September blog!
Hi friends & family! We are in the groove of the school year, and things are starting to have routine. Our students are starting to get closer to each other, begin to understand the value of community, and growing in knowing Christ more deeply! Thank you all for your intentional support of college students!
Student baptism!
One of the best parts of working in campus ministry is getting to see the quick turnover and willingness of young people who are boldly proclaiming their faith! I love that our church carves out intentional time at the end of service as an opportunity for members of our body to be baptized! This is two of our student leaders, and its just awesome to see how the spirit transforms our lives!
Trip to South Padre!
A group of people from our ministry, some staff, lots of student leaders, and some alumni wanted to do a triathlon that was being hosted at South Padre beach. Several of us just came to support, and have a chance to bond with each other. It was such a wonderful weekend getting to know many of our student leaders more since it can be hard to know our large leader team individually, so it was a huge blessing!
Turkish breakfast!
One of our staff responsibilities is to do core visits which is where we periodically visit the small groups that the leaders who we mentor on a weekly basis lead. We do this as a chance for the members of these small groups to have familiarity with the campus ministry staff, for our staff to get to know more of the students on a deeper level, and to give helpful feedback for the leading styles of our leaders! We were pretty unsure what this year would look like for our TWU ministry since we were going to be losing several leaders from this past year due to schooling changes. God has hugely blessed the TWU ministry this year with small groups that have been larger than previous years, and just a clear excitement for God and community! The ministry at TWU over the years has fluctuated, and posed challenges during certain years, but God has been clear that He is still at work here, praise God!
Due to our ministry growing so quickly over the past 2-3 years, something brand new that has been a possibility for several years, and has now happened is we have decided to go forward with splitting our TWU ministry from our UNT ministry for the fellowship services! Last week was our first ever week to do this, and it took a lot to think through for our staff in terms of the new equipment we would need, figuring out which staff members would be where, and many things in between. However, we had a wonderful turnout from our TWU students, and are hopeful for the future as it will allow our twu students to easily be able to stay on campus for the fellowship nights opposed to having to find carpooling to the unt campus, and it provides a way for twu to have a greater reach for those on campus who can hopefully join in during the future weeks. Since I am a twu alumni, it is so special getting an inside scoop on the ways that we have experienced such growth that we are able to start branching out and seeing how God will move in the specific college campuses since they each have varying needs.
I gave a sermon this first week of splitting the campuses which means that our staff members will have to preach twice in the same night. We are doing a series over the foundations of who Jesus really is, and who we are to be as his people. I shared over the passage: Matthew 6:25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? "
A song that I had our students journal and reflect on at the end of my sharing was: Bing Videos
I would highly recommend the song as it really helps us as disciples to surrender our often consuming thoughts over worry in exchange for God's peace, and an invitation to grow in our trust in God taking care of our every need.
Please join me in prayer for the coming weeks as we navigate what our new fellowship nights will look like at TWU, and that we would lean on God for discernment on how he wants us to serve them well! Also, that our staff will find a new rhythm as in figuring out being at two places in one night.
30 Year Focus event!
What is the FOCUS 30-Year Celebration?
This event celebrates 30 years of God working through FOCUS on college campuses across DFW. We’ll gather with alumni, students, staff, donors, and friends to worship, reconnect, and celebrate what God has done.
Who is invited?
Everyone is welcome! Whether you’re an alumni, donor, current student, from our churches, or even just a friend of FOCUS we’d love for you to come celebrate with us.
Do I need to RSVP?
You do not need to RSVP in order to attend! But it is encouraged so that your old friends and classmates can see if you are coming!
Is there a cost to attend?
No cost! It is free for all to come enjoy and celebrate with us.
Please see more information here:
30 Year Landing Page - (anyfocus.org)
Student Testimony!
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