is on a ventilator, in ICU. Please pray with us for this family. God knows who they are, just lift them up with us please.

We really are trying to relax and enjoy our time off.

Isaiah 40:27-31 "Why would you ever complain, O Jacob, or, whine, Israel, saying,"God has lost track of me. He doesn't care what happens to me"? Don't you know anything? Haven't you been listening? God doesn't come and go. God lasts. He's Creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn't get tired out, doesn't pause to catch his breath. And he knows everything, inside and out.He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts. For even young people tire and drop out, young folk in their prime stumble and fall. But those who wait upon God get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles,They run and don't get tired, they walk and don't lag behind." THE MESSAGE

So pray for us that we will WAIT upon God, get fresh strength for when the boys come back, that we can continue to run this race and that we won't lag behind.

Relaxing, praying and waiting in the arms of our wonderful savior that came to this earth as a babe so that He could die for our sins.

A new tradition!

Tonight we had our Board Christmas Party! We had taco's and they sure were good. We also had, cookies and more cookies and too many cookies. We started the night off after we ate with a short business meeting, then I, Cathy, held up the most beautiful present under the tree and it was to: JESUS!

I'm not sure what I said, because when you stand up in front of people you sometimes get tongue tied well, I tried to say something like. Jesus should have the best present because he is the reason so I want everyone to write down on the index card what they want to give Jesus for a present for next year and then put it in His present. I had cut a little slit in the box under the ribbon, and everyone put their gifts to Jesus in His present. Then we sang Happy Birthday to Jesus.

As, our own children were growing up, the tradition was always we had to find baby Jesus before the Christmas Story and then we could open up presents. We still do this every Christmas morning, I'm sure our kids think they are a little to old for this now, but we will probably still carry this on because now our grandchildren are old enough to start hunting for baby Jesus.

I've tried to think of something to do with the boys here at the ranch that is different than our own family tradition and I finally came up with this new tradition this year that I read some where, not even sure where, but I hope that it gets the boys here at the ranch and us adults to really think about what Christmas is really all about. It's not about, gifts, Christmas trees, lights, food or cookies but it all about JESUS! HE is the REASON for the SEASON!

The Boys Say: MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Show and Tell!

I just have to show off 2 of our grandchildren. Heaven (3 1/2) is Cassie our daughter's, step-daughter, and Dylan (19 months) is her son. They are pretty precious don't you think? We are about to have another one as you can see in the picture below.

Cassie's due date is January 11, but I don't think she will make it till the New Year. She is having another boy but we don't know his name yet. Just had to show and tell a little about our personal side of our life. We do have fun with these precious lives God has blessed us with. It is a lot different being a grandma and grandpa than mom and dad. We sometimes tend to spoil them just a little. It's a lot harder disciplining grandchildren and keeping a straight face than I ever remember with our children.

Mary, my unsung hero!

About a year ago I wrote this little writing for a christian writing contest, didn't win, but thought I would share it with you this Christmas season.

"Mary, my unsug hero"

I can’t imagine being a young virgin girl, taking care of my everyday chores and suddenly a stranger just appears in my house. This stranger says something like, "Look at you! God has looked upon you as a special woman. God is with you!" Wow, I think if that happened to me that I would have to sit down and take a deep breath, before I fell down. Then I would be wondering why me? I’m just an ordinary girl. Why would God say that about me?

Then out of the blue this stranger says, "Hey, girl, calm down, it’s okay, God has picked you out of all the girls around to have you carry his Son. You will give birth to this child and you will call him Jesus." Wait a minute, that is so far fetched, there is no way, I have never slept with a man, how can this happen? The stranger answers "Yes there is a way, young one. The Holy Spirit will come down on you and the power of God will cover you. Anything is possible with God."

I can’t imagine I would tell this stranger that I understand everything he is saying and I do want to serve God with all my heart. So I will wait for this to happen.

How could I show my face when everyone knew I was not married, but pregnant? Then when the time came to have this baby holding him in my arms, knowing that some day I would watch him suffer, a very brutal death, to save the world. How could I do that?

How could she have possibly done this? As we approach this Christmas Season let us remember Jesus is our "HERO", He is the Reason! As an empty nested mother I would have to say that Mary is my unsung hero this Christmas, because She gave birth to Jesus and later let go of him trusting God to finish her job.

Thank you God for choosing Mary and not me!

I may not be a true empty nester but my blood children are all grown up now and it is hard to let them go. Not only have my own children left here but I have had to watch several boys that I have grown to love leave and let go of them trusting God to finish. I just want to revoice Thank you God for choosing Mary and not me!

2 Pins equals 1st Place and 3 Nails equals 1st Place!

Andy says, "If I was not at the boys ranch right now I would probably be smoking cigarettes, drinking or in jail, but instead I'm out for wrestling and with the help of Jim and Curtis, I just got 1st place at my wrestling tournament yesterday." He pinned both of his opponents.

Andy is doing great and we are proud of the fact that he went out for wrestling. His record so far is 3 wins and 3 losses, his 3 wins are 3 PINS. He didn't wrestle last year because he was to busy trying to find trouble but we thank the Lord that he came to the ranch so he could change his life around.

He has a great personality, a great heart and has had a life changing experience so far here at the ranch. When he first came he had a no care attitude, when ever we gave him consequences he would say I don't care. He soon found out that you don't challenge Jim to have him help you care, because Jim doesn't give up trying to teach a young man that they need to care. I think Jim won that match, because Andy now cares about a lot of things.

Andy also wanted me to share with you his future plans. He is only a Freshman this year but he plans on staying on at the ranch until he graduates from High School. Then he says he is going to stay here at the ranch and help boys like him change their lives. He loves milking the cows and riding the horses. He wants to help Jim teach the boys how to milk the cows and work with the horses. This is a totally different boy than when we first met him. He now not only cares about his own life but is already making a public comment that he cares about other boys like him.

