November: Let's Keep FOCUS Growing!

Happy November, y'all! I hope you are having a great month so far! I wanted to send this November update a few days before December because we are in the middle of our Keep FOCUS Growing campaign and I wanted to let you guys know about it! 

Every year, we have a fundraising campaign to raise money to support the operational costs of keeping our ministry going. This year, we are trying to raise $100,000. So far, our students have raised $8,000 which was matched by a generous team of donors! Those generous donors have also banded together and agreed to match up to $42,000 in total donations during this campaign. So if we receive $42,000 in total contributions, they will kick in a SECOND $42,000! If this is something you'd like to participate in, your first chance to give will be on December 1st, which is Giving Tuesday! So please, would you consider investing in this opportunity? Thank you so much for considering this, especially in the midst of a crazy year and season.

You can give on Facebook with no processing fees at https://www.facebook.com/anyfocusministries

or you can go to anyfocus.org/kfg

Updates!

Overall, things are going well! It seems like most people are super willing to continue to meet outside and distanced if it means they get to see people in person so it's cool to see them prioritize that. We've had a few students face being exposed to COVID but everyone has been responding so responsibly to really limit the spread. Please continue to pray for protection and wisdom for our ministry to be able to continue doing the important things!

My sweet peer team and I decorated pumpkins - but with a twist! We did this as a worship activity, so we reflected on the Lord and what He's been teaching us and then painted about it. It was so cool to see how the Lord is shaping each of these girls to know and love Him more and more. 

I know I've introduced y'all so some of these girls but I thought I'd do that a little more over the next few months because I love these girls a lot. These are the student leaders I get to spend time with each week, talking about life, ministry, and discipleship. My time with them is probably my favorite time of the week!
 

This is Katherine and Veronica at our outdoor peer team meeting. They lead a core together, so they are cofas (co-facilitators). Of course, as they were warming their toes by the fire, they claimed to be toe-fas and laughed for five minutes😊. 

This is Veronica! This sweet girl is a sophomore studying a crazy assortment of things (I think along the lines of business, nonprofit, and Spanish, but there's too much to remember). This is her first year as a corefa and I have loved getting to know her and help her learn to love her peers well. Veronica grew up in church and has a really good foundation in discipleship and knowing the Lord. Along with being a corefa, she is also an RA (resident assistant) so she invests in 40 girls outside of her core. And she is so stinking committed! She really makes a point to get to know everyone in her spheres and she's one of those people who almost can't help talking about Jesus. Currently, she's been learning to really rely on her community to know her and invest in her. It's so cool to see God lead her to trust Him and others more and more!

This is Katherine! Katherine is studying drawing and painting and this is her second year being a corefa. I really love my time with her because she's very thoughtful and has been learning to filter through her strong emotions to find truth. Katherine has such a heart for people to know the Lord deeply and she herself has grown in loving God fully in the last year. This year, Katherine and Veronica have a large core, which can be overwhelming. But they both have taken on that challenge and Katherine been growing a ton in being consistent with people and being disciplined with her time. What a sweet friend who is humbly doing her best to serve God and her community. 

Ways to Pray:

- Please pray for Keep FOCUS Growing, that God would provide for us this year like He has in the past.

- Please be praying for these students as they go home for thanksgiving and Christmas, that they would be able to serve their families and be wise about what precautions to take.

Love y'all lots!