Renee's Apprenticeship!

 Happy 2022 everyone! I am so grateful to be entering this new year with you guys. This past month was full of wrapping things up (😉) and I reflected on how the closure of one can often be a start to another. As you all went through the holiday season and as you start this new year, I pray that God meets you in both your endings and your beginnings. Here are some of the ways we wrapped up last month: Our students at Collin got to celebrate Christmas together in true Collin fashion. We worshipped and reflected about Jesus together, ate lots of queso, and built Christmas forts. Each core had one hour to plan and execute their fort, and my core came up with the theme, "There's No Place like Gnome for the Holidays." While we didn't win, we did get an honorable mention, so I'm pretty proud. It was a sweet night to see all the students who have been impacted by Jesus and His body in some way or another from all the Collin campuses (we are at all 4 this year!) As we con...

 Hi! I hope that the beginning to the Holiday season was full of joy for you! It's wild to me that December is already here. There were so many neat ministry moments this past month. I've continued to have new girls come to core each week, and we have a fun consistent group of gals at this point in the year. There have been some formative moments with the girls that I meet with each week for FOJ, and I've seen our community show up at large as well. Going off of last month's update, I have continued to see the growth that only God can produce. His Spirit really is at work at Collin, and specifically in our ministry.  Particularly this month, I've been learning the power of showing up. To show up and trust in God's timing, provision, and direction. I've also watched students learning how to show up in spiritual friendships and also in loving God with their mind and schedule. I pray that God would help you show up in whatever sphere or context that you may be ...

Hi everybody!  It's been another full month, and I can't believe we are already in November. Here are just some of the ways that I have seen God grow those around me:     Fall camp!  Each year, each campus of FOCUS puts on a weekend retreat that we call Fall Camp. It is one of the first times in the year that all the students can have fun, learn, and worship together outside of our normal weekly fellowship gatherings. This year we, from all five of Collin campuses, took a group of about 60 students to Mount Lebanon for a packed full 24 hours. Several of the girls from my core who came spoke about powerful interactions they had had with the Spirit during that time. One girl in particular has a Muslim background said at the end of our time that she, “Wants to get to know God better, and build a relationship with Him.” There was another girl who showed up at camp not knowing anyone, but was able to build a friendship with all the girls in my core. I’m humbled ...

  Hi! I think I am allowed to say this since fall has officially started, "Happy Fall Y'all!" I hope you have been enjoying the slowly cooling weather, and maybe even wearing some long sleeves. Here is a bit of what's been going on! Throughout this past month, I've seen the theme of living with God's agenda and not our own. Whether through my personal selfishness, a new student looking at their priorities with being at school, or the story of God's people throughout the Old Testament, the temptation to live a life for ourselves is prevalent. This month I have been consistently reminded of how intentional we humans have to be to be on God's agenda; I've seen how our own priorities, goals, attention, and schedules can get sidetracked from the Lord's.  As I've read through more of the Old Testament in the Apprentice class, I see myself in the Israelites quite often. I too forget how much God has already provided, how many times he has been fai...

 Hey team, What a month! Full of sightings of God and His Kingdom. The last month included some of my apprenticeship classes starting as well as the start of the new semester for college students, often referred to as "Welcome Week." For those who aren't as familiar with FOCUS or campus ministry in general, the beginning of the school year is a really exciting and busy time. The staff and student leaders get to be on campus at a time where new and returning students are walking back onto campus ready to meet and make new friends. During my time as a student leader with FOCUS, I was amazed at how the Spirit worked in leading the team to meeting students of all backgrounds and perspectives. On top of the typical liveliness of a new semester and school year, the students seemed even more receptive and hungry for meeting people coming out of a largely virtual year last year. It's been a few years since I've been on a college campus, but it felt like I was coming home ...

  Hello dear family and friends, We have made it to the first month of the FOCUS Apprenticeship! I am truly grateful for each one of you both for the support generously given to get me to this point as well as to have you on my ministry team for the year. I couldn't do this apprenticeship without you guys, and I know it's going to be a wildly neat ride ahead!  August started off with a special licensing ceremony where all of the incoming apprentices got to make promises to God, each other, and the community at large. I will link the video of the ceremony if you want to check it out. The next morning I flew to Massachusetts for my last little chunk of time with Dallas Back Dance Theatre. After finishing up my last performances, I flew straight into San Antonio. Every year Focus sends students to a week long leadership conference called SICM, which stands for Student Institute for Campus Ministry. This year the conference was held in San Antonio, and it was surreal to arrive on ...