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
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