Jesus got pinned to the cross with 3 NAILS (pins) and won his match for all of us, if we only let him take us down to the foot of the cross and give our life over to Him. He is the ultimate winner and he definately won this match with this young man's life. Please remember to pray for Andy as he finishes the ultimate match, his life living for Jesus.

Down and Out!

I'm down and Jim is out! One thing Jim looks forward to every year is deer season, he loves to hunt and he enjoys supplying food for our table. Today is the first day for shot gun season. What a nice day for him to be out in, ICE and COLD. So that's what he is doing today OUT enjoying the ICE and COLD while I am down on the couch or recliner because my back is out. If you think about us please pray for my back, Jim's cough, (especially being out in this), the boys so I don't have to call Jim while I'm down and he is out.

Really, what I really want to share is it is times like this that the true heart of these boys show. They have been a huge help today, I haven't had an ounce of trouble. Sometimes when Jim is out hunting, the boys push me to the limit to see what I will do. I guess God knows what he is doing when he put me down with my back this time, I guess I needed some peace and quiet while Jim was out hunting. Seriously, though, it isn't fun and very painful so if you could send up an extra prayer please do.

Thanks for your prayers,

Thankful!

We are thankful that we just got some time away. We left Friday afternoon, drove about 3 1/2 hours to Jim's brother's house Tim's and spent the night with him and his wife Lisa. Had a great visit, then took off in the morning and drove about 3 1/2 more hours following them to Jim's sister's house Kim's to have Thanksgiving dinner with the whole Fry family. We had a great time getting to see the family and Dustin our boy that lived with us for four years also drove up from Branson to be with us for Thanksgiving at Kim's too. It was good to see him. This morning Jim and I got up and finally was able to get Jim to St. Louis to see his first Ram's game. We had a great time, but it would have been a better time if they would have scored that touchdown when they were on the 1 yard line with only 30 seconds left of the game. But it wasn't meant to be they lost 19-24. Bummer! But we are still thankful Jim finally got to a game, after all he has been a Rams fan since he was a little boy. Wait a minute isn't he still a little boy? Oh, I guess not, he is an old man now. Anyway it seems like that because this last year he has been fighting the pneumonia and bronchitis so much.

We are thankful to find out that his lungs in a ct scan were clear and normal, so he is on prednizone, 3 different asthma medicines, and an antibiotic, trying to get rid of his cough and we are waiting for a blood test that they sent away testing for allergies. The pulmonary specialist is pretty sure it is allergy related (the cow barn?). Please pray that we can find out what to do to keep it under control, he is tired of being tired from all the coughing. But very thankful that his lungs were clear.

We are also thankful that the boys went home Wednesday night the 21st at 4:00 and their parents will take them to school tomorrow morning the 26th and we didn't get a single phone call while we were off. Very thankful for that!!!!!

Now please pray for us this week, as the boys get back into our routine, that things go well and we are able to continue feeling refreshed after time off. Not that we don't love the boys we work with and enjoy working with them but it is good to have the time off occasionally.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving weekend and also have a lot to be thankful for.

We are also thankful for Jesus being the reason we are getting ready to celebrate the next season coming up. Thank you Jesus!

Serving Him,

Not sure who did this but GOD knows!

As we drove out of the lane this morning to go to church this was our view. Not a very pleasant sight.

Our son Curtis, spent quite a bit of time building this mailbox for us, to go along with the cabins we live in. Like I said in this post, is this ministry easy? No, it can be very hard, trying and frustrating. This would be one of those days. We don't know who did this but a little while ago I posted about a Lost Boy. Then in another post I asked you to pray for the Lost Boy because he has left the ranch before completing it, and never accepted Jesus into his heart. Our heart goes out to this boy, we came to love him like our own, and he is still running, still hurting and still searching in all the wrong places. Please pray for him.

We are waiting for the police to find the person that did this crime. We find it a little amusing when we found an abandoned car along side the road this morning about two miles away from the ranch by a little country church and it happens to belong to the lost boy.

We do want the person(s) involved in this crime to be consequenced for their actions. So please pray that God would bring to the surface the truth in this whole thing.

We not only want them to pay for the crime but deep down we want them to realize that they can't keep running from God and have a "good" life.

Ecclesiastes 8:12-13 "Even though a person sins and gets by with it hundreds of times throughout a long life, I'm still convinced that the good life is reserved for the person who fears God, who lives reverently in his presence, and that the evil person will not experience a "good" life. No matter how many days he lives, they'll all be as flat and colorless as a shadow—because he doesn't fear God." The Message

Wreckers vs. Builders!

James 3:1-5 "Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check. When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark."


As I was shopping last night telling store clerks, no thank you I don't need help.....I'm just browsing. One thing I noticed was how it is so sad the way customers come in and wreck all the organized shelves and the workers have to fix the mess. Back at the ranch, while I was wrecking our checkbook by spending money (oh, oh!) Jim was home with one of the boys listening to him say he doesn't need help he's a loser and he is going to end up in jail anyway so it doesn't matter. It is so hard when we hear these words come out of a young man's mouth, it makes us realize how the words we speak says it all. It is so hard to get through to anyone when they have been called a loser all their life, that they are not a loser. Last night while Jim was milking cows with this young man, trying to BUILD him UP he would say.... hey, Hector, you're a winner, you can be a winner...... Several times throughout the hour they were milking Jim would tell him this, and then stop just to give him a hug. By the end of the hour Jim finally got an answer from him, when he asked him, "so what can you be Hector?" With a real slow drawn out answer he said, "a winner." It wasn't very convincing but it is a start.

