December Ministry Update!

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 5 Months Down, 5 More to Go! 

 

I cannot believe I’m already half way done with the Apprenticeship! I am so thankful for the ways you all have supported me and prayed for me throughout this process. These past ten months have shaped me both as a disciple and as a minister. God has been working in really neat ways throughout this past semester and I’m so glad I get to share it with you!  

 

Sermons: In December, I’ve had the opportunity to give two sermons. The first sermon I gave was to just one staff member, a guest, and two other apprentices. This was for what we call a “Preaching Lab.” Preaching Labs provide apprentices with the opportunity to practice writing and delivering sermons. We are given feedback and encouragements, and they have overall been so helpful. For this sermon, I preached on Psalm 13, which has been a Psalm that has impacted and transformed the way I relate to God. In Psalm 13, David is honest with God about the loneliness he is experiencing and the lies he is starting to believe about God. It is so encouraging to me to see David have this honest and raw relationship with God highlighted in the Scriptures. Because David is reaching out to God in these times of despair, God is able to transform David’s thoughts and emotions. Preaching on this text was a great reminder to let God and others in on the lies I can believe about God, myself, and others. The second sermon that I preached was in front of our whole staff team. The prompt was “This is My Gospel.” Preparing this sermon has been the most transformative part of the apprenticeship thus far. It was so impactful for me to process how God has related to me and brought me into relationship with Him. In our Ministry Essentials class, one of our pastors/teachers, Ronnie, has encouraged us to think through how God has personalized the Gospel to me and how that continues to work itself out in my life. This grew my affections for the Lord greatly and reminded me of just how much God has saved me from. Giving this sermon was the perfect end to the semester! 

 

 

I love my apprentice friends! Getting to do life with them and learn alongside them has been such a gift. 

Classes: So far, we have taken classes on the Old Testament, Evangelism, Financial Stewardship, and the Holy Spirit. These have all played a major role in reframing and shaping how I view and approach these topics. In December we spent most of our class time reading and learning about the Holy Spirit. This class was extremely challenging for me, but it was also so beneficial. My major takeaway from this class was to think through how I can rely more on the person and role of the Holy Spirit. In January, we are starting our New Testament class, which I am so excited for! We will also be continuing our ongoing Ministry Essentials, Spiritual Leadership, and Spiritual Maturity classes! 

 

 

Our sweet staff team gave the apprentices stockings full of letters! I am so blessed to be a part of this staff! 

Deep Dive: We finished our Deep Dive series on the Gospel of Mark at the beginning of December. This series was a huge blessing to our students, but it blessed me as well! Throughout the semester, Rhett, one of our staff members, took the campus through the Gospel of Mark one chapter at a time. His teachings were in-depth and ministered to our students in really powerful ways. This was actually my first time studying Mark and gosh, it is full of good stuff! You can view all of our Deep Dive videos here at www.twitch.tv/utdfocus

 

 

December was a unique month due to most of our students being home for Winter Break. I’ve missed them all so much and I can’t wait to get all of our cores, fellowship nights, and one on ones started back up again. Here is how you can be praying for our ministry this month:

 

-Please pray that our students will be able to maintain the momentum that started last semester. Sometimes a long break can be a hard thing to come back from. 

-Pray that my core will continue to grow to be friends with one another. Deep, spiritual friendships is a key value that FOCUS has!

-Pray that I will be able to minister to the students well. 

-Please be praying for our staff as we start to think through our student leadership for the upcoming school year. 

-Pray that me and my cofa (co-facilitator) Alex will be able to mature our core girls as disciples of Jesus! 





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