August 2004

Sunday, August 1 -- Boubacar is one of the most well mannered people that you would ever want to meet. There is, however, one outstanding, apparent and rather negative thing in his life.........he is in prison. Last year while the Bolls were in the US Boubacar took over the prison fellowship and leads in its Bible study. Pray for Boubacar. It is encouraging to have someone willing to take a stand for Christ in a leadership position in such circumstances.

Monday, August 2 -- Charity's sister Emily is volunteering in Niger this summer for 6 weeks. Please pray as Charity and Emily work together in Niamey and in the village of Waru ministering to women and children.

Tuesday, August 3 -- This next month, Faith will be finishing up the Chronological Bible Storying with the villages by ending with the Jesus film. Pray for their hearts to be softened, that when they see the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullness, they will believe and accept it as their Salvation. Pray that they will choose life and not death, blessings and not curses. Pray also that they will have the boldness to go against the persecution they know they will face to follow Jesus.

Wednesday, August 4 -- Please pray for the Leaders at the various groups that meet together to study God's word. Many times they are depending on the Holy Spirit, many of the leaders can speak more than one language, but they cannot read. Pray for their memories to remember the truths that were taught, either by another Christian or by the Spirit.

Thursday, August 5-- Pray for Ben and Cindy Sustar, and their children Rachel, Christin, and Karis as they prepare to join the Zerma team in August. Pray for their health and well-being and for the difficult process of packing bags and saying goodbye to family and friends. Ben and Cindy will be serving as church planters in Niamey.

Friday, August 6 -- Seyni may be the only Christian in his village. We have planned to take the Mobile Center there for about a month of study and learning culminating in showing of the Jesus film. Pray for Seyni to be encouraged and his village to come to know Christ as Savior.

Saturday, August 7 -- Just as one seed planted in the ground can yield a stalk of millet with hundreds more seeds, pray that the seeds of the gospel planted in the lives of the Zerma would multiply itself a hundredfold. Pray for churches that would reproduce, and believers who have a passion and vision for reaching the lost.

Sunday, August 8 -- Pray for the churches in the US who are planning trips to Niger to minister with our career missionaries. Pray that God would provide funding, that supervisors would be generous with those who need time off, and that the paths would be made very clear for those who are called to go.

Monday, August 9 -- Please pray for the women of Goudel who are interested in hearing about Jesus. Pray that they will be willing to set some time aside to hear stories from God's Word.

Tuesday, August 10 -- Rains have been late in coming to the Ouallam area. Some areas near Ouallam have received rain but very little has come to near and around town farms. Sometimes I wonder if sin and a general refusal of Christ hold back God's blessings. Please pray for some very poor hungry suffering people lost without Christ.

Wednesday, August 11 -- "If you will not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." (Isa. 7:9) Continue to pray for the believers in and around Torodi. Pray for them to stand strong in their faith, bearing witness to the love of God, and also to encourage one another in their faith.

Thursday, August 12 -- The Mobile Center continues to be going well. Pray that the Bolls would let it develop into the work that the Lord wants - that we would minister to the villages where God is calling us. Pray that as rains come we will still be able to have the classes, especially the Bible classes. Thank you for your prayers, it has been amazing as doors have opened in various villages. Pray for strength and wisdom as the Bolls teach and travel.

Friday, August 13 -- Please continue to pray for Salifou, a Muslim friend, as he reads the Bible and compares it with the Quran. Pray that God would open the eyes of his heart and lead him to conviction and understanding of the truth of scripture and the claims of Christianity. Pray for his salvation and that of his family.

Saturday, August 14 -- Pray for the projects that Charity and Emily will do in Waru. Pray that even though it is farming time, that God would prepare women and children to have the desire and the time to listen to the stories and participate in the activities that will tell them about the way, the truth and the life.

Sunday, August 15 -- Pray for Mark and Deanna Ledlow. They have seen their work change very much since their arrival 6 years ago: they spend much more time doing administrative work now and less time in touch with the people themselves; pray that they will be encouraged for the task. Isaiah 58:11 says "The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame."

Monday, August 16 -- "Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go." (Jos. 1:16) The next few months, we have non-stop volunteers coming for the Zarma team. Pray for these people as they prepare to come here, physically and spiritually, to serve their Lord. Pray that they will be faithful in the task that God has called them to do. Please pray for the seeds they will plant, that they will grow and produce a HUGE harvest by the Spirit of the Lord.

Tuesday, August 17 -- Faith has a married couple, Matt and Brooke Holtzman, coming to visit her. They met in college and have been very close friends since. They will be coming to do what is called a "Vision Trip", to see what kind of needs are here for any future mission trips. Pray for them as they prepare to come, and also for their time here.