Our job is a very hard job, and we need all the prayer support that we can get, because like the scriture says we are judged more strictly being teachers to these young men, we stumble, we will not be perfect until we are in heaven with our Savior Jesus Christ. We are trying to take a heart that has been broken, ripped, calloused, wrecked by a small thing called the tongue. We have to rebuild this broken heart, to learn how to love and that it is okay to love. We make mistakes because we are human but we try everyday to make a difference in these young men's lives. Is it easy? No, it can be very hard, trying and frustrating. Is it Rewarding? Yes, very! Especially when we get a report card from the school and see that a young man is on the honor roll now instead of mostly F's, or when young men pray for a little 4 year old girl everyday. or when they start to feel good about themselves instead of thinking they are a loser. The most rewarding thing is when they accept Jesus as their personal savior to be Lord of their life.

So please help us out by praying that we can be builders in the young men God entrusts us with and not wreckers. Pray for our tongue because some days are harder than other, when they push us to the limit because they want to see if we are still going to be there for them.

I'm so glad our Father up in Heaven is who HE is because I know there are times when I push Him to the limit to see if He is still going to be there for me.

Thank you Jesus for loving me through it all.

Builders for Christ,

Rejoice in the Lord Always!

Phillipians 4:4-7 "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

I know that God's word here does not say that we are suppose to rejoice only when life is good, no it says Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS!!! I'm sure as you have been reading the blog lately that it doesn't sound like I have been rejoicing. I apologize if I have sounded negative, I'm human and I know God is not finished with me yet. I know HE is near and I am not to be anxious about anything. BUT.............. in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving , present your request to God. So my request to God is everyone out there that is reading this please pray for the Lost Boy that I talked about in this post. He has left the ranch before completing it, and never accepted Jesus into his heart. Our heart goes out to this boy, we came to love him like our own, and he is still running, still hurting and still searching in all the wrong places. Please pray for him.

Some other request to God in our life right now are:

• Expansion of the ranch.....................(30 on a waiting list) That's a lot of hurting parents, wanting help for their son. Thankful that this ministry is needed!
• Our (personal) Church Family / Middle of a church split/ Thankful that we can go to a building and worship!
• Some friends of ours going through a divorce / Thankful that we can come to a Father of love and cry out for help on behalf of our brother and sister in Christ
• Jim's health/ thinking that he has allergies to something in the barn/ seeing a pulmonary specialist/ Thankful that God is the great physician
• That we can be obedient to God's word and Rejoice Always!

We do want to Rejoice in the Lord, He is faithful to show His love to us even through the hard times. We love you Jesus and thank you for who you are.

Rejoice with us, as we lift these requests to God.

Serving Him,

CHALLENGED!

James 1:2-4 "Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way." THE MESSAGE

I know it has been almost 3 weeks since I have posted now, I aplogize, I guess we have just been challenged lately. I'm waiting to become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way. I have lots to say but I will have to post again later. My goal today is to get the pictures posted from the Miracles Can Happen Challenge Bike Ride. I hope all you riders that were challenged that day (by the wind) can take time to say a prayer for us in our challenge we are in several days of the week with the ministry we are in. Our rider that came the farthest to ride was a man all the way from South Carolina. Wow! He said he was coming out here to observe the harvest, and meet some farmers in the area and he got online and saw our bike ride and came to ride in it. How awesome is that! I hope he had a great time observing the harvest here, and I really hope he had a great time riding in the Miracles Can Happen Challenge! We appreciate everyone of you who gave of your time to ride or help in our Bike Ride to help us make a difference. We especially want to thank Dick and Karen Grimm for putting this ride on.


This is our South Carolina Rider!

Where did the last two weeks go?

I can't believe it has been two weeks since I last posted. Wow! Tuesday the 25th of September I had a great talk with one of the boys while Jim and another were out milking. We talked for a good hour and a half and the most important thing we talked about and he agreed was that he has heard Jesus knocking loud on his hearts door 2 times and decided that he didn't need him in his life at this time. About 4 days later this boy ran from the ranch and is still on run right now, and we are asking all of you to pray without ceasing for him right now. He has been on run for the fourth time now in the last week. He has been gone since Tuesday this time, and we are concerned not only for his well being but his future. He was failing 4 classes out of 8 already before he took off, this is his senior year and he is throwing his diploma out the door, when he was this close. He was doing great in the program , moved out into the bachelor pad, after 2 years of being here, gave him a little freedom, some major family issues started taking place, started hanging out with new friends and this is where we are today. Please Pray! He is a great young man, with a great heart, with a lot going for him, with several people out there I know are praying for him. Please pray for his Salvation, protection and willingness to let us love him through Christ. God knows who he is just call him The Lost Boy.

Galatians 5:7 & 8 "You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you."

Thank you for helping us run this race, so we can help young men run the good race, and try to persuade them to stay on the right track. This race is not always easy, at times it's very challenging, but with God all things are possible.

I will try to be back soon, to tell you all about the Miracles Can Happen Challenge Bike Ride that took place on September 29. I'm hoping to get caught up this week.

Sleeping with the cows!

Last night we got home from Clinton after speaking at the Victory Center at about 10:15 just in time to milk the cows. Jim and Zeck went down to milk, to find that one of the cows just had one of her calves. Jim called me to have some of the other boys go down to help him get her inside the barn, so they could milk her, and he put the calf in another pin in the barn. The boys came back up, then Jim and Zeck started milking. Jim got in at about midnight and ask me for the camera because, Zeck did not want the calf to be all by himself his first night here so he was going to sleep in the barn by the calf. Just thought you might like to see Zeck's picture of him sleeping with the baby calf. Looks like Zeck is learning a little about love. When Jim first got the idea of milking cows in this ministry he never imagined that God would use the cows the way he has. Zeck is a living testimony of what the dairy barn has done to change his life. He ask Jim to pray with him to ask Jesus into his life while they were in the barn one night milking the cows. We always tell people we have holy cows because K-love is on at all times in the dairy barn. Thanks for checking in on the ministry God has placed Jim and I in to share about the love of Jesus through something as simple as dairy cows.

