September Ministry Update!

Hey guys! 

Thanks for checking out my September blog! God has been working in such incredible and unique ways this semester. I wanted to start this post by sharing some good news!

• I met one of the girls in my core during an online event at the beginning of the semester. She has been consistent, available, and teachable! I know God is going to use her in powerful ways throughout the rest of her time in college.
• Another girl in my core has been asking questions about what it means to be a spiritual leader in college! During quarantine, she grew interested in walking with God and decided to dive into Scripture on her own for the first time. God used that time in her life to prepare her for a lifetime of knowing Him and guiding others into a relationship with Him!
• I had the opportunity to start bringing World Prayer into our community. We are starting this on our social media accounts and will hopefully get to do World Prayer events when we are allowed to meet on the campus in person!

Ministry at UTD

Core: Our core has been going really well! We have 2 girls in core that are brand new to the ministry. They are so eager to be involved in biblical community and have grown so much throughout the past two months. There are also 4 other girls in core that have been involved in FOCUS for a couple years. I’ve loved getting to know them and their hearts for God as well. During our time in core, we have discussed things such as the gift of community, knowing God and Scripture well, our purpose as disciples, and the character of God. Core has easily been one of the most encouraging parts of the apprenticeship so far. These girls are very eager to learn more about walking with God and how to share that with the people around them.

Just a couple of gals goofing off after core! These girls are always up to something silly :) 

Deep Dive: Each Friday, we have an hour long teaching streamed for our students. Lately, we have been streaming this outside at our church building for the people that are in town. It has been really sweet to see the other people in the community each week! One of our campus pastors, Rhett, has been walking us through the gospel of Mark. We have learned so much from Rhett, but I have been thinking specifically about his teaching on chapter four for a while now. He walked us through the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:1-20), and encouraged us to think through how we respond to Jesus and what kind of “soil” that makes us. I encourage you guys to do the same! Here is a link to the parable.

These are our students at a Deep Dive watch party! 

Outreach Class: This is something I am really excited about! Our staff team has been working hard to figure out how to encourage our students to reach out to their classmates, roommates, friends, etc. We are specifically wanting to train our first year students to participate in outreach on campus! We believe strongly that God wants to use them now, even though they are new to our ministry. Please be praying that students will sign up for this class and will take Jesus’ command to make disciples to heart. As a ministry, we strive to make disciples that make disciples. We want to see God’s Kingdom grow on the college campus, and God wants to include our students in His work!

Classes

I am so thankful I get to take classes during the apprenticeship. I have already learned so much, and I am so eager to continue doing so. Taking these classes is one of the most important things we can do as first year ministers. What we believe about God and this world matters, so it is important we have given these beliefs serious thought and consideration. In our Old Testament Foundations class, we’ve spent considering what it meant for the Israelites to be a people of God in and after the exile. While the Israelites during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah lived in a drastically different world than we do now, that question is still applicable to us today. In the New Testament, we are reminded that we should live in this world as foreigners. Therefore, we must also consider what it means to be the people of God during “exile.” I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this!

I just love working with Andrea! We've decided that we're a dynamic duo. 

Prayer requests

• Please be praying for endurance for me, the rest of FOCUS staff, and our students! Pray that we will continue to work hard and be as on fire for God as we were when the semester started.
• Please pray that our ministry will develop leaders this year. Our hope is that we can encourage all of our students to take ownership of their role in the Great Commission!
• Please be praying for our upcoming outreach class. Pray that students attend and that our staff can effectively cast a vision for making disciples. God wants to include us in His work on campus. What a gift!
• Pray that my core girls will continue to develop deep friendships with each other.

Thank you for taking the time to read my ministry update! God is working at UTD and it is an honor to be a part of it. As always, please let me know how I can pray for you! I am so appreciative of all the support you guys have shown me, so I’d love to do the same for you in any way I can! Love you all! 

Here is our student testimony for the month of October!