June Ministry Update

 


June Update: 

Hello, friends! I hope you all are having a great summer so far!! 

With the semester having come to an end, June has been a time of slowing, connecting, and recharging. Through it all, God's faithfulness has continued to stand out to me. Cultivating a rhythm of rest has reminded me a lot of God's invitation to Israel to honor the Sabbath. This looks like trusting that God can sustain us even when we aren't spinning the wheel at the same pace we normal do in the busier seasons. It has reminded me of Psalm 46:10 which says, "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." This brings me great relief. When life gets slower, it can be tempting to think that God isn't being magnified, but there is comfort in knowing that God remains exalted even as we are still. 




This summer has also provided the opportunity to spend quality time with students in ways that I don't typically get to throughout the school year. This summer, our Collin girls have gotten to meet each Tuesday for a fun Taco Tuesday night. Throughout the school our various Collin Campuses don't get to mingle as frequently, so our Taco Tuesdays have provided a great chance for students from different campuses to get to know each other better! One of the students in my small group invited our group to come over for a pool party. Her hospitality was so kind! It's been so awesome getting to see this group of girls continue in building their friendships throughout the summer. It makes me so excited for the fall semester to come around as they bring others into those friendships!

One of my friends and students, Courtney, and I have been studying the Bible this last semester. Earlier this year Courtney entered an essay competition and invited me to her awards ceremony this month. It was such a treat to see her on the stage to be awarded!




My number one favorite part about Summer is our Thursday Night Fellowship gatherings! Seeing so many students from all over the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex gather to worship Jesus, grow in knowledge of His word, and minister to one another reminds me that this is just a small taste of Heaven. Our sermon series is all about Embracing Life. Our social climate tells people that seclusion, hopelessness, and fear are the normal way of living, but this summer, our hope and prayer is to help students realize that God has something so much better to offer. Rather than holding onto that kind of living, Christ wants to offer us living water and true life. Please be praying that the Lord would use these fellowship nights to restore hearts and remind our students that they get to partner with God in kingdom building on their campuses to re-write the call on our generation.  




Other June Happenings: 
My sweet friend, April, is someone who studied the Bible with me when I first joined FOCUS while a student at UTD. God has used her to grow my faith in integral ways and I am forever grateful for our spiritual friendship! At the end of the month, she is transitioning to work with another ministry. I have deeply loved working with her and will miss her so much, but I am thrilled to see how God writes her story as she joins the team at East-West. 


This month, our Collin women staff team, got to go on a trip to Gulf Shores, Alabama as a team bonding trip. Getting to work with this team of ladies has been such a blessing. They have lived out 1 Thessalonians 5:11 ("Encourage one another and build each other up...") with such faithfulness. 


Fundraising Update: 

I am currently 62% of my goal for the coming year! Thank you so much for your partnership in what God is doing in the lives of college students and for your support through prayer! My goal is to be 100% fundraised by the end of next month, but to do that, I am looking for help in finding referral. If there is someone you know who would be excited to investing in helping college students know Jesus better, please let me know! 

With lots of love, Tania






















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