Life on the Ranch!

About 3 weeks ago I wrote about schedules, and talked about how I was already exhausted, well I don't know what I am now after yesterday. I started off with devotions with the boys at 7:30 before Jim took them into school, then I walked my mile and did a few excercises. Read my own devotions while eating breakfast, answered some of my emails, made a few phone calls regarding the Miracles Can Happen Challenge Bike Ride that is coming up on the 29th of September. Did a couple loads of laundry, then went down to the barn to milk the cows at 10:15. Came into the house at 11:30 to the phone ringing, wrote down some notes to be involved in a mission conference October 13 at Grandview Baptist Church in Davenport. Jim and I quick heated up some left overs shoved the food down our mouth, don't know if it tasted good or not, we ate so quick. We took off with the tractor and truck to go bailing for the day, I drove the bailer while Jim bailed 860 bales of hay. Oh I forgot to mention, we covered for in between our daughter and son-in-laws shifts too with our grandson. So he got to help Nana Moo drive the tractor. We called our son-in-law(Scott) at 6:30 and ask him to go into the school to pick up the boys from football practice, and then feed them and by then we should be done bailing. We got into the house at 7:30, I took care of Dylan, (our grandson) and cleaned up from supper, while Jim, the boys, and Scott unloaded most of the hay in the barn. The boys got in a little before 11:00, and Jim got in from milking at 11:30. Oh I forgot to mention that I got supper in the crockpot in the morning also, but that only consisted of browning a couple pounds of hamburger, and taking out some seasoned potatoes and carrots I had in the the freezer, and adding a couple cans of beef broth. Jim and I finally crawled in bed at about 12:30, and started this morning with devotions at 6:30, because the boys rode the bus. Our day continued on, but I'm sure you don't want to hear play by play again, but just thought you might want to read about our life here on the ranch. There is never a dull moment. Jim is just about ready to come in from the night milking it is 11:30 so I suppose I should end this rambling about life at the ranch. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Creative!

Well what do you think of the new look? I think Crystal from A Pink Lacy Design did a great job of giving the boys ranch blog a new look. Thank you Crystal for using your creativeness that God gave you.

We have a couple boys that have had to stay home from school the last couple days because they got kicked out of school for fighting each other. One, stabbed the other with a pencil and in return the other made a racial comment to him. I'm sure they have learned these last couple days that Jim is pretty creative in getting the point across that the next time they better think about their actions in school. They have had some fun loading manure with a pitch fork for the distasteful action they had in school, and they have dug fence post holes for the hole they put themselves in for not getting along with each other. I think they are getting a little tired and hopefully they will learn from their mistakes. Please remember we can always use the prayer for extra strength as we deal with these boys that have felt abandoned and rejected in their life. Join up with us in prayer to help them realize that they are a new creation in Christ. Pray that we can be creative in this ministry that God placed us in to demonstrate the Love of Jesus to some very hurt young men.

Goals!

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

We try to teach the boys we work with that God wants to give them hope and a future, so they need to have goals to try to reach. One of our boys just brought one of his first papers home from school for us to look at. He got a 10/10 and had an excellent comment from the teacher. She ask them to write a paper in English about their goals for school and their future. Also what they want to get out of her class. I would like to share a portion of his perfect paper, he was so very proud of.

* My goals for school would be to graduate high school. Pass all of my required classes so that I can finish High School. Then when I turn 18 and have my High School diploma, I'm going to enlist in the Army or some type of branch. For the simple fact that it will guarantee me a job when I get out of the Army or any other branch. Then I feel that God is calling me to ministry with youth....... I just want to learn what you teach me and I will try to my best ability to learn how to do it. I hope we do a lot of reading cause I really like to read. I may not be good at it but I like to do it. *

This was just a portion but the main thing I wanted to point out, is that this is a young man that about 2 years ago just wanted to give up on life, and was a very angry boy wanting to make everyone else around him miserable. God has done some remarkable changes in this boy's life and we are blessed to be able to witness these changes because of some of you who make this ministry possible.

His teacher replied with a little note that says: James, You seem to have the insight and maturity of people much older than you. You clearly bring a wealth of wisdom to this class and I'm happy to have you here. Let me know what I can do to help you reach your goals!

This is exactly the encouragement he needed to start this year out, because at the end of the year last year, we saw a little sign of him giving up on his school work.

Please pray for James schooling, anger issues, rejection issues and an unspoken issue that he needs to work on.

We see this look on his face a lot more than we see the look in the top picture. We like the new look. What about you?

Schedules!

School has started, schedules are in full swing, football games are about to start, and I'm already exhausted. The boys are learning that they need to pay attention to schedules, if they don't they have listening excercises from Jim to help them learn to listen to schedules. We have 4 out of the 5 boys in football right now. The night before their first scrimmage, we ask them what time they were suppose to be in at the school. Guess what? We got 4 different times, then we ask them what time it started and not one of them knew. They were to find out when they went to school the next day and let us know, not one of them called and not one of them came home after school. We chose not to go to the scrimmage to support them, hoping to let them know that communication is a big part in the life of family. When we got the call that they were ready to be picked up, Jim went in to get them and didn't say anything to them and told them to meet him on our football field. They got a taste of a listening excercise. I'm sure they felt like they were in a boot camp. I think that they are going to make sure to listen to the coach when he gives a time of when practices are or when they are suppose to be at the school for a game.

By the way this was not the first time since football started that we didn't know what time they were suppose to be on the field, actually it was about the 4th. Remember we don't just have one boy out for football, we have 4. It has been so frustrating, but I think we might be getting through to them that listening and communicating are a huge part of family life.

