Pleasing the Lord

Hi everyone! Welcome to my ministry update for the month of October! I want to start off by sharing some of the things God has been teaching me through my ministry. Earlier this month, I was talking with Cody McCarty, my pastoral supervisor, and he offered some comments on how I've been doing as an apprentice so far. Overall, he was super encouraging and thinks I'm doing a good job, but two areas that we've both noticed I need to grow in are boldness in confronting others and being vulnerable with others. I was praying about this, and God was showing me that both of these are the symptoms of a bigger issue, namely wanting to please both God and people. 

I tend to be someone who likes to please others, but obviously pleasing God sometimes means displeasing people. Earlier this month I had to call out a student who asked another student to participate in a fight with him, and I was so upset because I didn't want to rock the boat on our relationship. Pleasing God meant calling out sin, even when it was uncomfortable. Proverbs 29:25 says "Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe." I'm currently reading a book called When People are Big and God is Small and I'm seeking out more accountability and ways to be bold in my faith, but I also appreciate your prayers for me as I seek to grow in this. And I challenge you to find ways to be bold in how you love and serve God in your life as well.

Now I want to give you guys a bit of insight in what a day in the life of a campus ministry apprentice looks like. My job really breaks down into 3 main areas, one on ones, classes, and events.

My friend Roman and I after one of our FOJ lessons

FOJ, or Focus On Jesus, is a study that seeks to look at the narrative of scripture, beginning in Genesis and exploring Gods relationship with Israel, the coming of Christ, the work of the church, and Christ's coming return. We meet each week to share our lives with one another and grow in scripture. I've been blown away by Roman's willingness to serve. He has a huge heart for others and is an encouragement to me each time we meet.

Stephen and I at a local park (we may be lost)

Stephen and I are co-facilitators of a small group (or Core) at the Central Park Campus in McKinney. Despite this being his first year on our leadership team, Stephen has stepped up and taken ownership of the guys in our Core. He is constantly on the lookout for ways to bless and challenge others to look more like Christ. He has so many ideas and is super creative with fun things for our Core to do together. We both love the outdoors and I've been so blessed to lead with him this year.

Several of my fellow apprentices and I at our preaching seminar with Kelly

One of the classes we took this year as apprentices was a preaching lab. We had the great privilege to travel to Wichita Falls where we each gave a 20 minute sermon and Kelly Cannedy, the lady in the middle, helped us give each other some really valuable feedback. I preached on Jeremiah 29:1-11, and it was less terrifying, but also far more work than I originally thought it would be. It was so encouraging, and I learned how to give a sermon that both exegeted scripture and called others to look like Jesus.

Me giving my sermon on Jeremiah 29

Trick or Creek, where we engaged the campus with games and free food

This month we planned a big outreach event on campus on Halloween, which we called Trick or Creek. So many students came and played with us and the event changed the atmosphere on campus, causing students to talk to each other and relieving some of the stress of exams. We had a lot of students show interest in Focus and several came to our large group meeting later that night. It was super encouraging to see our ministry try a large event that increased our visibility on campus and improved the college experience of students in a healthy and meaningful way.

Keep Focus Growing!

Finally, I want to tell you all about KFG, or Keep Focus Growing. KFG is our annual fundraising campaign that gives our ministry the flexibility to respond to the opportunities that God gives us each year. Previous funds have gone to starting Focus at SMU and providing our staff with more administrative support. They've also been used to pay for outreach activities and materials, and they will be used towards starting Focus at the new Collin College campus in Wylie, so that our ministry will have a presence there when the doors open on day one. Some of our generous donors have come together and agreed to match up to $36,000 in total donations during the campaign. That means that if we receive $36,000 in total contributions, they will kick in a second $36,000! The campaign will take place on Giving Tuesday, December 3rd, and I want to invite you to give generously to what God is doing here.

Future Collin College campus in Wylie

I want to say thank you again to all my generous donors who support me financially and through prayer! Your gifts allow me to do the work of proclaiming the gospel on campus that I get to do. If you are already a donor and you want to help more, or you've never given but want to invest in what Focus is doing please help participate in KFG!

There are two ways to give to Keep Focus Growing:

• Giving Tuesday on Facebook - December 3
• https://anyfocus.org/KFG/

Payer Requests

• Pray that the students and leaders in our ministry would be encouraged to finish strong as we enter exams and the holiday season. Pray that as students spend time with their families they will be able to show the love of Christ to them in powerful ways.
• Pray for the students at the Central Park Campus in McKinney. I've been spending more time on campus and I'm struck by how in need of real friendship many of the students are. Pray that God would send more workers into the harvest field, as the campus is huge but the number of Christians reaching out on campus can feel very small.
• Pray that I would minister boldly, proclaiming the gospel without fear, preaching through my weaknesses, and ready to confront sin and rebuke it. Pray that I would learn to fear God and not to please people over him.