A feburary full of God's goodness!

Hello everyone!! 

It's now March which is crazy! This past month of February was full of so many good things and I can't wait to share them with you! But first thank you so much for y'alls support it shows me God's love and your heart to share the goodness of God with people! 

CORE has been going well! As I mentioned we had some people transfer so our group is smaller this semester. However, our group being smaller has opened the door for deeper conversations and people be more vulnerable! It has also been sweet to see in core that people are pointing people to God when they share! It shows how they care about each and want to share the goodness of God with others! Additionally, I also have seen our group be closer as a result of being smaller which is so good! This past week we had two new people join which was exciting! They both expressed after CORE that this was one of the few times that they've been to a small group and have felt comfortable sharing even though they were new! 

This month the apprentices at Collin helped host a Galentine's party! It was the most sweetest and genuine thing ever! It was on Valentine's Day and we hosted it at one the apprentice's apartments. About twenty to twenty-five people came! We had snacks, blind karaoke, and everyone dressed up! I was so encouraged by seeing everyone there and wanting to get to know each other! It was also my first time being at a Galentine's party which was special because of how genuine and loving it was! 

Me and part of my core at the Galentine's party! I love this girls!

Me and my core girls as we try to carry Jamie!

Everyone at the Galentine's party!

Pizza theology happened last week! It was such a fun and insightful time! Pizza theology is one of our bigger events where we talk about bigger theological topics. This semester's pizza theology was about the bible! Specifically, it focused on what does it mean the bible is inspired or how do you even start to read/study the bible! This is such an important event because it gives our students who are in college a way to deepen their faith at a college level. This event is not to just gain knowledge but to help people see more how good our God is! And I believe that is what happened from hearing from students! They expressed how it was so helpful to go because helped give them a basis on how to read the bible. Some of them expressed that they are super excited to engage with scripture now and also that they never have had an opportunity like this! And also the reason we call it pizza theology is because we have pizza for dinner!

People getting pizza during pizza theology!

Peter one of the staff members talking during Pizza Theology!

Another exciting event we had was A night of black church! It was so sweet and fun! BLISS is a subgroup of UTD focus that stands for black lives in soulful solidarity! And they wanted to celebrate black history month by paying homage to the black church! It was cool to see another way people praise the Lord!

The apprentices at night of black church! 

Thank you so much again for your continual support! You guys make it possible to be on campus sharing the goodness of God with students who desperately need it! I hope you guys are doing well and would love to hear what God is doing in y'alls lives! If there is any way I can be praying y'all please let me know!

Prayer requests

• Please pray for the staff and corefas as they meet with students that they would lean into the Lord's wisdom and not their own!
• Please pray for the Wylie northeast church as they try to find a new building to meet in! This the church I go to! 
• Please pray for our impact week in March! This where students from a ministry FOCUS partners with come down from Washington during their spring break and do ministry on campus with us! Pray that the hearts of the students we are outreaching to would be open to encountering the goodness of God! 

In Christ, 

Carolina 

A new semester! Grace upon grace!

 HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I hope everyone's holidays were splendid and that you guys have had a wonderful first month of 2024! It's been a while since I last sent out a post but I am so excited to tell you guys what we have been up to these past two months. But first I would like to thank all of you guys for continuing to pray and support me! You guys are truly making a difference in the lives of these students! 

First off, core last ended on a really sweet note! It was really encouraging to reflect on how God had been working in their lives from when I met them up until the end of the semester. I'm excited for this new semester and to see how God will keep working in their lives. Me and Jamie's core is a bit smaller since some of our girls transferred! In the picture below is Rachel! She graduated from Collin this semester and is transferring to UNT! This past semester was her first semester in FOCUS and has expressed how God knew that she needed a genuine Christ-centered community and is super grateful that he brought her to FOCUS! She plans to still be in FOCUS at UNT! I'm excited to keep seeing how God works in her life and through her! 

WINTER RETREAT!!! We had winter retreat this past month Jan 12th to Jan 15th! It was such a cool exprience getting to see everyone there and learn more about what our speaker had to say! We only had one girl from our core come to winter retreat but she ended up loving it! She expressed how she was pretty nervous at first to come but was so glad she came! She expressed how everything she had been feeling like God was telling her clicked during the sermons. Dr. Lee was our speaker this year for the winter retreat and he talked about disruptive grace which means that we don't realize how much better God is than what we have built him out to be. Another encouraging part of winter retreat was sunday night whenever we read scripture in different languages. The students were encouraged that if they spoke a second language they can come up and speak those verses in their second language. It was really cool, I started to tear up as I was hearing all the different languages because it showed how God is moving in different cultures besides the one I live in.

The gospel choir at winter retreat!

These are the apprentices at our staff Christmas party! I have been so encouraged by each one of them and they way have supported me and each other. The staff Christmas party was such a sweet time! It was awesome getting to have dinner with them and reflect on the semester. I can't believe that the apprenticeship is more than halfway over! It feels like just yesterday it was August and the semester was starting. 

Something I feel like God has been teaching me through the apprenticeship is what he means that he delights in us. I feel like I have always thought when I heard that God delights in us I thought to myself "Duh, of course he delights in us". But I don't think it fully clicked the depth of what he means that he delights in us until recently when we read in our holy spirit class Ephesians 1:13 which talks about how we're marked with the Holy Spirit whenever we believe in Jesus. And in that time period sealing something meant that it's given ownership and carries the protection of the owner wherever it goes! I thought that this was the coolest thing ever! It showed me again how much God delights in us! 

Prayer Requests

• Please pray that more people would be open to learning about Jesus and community and that they would come to core! 
• Please pray for my church Wylie Northeast as we look for a new building to meet in. 
• Please pray for our FOJs (one on one bible studies), that whatever God wants to do through these studies that people would be open to it. 
• Please pray for our corefas (student leaders) that they would be excited and lean into God as they guide people this semester. 

In Christ,

Carolina