Listening and communicating are also used every day in your job, we have to teach these boys the importance of these two actions, so they will be able to someday hold down a full time job.

Please pray for Jim and I as we continue to try to teach these boys life skills everyday. We would also like prayer for Curtis, he has decided to take another job away from the ranch. He is still going to give us a night off each week and milk for us 8 milkings a month, in exchange for living in the bachelor pad. Which will be a great help, but we will miss him tremendously. We understand he needs to go after his dreams in life, and see what God has in store for him.

We also have our daughter and son-in-law, living here now, instead of Texas. So that means we have some of our grandchildren closer, exciting. They have also told us that they are going to fill in for us occasionally, too. So we will still get some down time. God is good, and knows exactly what is needed at just the hour it is needed.

Miracles and Music Fest

What a great day of celebration we had on August 11th. We had 5 bands here playing great music. Savior Sent (The Franz Family), The Country Christians, The Graves, Andy Landers and ER Praise Team. They did a wonderful job! We also had great testimonies from three boys.
One boy, Zech, whom is living here right now, another boy Jeremy whom graduated from the ranch in May of 1997 and the third young man was a survivor of our FIRST G.O.T. G.U.T.S. Camp, Andrew. You can read a little about him on a previous post.

God also allowed me to use a gift he has given and that is miming to music. I don't know if the last song touched anybody else's life that day but I was very touched that day to the song His Anchor Holds by Ray Boltz. I almost didn't think I was going to be able to finish the song because I was thinking of all the trials we have gone through in this ministry and it never fails He always gets us through them, His Anchor does hold in spite of the storms of life. It was awesome!


Our boys gave great tours to people on the ranch property and what God has built here the last 15 years.

We had a great day and look forward to doing the Miracle and Music Fest again next year. If you missed this year make sure to mark it down on your calendar for next year. The second weekend in August. Thank you to all the Board members and volunteers we had helping this year it was awesome! Thank you all!!!!! We couldn't have done it without you.

Prayer Please!

We are doing a lot of Praying, Planning, Preparing and Praying right now getting ready for our 15 year celebration.

God is about to do something big here and we are excited about what is about to happen. We are not sure what that is but because of all the trials we are going through getting ready for this big event we are sure God is going to show up in a very BIG way.

Jim is fighting pneumonia, I'm fighting brochitis, and My Aunt passed away yesterday. Visitations tomorrow, and funeral on Friday.

Please Pray! Thanks!!!

Email from boy...........

How exciting. We just received an email from one of the boys that was at the Got Guts Camp and I would like to share a portion of that letter.

.......I'm doing great ever since I got back from your ranch. I finally got my dads trust back thanks to you guys. Hay Jim I need to tell you that I'm going to kick yours and Curt's butts at wrestling one of these days so you better start practicing...........

This is the same boy that was delivered to us the first night of camp from a police department and would not shake Jim's hand when he stuck his hand out.

It was amazing what God did with young men's lives this week, please keep praying for all the boys that were involved in the Got Guts camp, including the boys that are still here.

Thanks for helping us run this race that God has placed us in.

Got Guts Pictures!

Make flash movies with Toufee.com

Got Guts?

Do you have the Guts to do the right thing? This was the topic all week at the Got Guts Camp we held this last week. We had 5 campers plus our 4 boys that are residents here at the ranch. We had some great helpers and speakers all week long.

We started off last Sunday night with pizza donated from Pizza Ranch in Muscatine, it was awesome! Then watched a movie the boys could somewhat relate to, GRID IRON GANG, with a follow up after the movie by our very own speaker JIM FRY! His challenge was do you have the Guts to let God work on your life this week? Monday the boys woke up to the beautiful outdoors of stretching to the birds singing to get ready for their first run through the timber. Then breakfast out in the woods. Then they helped load wood and cleaned up in the woods and the creek, some sand volleyball, Then we had a hotdog roast and our guest speaker was Kevin Jandt and he spoke about ENDURANCE. He was a participant in the IRON MAN Triathlon and finished a 2.4 mile swim, 112 m. bike ride and a 26.2 mile run in 11 hours and 44 minutes. That's what you call endurance. We also had a guest that night that shared also on endurance, Tim Sylvia 5-time UFC heavyweight champion. That was a pretty packed first day of camp but it was awesome to already see a changed heart in one young man whom wouldn't even shake Jim's hand the night before to be the hardest worker for the day and was awarded a bottle of pop from Jim. Tuesday about the same thing, accept a little bit of playing in the creek in the afternoon because it was so hot. Our guest speaker on this night was Cory Smith one of our counselor's (and board members of the Ranch) and talked to the boys about the choices we make in life. Wednesday, we had a little rain, so we spent the afternoon in the basement of our house, playing pool, ping pong, carpet ball, air hockey and some of them sparred on the wrestling mat with a man named Dean that spars at Pat's Gym. Our son, Curtis decided to spar with Dean also. Thanks for coming out and letting the guys beat up on you, they had a great experience. That night our guest speaker was Craig Peters, a pastor of a church in Davenport, and also has been Jim's accountability partner for the last almost 15 years. He talked to the boys about God being number one and we are #2. If we follow that we will always be a winner, never a loser. Thursday, after working hard moving Brad Imes, whom was out here all week long helping with the camp. Jim and the counselors had a surprise for them and took them out in canoes down sugar creek. They had an awesome time. Our speaker Thursday night was Rick Fountain, and he had a story I don't think the boys will forget, he shared about making something of your life, even though you had one adversity after another, God's Grace is enough. Friday, after working hard in the timber again, Jim, I and the staff took the boys on a longer canoe trip down Sugar Creek, once again an awesome time. I almost forgot, we had awesome coaching staff from Durant here all week teaching them football skills and drills, to get the boys ready for a big football game in front of the parents on Sunday, against the staff. Friday night, we had one of our boys that graduated from the Miracles Can Happen Boys Ranch, back in 1995 speak about Choices and change, he has a great story to tell also. We really had two speakers that night, we also had another one of our counselors Brad Imes, an ultimate fighter, wanted to share with the boys, he spoke about perseverance, his mother sounded like quite the fighter and he talked to the boys about perseverance. Saturday night, we enjoyed food donated from Olive Garden, from the Davenport and Coralville stores, it was great! Our last night in the trees on a huge screen, we watched Facing the Giants and it felt like we were at an outdoor theatre. There were a couple nights it felt like we were walking on holy ground, God was moving in the hearts of adults and young men's lives. We topped the week off Sunday morning with church in the trees, with an awesome speaker, Rob Miltenberger from Eerie, Illinois, with an awesome testimony. He talked about us facing Giants everyday in our lives, no matter who we are. It was an awesome time, the parents and grandparents of the campers were invited and then we ate lunch together, and watched a great game of football. The staff played against the boys, it was so fun to stand back and watch the parents and grandparents watch there sons and grandsons have so much fun, playing football against men that they learned to look up to in a short week. We had one camper that wanted to get his haircut so he could look like a new person, we had a couple campers that were having a hard time leaving on Sunday. A couple not so dry eyes, especially one camper on the way home, he asked his grandma why he had to go home, he wanted to stay forever, because it was the first time he was really happy in his life. This grandma just wants to be a grandma, and Lord willing we will keep this young man to fill an empty spot we have so we can step up to be fill in parents for him that he has never really had, then Grandma can be Grandma.

