Warning: This Post Has TONS of Photos.

 Somebody pinch me. How are we already done with October? 

October felt daunting to me. I had several big events planned on most of the weekends this month: FOCUS's fall camp, my annual visit to Wichita Falls with students, and visiting Tenth and Broad for their Diamond Jubilee Celebration of missions. All of these events were special and exciting, but I felt intimidated that they would leave me feeling drained from lack of rest. You know I love to host and make sure people are having a great time. I prayed and God gave me the strength to be present at all of these events. It really helps that I get to work with some fun people. 

On that note, I want to say thank you again for supporting me in ministry. Your partnering with me through financial support makes this ministry possible. I am so grateful for your faithful prayers. It never ceases to amaze me how kind God is and I am reminded as I type about this past month. Thank you!

Anyways, Let's get into the first event: Wichita Falls with my students. 

A quick reminder: I went to college in Wichita Falls and attended church at Tenth and Broad Church of Christ. I had no background in that denomination, but I quickly felt at home in this congregation because of the people. So imagine almost ten years from when I first started college, I still come back to visit and am still in contact with so many people at this church. That to me is a God deal. This trip is a celebration of the ministry happening at FOCUS. My students get the opportunity to connect with this church who has been praying for them and make connections. Tenth and Broad is incredibly generous by feeding us and housing the entire time. We had a worship night and were immersed in acapella worship. My students are still raving about this trip. One student asked if we could come back in the spring and do it again. 

Here are photos of us during the worship night. 

On to the next event, Fall camp. 

Fall camp. What can I say about fall camp? Fall camp is our way of expediting friendships and community. It's why people go on retreats. Staying a cabin for any extended amount of time bonds people. People catch the vision of our ministry and what we are doing at this camp. We have tons of fun, but we also have planned moments of reflection and sharing about what God is teaching you. This camp's message were focused on Galatians. The main theme focusing around riding ourselves of any 'gospel' we follow that is not God's. 

Verses 6-9 of Galatians 1 bolding profess this:  

"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!"

We all are susceptible to accepting a gospel that is not of God. We have so many competing messages that try to add to Jesus's gospel. I'm excited to continue seeing our students grapple with this message. 

Lastly, Tenth and Broad's Diamond Jubilee. 

My month was sandwiched by trips to Wichita Falls. My last adventure was attending a very special occasion. As a young person, it is hard to imagine legacies. Yes, the building is old, but I had never thought of the people had came before me. I learned so much about Tenth and Broad and the faithfulness of their congregation. They were celebrating seventy-five years in their current building. I took one of my dear friends and UTA students to this celebration. Emily and I were both inspired. One of my favorite parts of the service was kids walking down the aisles with flags of countries and states where missionaries have gone. I was touched to see one with the logo of FOCUS. 

Thank you so much for your support! It means the world to me. Pray we finish this semester out strong. 

Here's some more photos from this past month: 

When we first got to Wichita Falls, we went around and shared how ministry was going. We got the opportunity to pray for Mustangs for Christ and for them to pray for us. 

This is a photo of all the students we brought. 

Fall camp! We always have team games. This game was a partner-drawing game.

This is a close up on the drawing game. 

This photo is funny to me. Sarah was hard working feeding the students burgers fresh off the grill. I seasoned the hamburgers while she cooked. 

These photos are from the end of fall camp. It classically becomes a photoshoot before everyone leaves. 

This is one of our new students. She is great. 

This is another freshman. She is from the Wichita Falls area. She is very kind because she really hates MSU. We, of course, had to pose with their hand sign. 

This is a glimpse of the event Graham has been hosting. This is the public scripture reading event that happens weekly. We get to sit in the beautiful park on campus and read out loud. We were waiting on students to come in this photo.