Wednesday, August 18 -- Praise the Lord for the way He continues to work in the life of Zongo; she can not only see with physical eyes but has been coming to church, she gives the praise and glory to Jesus Christ and knows it is He that gives sight to the blind. I (Teresa Bolls) wish words could express the feelings and excitement as I sat on the mat when she returned from a 6 week stay in Niamey, with the operation then the recovery time. To hear her and watch her as she saw again things -- her grandson she had never seen, her home that was burned then rebuilt, her grandchildren that had grown so much in the past year. Pray that she will continually give the praise and glory to the source of sight - and that she would truly "see" and experience the sight that only Jesus can give.

Thursday, August 19 -- We are nearing the end of our main growing season, (June, July, Aug.) when most food is grown to last until the next year. Pray for the farmers as they are now preparing to harvest. Pray that they would have strength and endurance to get them through the long, hot, days and that God would provide for their physical needs as they gather and store enough to last through the non-growing times.

Friday, August 20 -- We firmly believe that God is working in the hearts of Zerma across Niger. Pray that God would continue to draw Zerma men, women, and chldren draw to himself and that he would lead believers to those who are responsive.

Saturday, August 21 --- "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this, the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you' " (John 15:18-20). Pray that those in Niger who suffer because of their faith will be strengthened by the knowledge that they suffer for Jesus.

Sunday, August 22 -- Many people of Niger are getting sick with malaria this time of year. Pray for our missionaries to have patience and discernment in dealing with those coming for help.

Monday, August 23 -- Pray for the children of our missionaries who are just starting back to school. Jeremy Ledlow will be a senior in high school this fall and so must make choices that will affect his future. Pray that he will be obedient to God's leading.

Tuesday, August 24 -- Do something different in your prayer time today. Try a snack...invite some friends over and pray for the Zerma people while you enjoy fellowship over a typical food from Niger.

Cecena
In Niger, cecena is usually eaten in the late afternoon as a snack or as an early evening meal. It can be eaten alone with a dip made of tomatoes, onions, green peppers, and spicy peppers. It can also be eaten as a sandwich made of a baguette, split open, a few cecena stuffed inside and the dip poured over top.

2 cups black-eyed beans
1 small onion
1 egg
2 cups cooking oil salt hot pepper

Wash beans and soak for about 2 hours. Remove skins by rubbing a few of them together at a time in your hands. Use a blender to grind the beans into a smooth paste. Chop onion and pepper finely. Blend into the bean mixture and beat for about 5 minutes. Add salt. Beat thoroughly for 5 minutes. Add beaten egg to improve food value and to make the mixture light. Heat cooking oil. Deep fry mixture a tablespoon at a time until golden brown. Drain.

Wednesday, August 25 -- Praise the Lord as he continues to provide the talent, the wisdom, the strength. It is amazing to see how He will put someone in our path that has the talent that has been needed. As Teresa is putting health booklets together to be distributed in the hands of the village students, God is providing the artist that will be drawing, correcting and perfecting the pictures so that the villagers can read the pictures. Praise the Lord for His perfect timing.

Thursday, August 26 -- Pray for our Christian walk and witness. Being the only American, the only white person -- the only Christian, the only Jesus -- that many will ever see, is humbling. Pray that we would truly be the witness that we should be. Pray that we would have the patience and love that we should for the Zerma people so that they might come to know the Lord as a loving and forgiving Savior.

Friday, August 27 -- Pray for all those leaders and pastors who prepare sermons and minister without the many resources that we take for granted in the US. Pray that their needs will be met, and that training and reference materials would be made available.

Saturday, August 28 -- The demands of ministry and daily living can often be spiritually draining. Pray that each member of our team would be committed to walking with the Lord on a daily basis, spending time in the Word and in prayer. Pray that God would fill us with His Holy Spirit enabling us to do more than we can think, ask or even desire.

Sunday, August 29 -- Pray that the Zerma people would see Jesus for who He is: "Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the father." Pray that the day would be hastened when every knee in Niger will bow and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Monday, August 30 -- "He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free." Psalm 146:7 Pray for the Zerma people, many of whom are in bondage to mixtures of Islam and animism, that they would be set free from their spiritual prisons and fed with the Bread of Life. Ninety-eight percent of all people in the Niger Republic are Muslim, however the largest majority do not actively practice this belief. Also, 0.7% are Animistic. Only 0.4% are Christians. This is why there is so much work to do. There are 2,805,823 Zerma in the country, and of us there are only 0.1% who are Christian. Also, 10.2% of Zerma are able to read, which is more than the other ethnic groups.

Tuesday, August 31 -- "I know, O Lord, that a man's life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps." (Jer. 10:23) Faith has four more months here before her term is up, and the big question hangs in the air, "What are you going to do next?" Pray for her as she continues to seek God's leading in her life. Pray for her as she trusts in Him and that she will be sensitive to His voice. Pray that she will not grow anxious as the time get shorter and shorter, and that she will simply rest and let HIM lead!

" I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you: I will sing praise to your name, O Most High." Psalm 9:1-2