Not only were young boys lives touched this week of the Got Guts camp, but grown adults lives were touched too. God was very present, we had a very busy week, but so moving by God's presence that it was a life changing week for a lot of people involved. I know Jim and I are praying about some more things that we feel God revealed to us through this week, that we would like to share but need to talk to our Board of Directors before we share a whole lot. God is Good and He is continuing to work miracles here at Miracles Can Happen Boys Ranch.

Thank you all who helped with our first year of Got Guts, I'm sure we will have another Got Guts camp in the future, we were blessed with some great volunteers for the week. We are sure God will bless you for the tiring week you put in giving of your time, your family life, and your hearts to help young men GET ON TRACK and GROW UP TO SUCCEED. Thanks!

I will post pictures later!

Our precious Dylan!

Since I told you we were on our way to Texas to see our precious grandson, I just have to show off our pride and joy. He was so much fun! Hope you enjoy!

5K Wild Run/Walk

Running Wild Store put on a 5K Wild Run/Walk on Saturday, May 26, 2007 proceeds will come to the Ranch. I made a little video and posted at the bottom of this page, please check it out. I couldn't figure out how to size it down so I could post it right here, so this will have to do. I'm just a little computer, blog, and website challenged lately. This will have to do, hope you enjoy!

Breathing much easier!

The boy has been found, he is at his mom's house in her care, while we go to Texas to be with our precious grandson Dylan for his 1 year birthday. We didn't know how it was all going to work out with him missing and we were suppose to be leaving. God is in control and we need to just trust him in this whole situation. His mom and him are going to work on things for a little while to see if they can resolve issues without him coming back here, if not we will take him back and try again. Please keep him in your prayers!



God Bless You All for your continued prayer support!!!!!

Breathing a little easier!

Had a phone call from our car insurance company today, stating that if our Rav4 was damaged, due to needing a miracle, it would be covered but if there was any damage to anyone else's property or vehicle, NOTHING would be covered. UGH! Then at about 6:00 we got a phone call that the Rav4 was found, it was parked in front of houses on Friday night, the lights left on. Nobody reported it, one guy said he just moved into the neighborhood and he just figured his neighbor had somebody visiting. The Rav4 was unharmed, AMEN, and we just had the oil changed, so we could see according to the miles that he just drove it to Davenport and parked it.

However, we still have no idea where the boy is. Jim has guardianship, so we would still appreciate your prayers, for him and his protection. We also were going to leave on the 16th to go to Texas to help our grandson celebrate his 1 year birthday, but if we don't find him before then, Jim will probably not be able to leave the state, even if we do find him before then we are not sure what we will do about Jim's airplane ticket because, we won't want to leave him with Curtis, our youngest son, after all this has happened. Please continue to pray for this situation, and thank you for your prayers already because we are breathing a little easier, knowing that he is not driving around in a vehicle with no drivers license.



Lord,

We thank you for the fact that the vehicle is back and the boy is not riding around in it, however, we are very concerned about his protection and well being, please put your loving arms around him, wrap him up, and soften his heart so he will turn himself in, and come back to the ranch, to let you continue to work on his heart. Please watch over him where ever he is, and bring him back safely to us like you did the vehicle. We thank you and praise you in advance for what you are going to do through this whole ordeal that took place.



In Jesus Name,



Amen

We need a miracle!

Christian Clipart

Today we got our new boy as I stated in this post that we would be getting on May 4th. We definitely thought it was of God when we went to get the guardianship just the way things transpired getting him. We got him home, did a work job, Jim and Curtis wrestled around in the front yard with all of the boys, ate supper, did inside chores, and all of the sudden one of the boys, came to tell me, I might want to check on the new boy because he was sitting in the Rav4, (our personal vehicle). I ran out there and he was backing out of the drive way, and peeled out. I called Jim on the cell phone, right away because he was down in the barn, and he took off with the truck through the hay field after him. We still have not found him and this happened about 5 hours ago. He is out there on run, with our personal vehicle, with no license. Please all saints join up with us in prayer, for protection for him, and everyone else he comes in contact with that vehicle. We have the Cedar County Sheriff's office, involved with this, and just pray that he will be found soon. Please pray for his mom also, as this is very hard for her.

