Merry Christmas to you all!
I hope you all are having a wonderful Christmas! I’ve gotten to spend Christmas with my family and it’s been really restful. My family has a fun tradition of hiding our gifts around the house with riddles and clues and it’s always so funny to see what lengths we go to to keep our gifts hidden in the days leading up to Christmas Day :). I know there’s a little bit of a Christmas sickness bug going around (I’ve sadly caught it) so I hope all of you managed to escape it!
On the campus ministry side, December is bittersweet. Classes are ending, but we get to have Christmas parties with students and staff, and dream about what can happen next semester! I even got invited to watch one of my friends graduate (see above).
One last meeting with our girl “corefas” (core facilitators) before the break
I am overflowing with gratitude for all of you. I get to meet with and talk with these girls as they are learning how to be disciples because of your generosity. hank you!! In our last Corefa meeting of the semester we shared funny stories and good news from the semester and talked about what it would look like to come back truly rested after our break (rather than more exhausted, which is easily the case). At the end we got to spend time writing thank you notes to people in our lives who we want to thank, especially those who often aren’t noticed. Even though you are behind the scenes, you are just as much a valued part of campus ministry and I am so thankful for you all!
Our Apprentice Team
From Top Left: Asa, Leo, Casey, Josh, Shree, me, Juli, and Hannah E
Another group I am so thankful for are the other Ministry Apprentices. One of my biggest joys this year has been getting to know each of them and go through this transition alongside them. Although we are all spread around different campuses in the DFW area, we get to come together two days a week for apprenticeship classes and learn, ask questions, sometimes be confused, and encourage each other when it’s challenging. Casey and Hannah E are the two apprentices that are also placed in Denton with me. They remind me that while ministry can be hard at times, it is also a joy!
Our Denton Staff
From Top Left: Casey, Drew, Darby, Alex, Ryan, Reagann, Shayla, Cathryn, me, Keanna, and Hannah E
I am so grateful for the faithfulness of these people. I got to know a lot of them while I was a student in FOCUS and their commitment and friendship to me are a huge reason why I want to work in ministry. God used these people so beautifully in my life to show me that he is a God of faithfulness regardless of circumstances and grace in the face of my own weakness. They love our Denton students so well, both those we know and those we’ve yet to meet!
Overflowing with gratitude
Lastly, these are two students from my “core” (small group) at North Central Texas College. NCTC is the community college in Denton and is often overlooked by Christian ministries who focus more on the bigger schools of UNT and TWU. Although these girls are only part of our whole core, they have been such a joy to spend time with and help disciple. One of my sweetest memories from the semester came when Nyla, the girl on the right, told me her perspective from the day we invited her to our core. She watched from a distance as Drew (another FOCUS pastor who I help lead core with) was inviting students around him to play games with us. It was one of the first weeks of school, she didn't know many people, and she was anxiously hoping Drew would invite her. He did and she joined our game, stayed for our core, and has been with us ever since! I know there are so many other students who are waiting to be invited into community and a full life with Jesus. God is always inviting people, but we get to be a part of that! I can’t wait for next semester to see who else God wants us to invite.
See you next year! Merry Christmas!
Hannah
