December blog

 Merry Christmas friends and family! I hope this season brings you all great joy, peace, and Jesus's abundant goodness in your lives and those around you!

A psalm for encouragement to you in this Christmas season:

"The poor will eat and be satisfied. All who seek the Lord will rejoice with everlasting joy. The whole earth will acknowledge the Lord and return to him. All the families of the nations will bow down before Him. For royal power belongs to the Lord. He rules all the nations. Psalm 22:26-28 (NLT). This is from the devotional app called: "Lectio 365" that I love listening to, and would highly recommend!

 I have been reflecting on the verse in Isaiah 55:8 which says: "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord". The same devotional from above also discussed this verse and had this to say: "There is considerable comfort in trusting God's sovereignty when I can't fathom his purposes." As I take time to reflect in this Christmas season and on what Christ has done, its hard to fathom all that God did to sacrifice His son to save us and bring us true freedom and life. I've been trying to just allow the truth of who He is and what He's done for us simply wash over me, and fill my thoughts even when it doesn't make sense, and to push back on the distractions and stress of gifts, family plans, friends etc. instead of simply focusing on our Lord who is the reason for our celebrating. I hope this encourages you as it did for me.  

                                                                    All staff Christmas dinner!

This is just a picture of our Denton staff team, but every year we end the semester with a Christmas dinner for all FOCUS college campus staff—about 60 people total. It’s something we always look forward to. Each table has different questions to help us reflect on how the semester went and share the unique ways God moved across the DFW campuses. Since every campus operates so differently, it’s really special to hear everyone’s stories!

                                                             All girl's peer team meeting!

We meet with our student leaders every other week, rotating between meetings with all the girls, smaller groups led by different women on staff, or combined with the guy leaders. This change of routine helps us hear often more in depth from what is going on in the different girls lives. This meeting was extra special since it was held at Cathryn and I's home, and I love getting to host to a full room! We discussed various areas in their life that might be a source of difficulty in some way, and what they thought was an area of change they could make. We took time to express gratitude for people we often take for granted, and ended by encouraging them to have a restful break focused on God, not just entertainment that often drains them.

                                                             Combined Holiday core!                                  Instead of doing a Christmas party this year with our entire ministry, we decided to try something new, and have our small groups pair up with a girl and guy group to do a Christmas devotional together, bring Thanksgiving/ Christmas foods to eat together, meet new people from the community that you cant usually do at a large group, and just have fun with one another! This was just one of the many groups that got together at different ministry homes throughout that week!

Corefa Christmas hangout!

Again we got to host at Cathryn and I's house for a bonfire with S'mores in the backyard, Christmas coloring, and games! This was just a hangout to help our leaders destress from their finals, and be together one last time before they went home for break, it was super sweet!

Christmas service at Church!

Every year at DNC (Denton North Church), we don't do a regular service, we just have a potluck meal, and sing Christmas songs. The most recent years, we've been blessed with a time of songs from the little kids at our church. I just wanted to highlight how big of a deal this is for at least our church. When I first started coming to this church my freshman year of college in 2019, there were maybe two children total. Its really heart warming to see how many sweet children our church has been blessed with several years later, and I also work in the kids ministry, and have gotten to see many of them grow up and love God!

Chloe's graduation!

Chloe (in the middle-pink sweater), graduated TWU this December along with Kenedy (to the right of me)! This whole group photo warms my heart so much because the three girls in the middle are a few of the girls that I lead small group with alongside Rian (very right) when I was a still a student in college. These girls were freshman when I was senior, and one of my favorite things about doing ministry has been getting to see girls that I discipled or that God just placed in my life, and getting to see how much he has grown them and shaped them throughout their time in our ministry! Chloe will be going to Dallas Theological Seminary starting this January to get a theology degree, and Kenedy will be starting PA school next fall, so proud of them both! Please join me in prayer over their futures!

Cassy's birthday party!

Cassy (in the middle) was someone I led small group with at TWU last year, and Laniah is in my peer team and who I mentor each week and has become a good friend and a highlight from my semester! Both of them are huge blessings, and I love continuing to stay connected to different students in our ministry even after we don't see each other as often.

Student Testimony!

Thank you all for your abundant generosity and love,

Blessings and Peace,

Keanna