August: In Full Swing

Welcome Week

At UNT, the week before classes start is really crucial to our ministry. Freshmen and a few upperclassmen move in at the beginning of the week to get settled and ready for the year. The university has these freshmen participate in a lot of events and seminars to prepare them for their next four to ten years. During this time, our ministry is super active, reaching out to these students to offer friendship and let them know there is a loving community here for them. 

Move in day at one of the dorms on campus. Don't make fun of my face, the sun was directly in my eyes!

As new students are moving in, we were there to welcome them to their new home and start inviting them to hangout with us! We helped move a lot of things, although I was pretty good at getting other people to carry the mini fridges. Leadership is delegation, right? Something like that. 

Some returning students and new students playing lawn games and enjoying the sunshine during UNT's Mean Green Fling.

Our student leaders (corefas) were on campus every day, giving their time to show people Jesus' heart for them. On Tuesday, some leaders hosted a game night at their house and so many students showed up! I talked to one girl, Lindsay, who was asking a lot of questions about FOCUS. She asked me what made FOCUS different than the rest of the ministries on campus and, when I told her how we really love one on one ministry, she got so excited! She is a Christian and is involved in church but has never studied the Bible individually with someone or been discipled. Now, she's ready to jump in! That conversation just reminded me that there are so many students who are wanting to know the Lord better, they just don't know how to get there. I've been so encouraged just to see the role this ministry can play in anyone's life, whether they know Jesus or not. God is really bringing the harvest on college campuses, no matter where someone is in their relationship to Him.

Our first FNF!

We had our first Friday Night Fellowship at the end of welcome week. After a few kinks in the beginning, the night went so well! So many students came and almost everyone I talked to had already been reached out to by someone in our ministry. It was a great start to the year. Thank you for your prayers for the start of our semester, God definitely came through!

People were fascinated by our giant beach ball game of keep it up!

We have planned outreach times every Tuesday and Friday and we kicked those off a couple of days ago with a 6-foot beach ball. Outreach is some of our more structured time designed to get students know who we are and that they can have friends here. Let me tell you, if you have a large group of people who want to have a lot of fun, invest in one of these bad boys, you won't regret it! Random people kept coming up to us before we had a chance to invite them just because it looked so fun. I met this one girl, Ducky, and she is so sweet! She told me how she had friends last year but they all graduated or moved away so she was kind of alone and really wanted to make new friends. Although she didn't have great experiences with church growing up, she's willing to try it out again with us! These are the people we get to encounter on our campuses every week and show the love of Jesus.

Deflating this ball was a challenge! Pictured clockwise starting with Kristen sitting in the middle: Ducky, Alyssa (probably inviting someone to outreach), Mia, me, Brittany.

Leaders are Readers

The apprentices started our classes! From left: Alex, Brittany, Abbie, Emily M., Emily U., Sam, me, Drew, Amber, Ryan, Darby, Jesse.

As part of my apprenticeship, I have class twice a week. During the first two weeks before welcome week, we start by reading through large chunks of the Old Testament every day. By the end of October, we will have read through all of the Old Testament. Gosh, reading through the Israelites' story has been so amazing, especially in such a short amount of time. It's crazy to see how consistent, how loving, how relentless, how patient our God is. He wants all people to know Him and He wants to use us to do that. I'm just so grateful to serve a God as holy and unifying as the Lord is.

Ways to Pray

First, thank you for praying for this ministry! I can already see God doing a lot through your prayers. And thank you for praying for my support - I've met my fundraising goal!! Thank you to those of you who are donating, I couldn't do any of this with out you!

This month, please be in prayer for:
- the students we met during welcome week, that they would get plugged into our ministry and begin to experience the life that Jesus brings.
- our corefas as they prepare for their cores (small groups) and start investing in their new friends.
- our staff as we meet with students, that we would join God where He is working.

Student Testimony

Your support allows me to be a part of these things full-time and I'm so grateful for your partnership in ministry. Let me know if there's any way I can be praying for you!