Psalm 77:14 "You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples."

Please pray for a miracle for the Miracles Can Happen Boys Ranch.

Off to the Bachelor Pad!

E R I C ---------- E is for Entertaining, R is for Riot, I is for Ingenious and C is for Comical. These are a few words we could use to describe a young man we have grown to love as he has resided here at Miracles Can Happen Boys Ranch since August of 2005.

Eric has completed the Season Level in our program and has now advanced to the Playoff Level. He moved into the bachelor pad, to begin a new phase in his life. While living in the bachelor pad, Eric, will learn how to hold himself accountable, control a check book, what paying bills is all about, and the basics of what it takes to be an adult living on your own. He will strive to make it to the Superbowl, in completing the program by staying in the bachelor pad at least 6 months. When he leaves, we pray that he decides to leave as the winner of the Superbowl. We say that in saying that it is their choice what they want to get out of this program. So, if you think of Eric please pray for him as he is entering the playoffs, taking on new tackles that will be set before him, with new privileges, different passes thrown at him, and needing to decide if he wants to listen to the coach of life, that we all need to listen to, or if he wants to try to be the quarterback that decides his own play to run. Thank you all for joining us in prayer for Eric as he moves forward in this program.

New boy coming May 4th!

As my husband and I have met with different parents in the last month, to fill our empty bed, I found myself in a very hard situation of helping my husband make a decision of which boy we should work with. As I sat listening to each of these mothers, hurting for their sons that they gave birth to, I couldn't help but think of my own son that I gave birth to 23 years ago. I love my son with all my heart, but he is making some choices in his life right now that are not going along with the way his father and I raised him. I, have sat in this living room, for years meeting with several parents, and cried for the mothers as they have hurt for their sons. Now, I sat in my living room, crying not only for these mothers but also for myself and the choices my son is making. I know, though, that God's word is true, and the verse that I painted on the rock at the entrance to this ranch, and the verse that is on our brochures, is the verse I will continue to hold onto. Proverbs 22:6 "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." My God is a Big God and He is not only going to do Miracles in other hurting mom's son's lives, but in my son's life too. The reason I have had a hard time helping my husband make this decision is because I want to help them all, because I am walking some what in their shoes now. The only difference is, my son is an adult and their son is still living under their roof. Please pray for the New boy that we have chosen to come here on the 4th of May, I will reveal his first name later, after we see if the guardianship goes through. Also, we would like you to join us in prayer for our son Cory.

Serving Him,

Recovery from surgery!

One of our boys, James, had to have galbladder surgery at the young age of 16. He is recoverying but can use your prayers, as he goes back to school. Pray that he will be able to catch back up on his school work that he missed out on, and pray for protection from elbows in busy hallways. He was at home with his mom, recovering from the surgery and we received a phone call about an arguement that was going on. Jim talked to James and told him that his mom is going through a lot right now in her life, and he needed to step up and be mature about this whole thing, he understood and hung up the phone. About a half an hour later, his mom called back crying, telling us that what ever Jim said to him thank you, because she just got the biggest hug ever from her son. God is using this young man, in a mighty way, in his families live's by the change they are seeing in his actions. Please pray for James recovery from this surgery and also for his family, when you think about it. His mom especially, she just went through one knee surgery about 6 weeks ago, and now has to have the same knee operated on, this Tuesday because it won't bend properly due to scar tissue. Thank you all for checking this blog, to get updates, please leave a comment so I know if I should keep this going.

ICorinthians 16:19 & 20 "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body."

Heinsite fitness center in our area put on a biggest loser contest, with 47 participants. These participants were trying to see who was the biggest loser and they lost a total of 899 pounds. Before they started this they were explained that the money they paid to enter and the money they had to give for not reaching their goals, was going to go to the #1 winner (loser) to be given to their favorite charity. There was a tie, so they had to share the money to give to the charity of their choice. Guess what, we were both of their choices. So because they were the biggest LOSERS we were the biggest WINNERS and recipients of $1,010.00 to help us run the race God has placed us in. Our God is an Awesome God and uses people in very creative ways to help us continue doing His work.

Sacrifice! Thank you Jesus! Thank you supporters!

Hebrews 7:26-28 "Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever." NIV

Hebrews 26-28 "So now we have a high priest who perfectly fits our needs: completely holy, uncompromised by sin, with authority extending as high as God's presence in heaven itself. Unlike the other high priests, he doesn't have to offer sacrifices for his own sins every day before he can get around to us and our sins. He's done it, once and for all: offered up himself as the sacrifice. The law appoints as high priests men who are never able to get the job done right. But this intervening command of God, which came later, appoints the Son, who is absolutely, eternally perfect." THE MESSAGE

Thank you Jesus for fitting our need; you did it once and for ALL, even for me. Thank you God for appointing your SON, who is absolutely, eternally perfect. Jim and I couldn't do this job of working with these boys daily but you sacrificed your life for us, so that you could forgive us when we mess up trying to deal with these boys. It's not an easy job, but with your help we can do it and we will continue on in the race you have placed us in.

We would like to thank all of you who have sacrificed a part of your life to help us run this race. I especially think of everyone who sacrificed a little to adopt a cow, the cow's are even being used to minister to these boys. The one on one time that Jim or Curtis have while milking the cows has been a great tool. So when you see a cow running in the pasture, think of the boys ranch, the race we are running and say a little extra prayer.

This cow's name is praisin', it's kind of funny to think back of how the proud parents of this adopted cow came up with her name. They were having septic problems with their house, and were praying, thought they were going to have to pay $2,000 to 2,500 to fix their problems but God took care of them so they felt God was telling them to take that $2,000 to buy a cow, so they did and they were praisin God so they named her praisin. We are having septic problems with this cow, she is our dirtiest cow, because the gets down on her front knees and poops, therefore poops all over her bag and is constantly covered in poop. But we just keep praisin the Lord because he is good, and it makes us laugh to think how this cow got her name.

