April 2022 News!

 Hello everyone! This has been the month of things starting to wrap up. I still have one month to go, but this really has been such an incredible ride. I got to host and plan my own event, my core joined together with another core to talk about the need for diversity within God's people, and I've begun writing my final sermon on my 3 biggest takeaways from the Apprenticeship. 

One of the final assignments I've been given was to plan and follow through with hosting my own community building event. The requirements were simple: come up with an event where people can come and grow in fellowship with one another more. I know a lot of you have been asking me how I am able to use my art degree in ministry, so I decided to make a Painting in the Park day with the students at UTA. I had to problem solve when the park I chose was packed, so I got some friends to bring picnic blankets and we sat on the ground together as we painted and talked. Eventually the girls asked me to paint on them anything I wanted as long as it was with the colors they chose. It was such a fun experience, and this might become a new tradition for Focus! We've even thought about making Painting in the Park a way to meet new people on campus next year! 

Also in April, my roommate, Sophie, came up with the idea of our cores merging together for one night and talking about unity alongside diversity within our community. She noticed that our cores have many forms of diversity: through backgrounds, ethnicity, previous beliefs, etc. This is something that UTA Focus has been praying for a long time, and God has really showed us the fruit of those prayers this year. We talked about the importance of unity without uniformity and how we should be unified in Christ. It's okay to have differences as long as we come together on our belief that Jesus is Lord. 

Finally, all the apprentices will be giving a sermon on our 3 biggest takeaways from this time. I don't necessarily want to spoil what my points are going to be just year, but I'll have the sermon recorded and added to my blog next month! Just know that ultimately, I stand firm in the goodness and truth of God and not my own strength. 

Thank you so much for reading and being so fundamental in this time of my life. Here are some prayer requests I have:

• Prayers for our students who will be going to our student leadership conference in Washington. Pray that they are open to learning, listen to what God is sharing with them, and for safe travels. 
• I am continuing to fundraise for next year. God has been incredibly faithful, and I know he will continue to be. 
• In order to turn my full attention to being a campus missionary, and reach students for Jesus, I need to be fully fundraised. But I don’t know enough people to share about my ministry with to reach my goal. Are there any people you know who might be encouraged to at least hear about what God is doing on college campuses, even if they can’t give financially?

Here are some fun photos from my core and campus pastor team from this year!