Life Promotions

Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 2:8, “We loved you so much that we gave you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too.”

Many of you know my special needs sister, Lois, or have seen her with me on some of my speaking trips when I’ve brought her on stage.  Lois has lived with our family for the past 11 years since my parents passed away.  Our youngest child, Tim, is 19 and just finished his first year of college. While most people in our situation would be preparing for an empty nest, we have come to accept that we would probably never experience that, knowing that Lois would always need care and live with us.  It comes with so many joys, and many challenges. But I always knew that if our family put Lois in an institution that it would qualify as my mom’s unforgivable sin.

Two months ago we attended a meeting with Lois’ case worker. During the meeting Lois put her head down and said, “Bob, I’ve got something to tell you.” I got a little nervous because I could see she was feeling uncomfortable.  She said, “I don’t want to hurt your feelings… but I WANT TO MOVE OUT.”

I had to pick my jaw up off the floor, and I thought, “What in the world?  She’s 55 years old!”  But she continued, “You know Joanne?”  (Joanne is her best friend that she grew up with – also a special needs person.) “Her parents just died,” Lois said. “And her brothers and sisters think its best if she moves into a house instead of living with them. So her and Julie (another special needs friend) are moving in and asked me to be their roommate.”

I sat stunned in disbelief, going through a million reasons in my mind why it couldn’t work, and trying to understand what I just heard.  But then she said, “Tim always wants to be with his friends and I want to be with my friends, too.”

Wow.  I knew we had to try and figure out a way to let her try this.  I’d feel guilty if we didn’t!  So, we began doing our homework and met with the other families and the organization that would provide the caregivers. And of course… prayer.  “God is this you? Is this the loving thing to do? Is this what’s best for Lois?”

A week after Lois dropped this bombshell, we got a call from the people who were renting our parent’s home, which we still own. It’s where we all grew up. The renters had been living there for seven years and we were shocked to hear them say, “We bought a house and will be moving out.”

Are you following where this is going? Yep, Lois got to move back into the home where she grew up and lived for more than 40 years, back in her own room! When she found out she began crying and said, “I get to walk around my old block and live in my old neighborhood? Do you think that anything changed in my room, Bob? And do you think the toilet still leaks?”

Wow, what a God thing. His timing is amazing. It’s now been more than a month since she moved out, and she loves it. We miss her like crazy, but we still get to pick her and her two friends up for church.

We can’t believe it, but we’re empty nesters. My wife Carol says that she believes God may be freeing us up to do ministry together in a different way. We’ve already planned to go together to some of my upcoming speaking engagements, something we were rarely able to do because someone needed to stay home to care for Lois.

We have a sense that the best years of ministry at Life Promotions are still to come. We’ll continue to bring hope to youth around the nation, and promote a renewed calling to bring the church back to evangelism and share the gospel with kids before they turn 18.

Lois will always be part of our family and she may even show up on some more stages with me throughout the country. Her life, her story, and the person that she is will continue to touch so many, and make it clear that every life is valuable and has purpose, even when we can’t understand it.

Are we open to change even when it can be hard? Know that when it’s God, it will bring glory to His name and continue to advance the Kingdom. Pray for us as we continue to share the gospel and the value of every life with youth across the nation.

For the Kingdom,

Bob Lenz

Founder & President
Life Promotions, Inc.

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