Hi friends and family! Hope you all are well and have a very Happy Halloween! October in ministry each year is always the best because we take our students to a Fall Retreat, and it was our biggest yet smoothest year yet! I am always so encouraged by it, and hope you feel encouraged by the photos, and the experiences I'll share about below!
Hispanic worship night!
This was the second year that this event has been put on by our students! These sorts of events are my favorite because I just love getting to hear about how much people's culture, and upbringing have helped shaped their relationship with God positively. They had different students come up to share on their personal experiences, a dance to a worship song, and so many songs that connected personally to those who grew up with them!
Church in the park!
The past few years in the fall, our church is unable to meet at the building we typically do, so we get to do church at a nearby park together! This is really sweet to share a time of worship publicly for others around us to see and be encouraged by. We got to spend a portion of the time praying over one another in small groups, and that was just another way that our church feels like a family.
After the service, we had one of our student leaders, Alex get baptized! I love that not just our Focus community gets to support one another, but that our students also get to be loved on by our church itself!
Daniel's baptism!
Another baptism that we had after church a few weeks ago from one of our student leaders! His story was super neat because he had not planned on joining a Christian community when he came to college, and just experienced people pursuing, and being intentional with him in a way he hadn't experienced before, and that was so impactful that he dove fully in and now is a leader! In both of the baptisms mentioned, they were baptized by the ones that led them through our one-on-one bible studies, where they built an in-depth friendship as they grew in relationship to Christ with one another. As much as I love seeing our staff members get to baptize our students, I even more love getting to see our student leaders doing it and getting to see them take initiative in this way.
Wedding & engagement time!
Madai & Gordon's wedding was so beautiful! Madai is a TWU grad student who is in a PhD program, but her first year in focus, she was in my small group, was a small group leader herself, and now is married! Gordon, her husband went to UTD and was also a part of Focus there, so it was great getting to see many of the students that we know and love from that campus at the wedding! Something that stood out to me is that they spent time honoring and thanking specific people during their wedding, and one of the people they thanked was previously in Focus, and generously paid for their wedding cake! In our ministry we talk a lot about what it looks like to live a life of generosity and getting to see a previous student actually doing this in such a sacrificial way was so neat!
Victoria & Ayamae's engagement party- I got to host this for them both which was so special. Victoria is one of my closest friends and someone I've known since middle school. They met in Focus a few years ago at a leadership conference that we do every year in Washington State called SICM (Student Institute of Campus Ministry). They are one of the best examples for the students in our ministry of what it looks like to put God at the center of a relationship, as well as making an effort to befriend those around them and bring them into the relationship and not isolating themselves. So many of our students have benefitted from experiencing the thoughtfulness of how they have dated in an honoring way, and I'm so excited to see them in this new season of marriage!
Fall Retreat 2025!
Our biggest event this month was our retreat—always a favorite! It gives students a break from school stress and helps them bond deeply with their small groups. In recent years, we’ve added the “Camp Cup,” where opposite-gender small groups team up, pick a color, and compete in fun relay games for points. Before retreat, they meet for a combined small group to build connection early.
Beyond the games, the most meaningful part is the messages. We’ve been blessed to have Ronnie—who founded Focus over twenty years ago and pastored one of our main Garland churches—come share wisdom from his lifelong walk with God. His message this year reminded us to endure trials, trust God deeply, and root our identity in how He sees us.
We also feature student interviews so peers can share how they’ve trusted God through challenges, and this is always a highlight for our students because they get to hear from those in their same stage of life. One highlight was Jenna, a former co-leader of mine and a great example of faithfulness. I was so proud of her vulnerability and her encouragement to others through her sharing with our students.
We have one month left until the end of the fall semester! And that means…
Keep FOCUS Growing!
Our goal is to raise $73,000 to support FOCUS and allow us to continue planting at new community colleges and universities in the DFW area. This is an exciting campaign! We will be sharing students’ stories all throughout the month, so stay tuned for those at the link below!
Thank you all so much for your continuous pouring out of love and generosity towards me, it never goes unseen by me. I'm so grateful more than you know!
Blessings and peace,
Keanna
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