Sweet Movements of the Spirit

Did y’all know that taking care of a newborn is hard? There are some serious ups and downs with the first couple weeks with a newborn. Overall though I think people way over warned me on how bad it is. There are some rough spots but there is also so much that’s sweet and good. I’ve been reflecting on the fact that so few people pointed out that a lot of the stuff that is hard about having an infant is stuff that really grows you into looking more like Jesus. Having to sacrifice time and sleep, having to have patience and grace, to be gentle and loving. It’s not that parenthood is good despite the hardship; I think the hardship in itself can be really good for us. I’ll stop ranting about parenthood now, but what else do you think of at 3am with a crying baby in your arms?

This month I wanted to highlight some more specific stories that have happened over the last couple weeks instead of doing a flyover of what’s going on in the ministry as a whole.

One of my new favorite things is letting our students meet and get to hold Eli! 

I wanted to start off by sharing about my friend Ayamaé. He’s one of my peer team guys this year (he leads a small group that I oversee, and I get to meet up with him to mentor and befriend him). I’ve been so impressed with him and his co-leader this year. They’ve done such a great job with helping a handful of the guys in their Core who were unsure about Jesus actually decide to start following Him and plug into Christian community! Ayamaé specifically is consistently going out in his free time to evangelize and do outreach on campus. It’s just become a part of what he does regularly and sets a great example for the rest of our ministry. He’s had some tough situations come up recently but has done such a good job coming into the light with stuff and seeking the help that he needs. I’m so thankful for what God has been doing through him!

The next story I want to share is about a guy that will remain anonymous, but we’ll refer to as Bob. Bob and I have been meeting up semi-regularly for a while, and I’ve been praying for a breakthrough for him to come into the light and be vulnerable. This last week it finally happened, and he shared a ton of stuff that he hadn’t been talking to anyone about and mentioned how he for the first time feels like he’s actually been genuine and real with people and with the Lord. It’s been such a cool transformation to watch, and I’ve been so happy to see the Lord working in His life.

More friends holding him. 

Obligatory Eli as a turkey photo

The next guy I want to share about is nicknamed Radio. He has been following Jesus for a while, but at a pretty lukewarm level for years. He’s been going through the motions of showing up to stuff but not really letting Jesus shape his life and the choices that he makes. This year I’ve seen so much change on that front. He’s started to get excited about learning more about Jesus, he’s developed closer friendships in community, and most importantly he’s been developing his relationship with Jesus personally which has led to a lot of life change. He’s stopped a lot of his habits that tended to look like culture more than Christ, and he’s thinking about staying up in Denton longer purely so that he can stick around FOCUS for a bit more and have another full year to focus on developing his faith more. All of that instead of just pursuing a high paying job right out of college.

There are so many more stories I could share about how I’ve seen God moving in people’s lives this year, and really the stories I did share are just the abbreviated versions that leave so much of the really amazing little moments out. As much as I like the big events and the community wide stuff, the individuals that come to know Jesus more is what really makes me love ministry. Thank you so much for participating in stories like this. Your generosity helps me be on campus to take part in what God is doing here.

Our yearly Keep FOCUS Growing fundraiser is happening right now, and it’s a great way to not just support me but support the ministry as a whole and help us plant on new college campuses that don’t yet have ministries on them. We have donors who have given $50,000 in matching funds, so if you give towards KFG your gift will be doubled! If you’re looking for something to give to this holiday season beyond what you already do, I’d encourage you to pray about KFG. If that is something that you want to support, you can do it at anyfocus.org/kfg.

Thank y'all again! Couldn't do this without you!