Gearing Up for the School Year

In July

Every July, during one of our summer fellowship meetings, we have an Ordination Ceremony. During this ceremony, the pastors who are extending their commitment to FOCUS, and our incoming apprentices, stand before our community and make a commitment to serve the community and God.

Every year, I am so encouraged to see the pastors lead our community by purposefully and visibly committing to serving them and God. Two student volunteers take part in the community to represent the student body that the pastors are committing themselves to. 

Here's an excerpt from the ceremony that describes a part of the purpose behind the staff commitments:

"Entering into ministry is a big deal. God gives those who enter into ministry a great

responsibility. Our campus pastors are here to shepherd students toward Jesus.

They are here to help and to guide students as they build a foundation for their

lives. To lead and shepherd, these pastors must be an example in their own lives.

They must live their lives in a way that reflects Christ. For our staff, this is not just a job. This is a way of life lived out in our community. They are not doing this for money or material gain but to serve this community out of love for Jesus. These vows are a promise to live their lives in a way that pleases God, in a way that leads us all toward the Father, Son, and Spirit, in a way that will train and equip us to share our Christian faith with others."

What I've been working on

This month, my workload has been heavily focused on the designing and ordering the advertising we will use to spread the word about FOCUS on our campuses. This is a task that is particularly fun for me because it's challenging and creative, but also because it directly touches students!

Designing, producing, and printing advertisements for our ten different campuses is not a simple or inexpensive task, but it is a sacrifice we think is definitely worth making!

Many of the students in our ministries across our campuses hear about FOCUS because of advertising. One of my good friends, Chiazo, was running at the gym when she saw a FOCUS banner. God used that simple banner to draw her in and she was a part of our UNT ministry for four years!

Pedro, one of the staff members at Collin College, had a similar experience. Pedro picked up a flyer advertising FOCUS while he was a student at Collin College, and it was that flyer that got him initially interested in FOCUS. He was involved in our ministry while he was a student at Collin College, as well as the ministry at UNT. Now, he works at Collin College ministering to students there!

What's coming up

August brings with it some exciting changes and exciting events!

On the 31st, six apprentices officially came on staff and started their ten-month apprenticeship. These individuals have such a big heart for people and God's work, and I'm so excited for them to join our team! If you are interested in hearing more about their role this year, and how they came to be on staff, check out their bios on the website:

• Dawn and Eddie
• Rhett and Kristen
• Jalen and Caitlin

Eddie, Kristen, Caitlin, Dawn, Jalen, and Rhett (left to right)

Student Testimony

Take a look at this month's student testimony! I got to meet Morgan during SICM (Student Institute of Campus Ministry) so it was really special to hear more about her story, and to share it with you!

Prayer Requests

• This month, thousands of students will once again flood the college campuses. Please pray that God's Spirit would be moving powerfully to draw students to him and show them His love. Please pray for the student leaders and staffers who will be spending many hours for the first weeks of school meeting and befriending students, that they would be bold, be given strength, and great love for their campus and peers.