Do not Steal!

Luke 19:19 Jesus replied, " 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself."

Sometimes it is so hard to carry through with our consequences that we have established when it is so major, but we know that we have to be stable, consistent, and follow through with the rules or we might as well hang up what we are trying to teach them. They at times are just testing to see if we are still going to be there for them.

We just had one of the boys, that have been here for a while just get caught stealing at school. With the school rules he got kicked out of school for three days. Our rules when they get kicked out of school are 2 loads of manure everyday they are kicked out. However our rule for stealing is paying back double the amount that was stolen, this really hurts when the item that was stolen is valued $200.00. So this boy has a huge lesson to learn through this. At first when he got caught he was just going to give up, didn't care and was just going to end up in jail when he got out of here anyway. However, our God, is a powerful and loving God and the holy spirit got to working on him while he was loading the manure, his attitude changed, and he worked off his consequences and is ready to try again, and start to accept the fact that he can succeed and that he wants to succeed.

Please pray for this young man, help him to continue to realize that yes, he can be forgiven and move on from here. Jesus knows exactly which one he is.

Thank you for your prayers!

He really does provide!

Phillipians 4:12 "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."

We spoke at Wilton Baptist Church, this past Sunday, where the teen girl attends that said, "Hey, our church has toilet paper collected for you," We were in awe when we walked in the Church, it was lined up on the pulpit and was packed every where. I haven't counted, but from what I can remember the Pastor had counted it and said it was something like 300 rolls of toilet paper, 147 rolls of paper towels, and 70 pairs of socks. Wow! It is so awesome to see the last 15 years living by faith how he does provide our every need! Our God is an Awesome God!!!!

Servants for Christ not in need of toilet paper,

God Really Does Provide Our Every Need!

I Peter 5:5-7 "Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."

You are probably wondering why the toilet paper, right? Well, we are living by faith in this ministry and that means we are even trusting God's people to supply our need of toilet paper. So just to let you know being in ministry sometimes can be a very humbling experience. Did you know........

Before paper was widely available, a variety of materials were employed. The Romans used an L-shaped stick (like a hockey stick) made of wood or precious metal; at public toilets people used sponges on sticks that were kept in saltwater between uses. In arid climates, sand, powdered brick, or earth was used. Until the late nineteenth century, Muslims were advised to use three stones to clean up. One favorite tool was a mussel shell, used for centuries. Until the early twentieth century, corn cobs were used.

In the late fifteenth century, when paper became widely available, it began to replace other traditional materials. Sometimes old correspondence was pressed into service, as were pages from old books, magazines, newspapers, and catalogs. People also used old paper bags, envelopes, and other bits of scrap paper, which were cut into pieces and threaded onto a string that was kept in the privy.

Well, I said all this to say, I think our boys here at the ranch would rather be a little embarrassed when a teen 'girl' comes up to him in school to say "Hey, our church has toilet paper collected for you," instead of having to use magazines, newspapers or corn cobs in the privy.

So saying all that, thank you all who have helped us teach these boys about humility, by donating toilet paper for us to use in the privy.

I will continue to cast my anxiety on him to continue to supply our toilet paper need so I don't have to use corn cobs.

Hope you enjoyed the funny post!

Humbled servants,

He will never leave you!

Christian Clipart

Deuteronomy 31:8 (New International Readers Version) "The Lord himself will go ahead of you. He will be with you. He will never leave you. He'll never desert you. So don't be afraid. Don't lose hope."

We just did a very hard thing here at the ranch, something we have only had to do 3 other times in the last 15 years of this ministry. We just had to let the #34th boy go from this program, he was only here 8 months and because of some choices he made, we decided we can't help a young man that doesn't want to help himself. Some of the last words we, Jim, Cathy and Curtis, said to him was:

• Curtis said, "You hurt me bad it really hurt me but...... I forgive you and I love ya, man"



• Cathy said, "I hated your actions but I love you and the only way you will ever make it in life is if you turn to Jesus, because HE is the only true one that can help you."



• Jim said, "I really don't feel like hugging you right now but I'm going to anyway, I'm giving up on you, but Jesus will never give up on you."

We learned to love this young man through Christ's love and it is very hard having him as a part of our life trying to teach him right from wrong, and then having to let him go, knowing that he was choosing to still go down the wrong path. We know though that our GOD is a GOD of MIRACLES and HE used US to plant the seeds and HE will send SOMEONE ELSE to water it and HE is the only one that can make it GROW!

I Corinthians 3:5-7 "What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow."

Lord, Jim and I, know we are nothing, you have just chose us as your servant to be your tool, to just touch a portion of this young man's life, but we know that you are EVERYTHING to us and we trust someday you will be EVERYTHING to this young man, because you are a God of MIRACLES. Please just watch over him as he leaves our home, and put you arms around him and give him that hug everynight that we are not able to do now. We thank you in advance for what you are going to do in this young man's life and we thank you for letting us be a part of his life for the 8 months he was here. In Jesus Name, Amen

Miracles Happen Even Today!

Psalm 77:14 "You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples."

Jim and I would like to be able to share daily or weekly little miracles that are taking place at Miracles Can Happen Boys Ranch through this blog that will be posted on the website. We are in awe of what God has done at the ranch in the last 15 years. It has been a rough ride but a very awesome ride at the same time. Please feel free leave a comment; either a prayer, a word of encouragement, or a question if you have any. I hope to use this as a journal, to keep track of the daily, weekly, or monthly miracles God performs here at the ranch. He is the God who performs miracles.