End of an Era

 

End of an Era

Hey everybody! It's time for another update! The end of the year has been bittersweet as it usually is. It's been a tough year in many ways and we're all ready to get out of it, but we also feel a sense of solidarity that we all did ministry despite the challenges this year. We ended on some really high notes. We had our second annual Parking Lot Graduation. Last year, right after a very distanced worship night in a Walmart parking lot we had a little impromptu graduation ceremony for the seniors that were there who would not be able to walk for their graduation. This year we upped our game and made it official and invited people's parents and friends. It was such a sweet time to see our seniors honored in front of their community. So many families showed up as well. As opposed to a graduation ceremony where you are one of hundreds in front of thousands of strangers, this small FOCUS graduation ceremony meant that all of your loved ones could show up and everybody clapping knew you at least a little bit. I'll admit I wasn't convinced that it was going to be that special. But once I heard the love that the community poured out on these seniors and watched these seniors walk I knew it was special. I've watched them all grow up over the past four to six years and getting to see the appreciation in their eyes was the cherry on top of a long journey.

Brotherhood

My last year's small group got together and took a daytrip down to Austin to visit some of our members who had been taking online school down there all year. We got to catch up together and share how our years had been. We have a tradition we call "Mad, Glad, Dad" which is a low point, a high point, and how you see God in all of that. It was such a good time to see them again, not only the Austin guys, but that our Dallas guys were willing to take a 7-hour roundtrip to see them for a few hours that day. That's Christian brotherhood.

Summer

It's crazy to think that I've been doing this for six years now. I've watched everyone that grew up with me in ministry graduate and move on and now an entire other generation of students graduate and move on. It never gets easier, but it's always worth it. Now as we head into summer, we're testing the waters on being back in person. We want to respect people's choices to be socially-distanced but also recognize that many are now vaccinated and we need that close community. Pray as we continue to navigate what's best for our students and as we head into the next school year!

Support-Raising

Also because it's summer, it's support-raising season. Many of you have been through this with me many times before, but I just wanted to give you a heads up that I'll be reaching out and trying to get some time to talk to all of you. Summer comes with it less demands so I get to spend that extra time with you guys! I'm always so excited to get to see many of you and talk to many of you, so I'll be in touch soon. Thank you for all that you do, for me and for God's kingdom. Love you!

Hold On To Your Hats!

Oh boy, has it been a crazy season!

Spring Semester

What does spring semester hold for campus ministers? A ride that goes from 0-60 in seconds and doesn't slow down. It's leadership selection season and so we're in full swing of raising money for leadership development, inviting students to become leaders in our ministry, and investing in them now and casting a vision for them as leaders.

SICM

This year it's going to look different! Usually, we would be sending our students to SICM (Student Institute of Campus Ministry), a leadership conference in Bellingham, WA. But with COVID still disrupting thing, SICM won't be happening in-person. As we contemplated what we wanted to do, we knew that our students would not be getting the most out of the experience by sitting on zoom for 6-8 hours a day for five days. So instead, we're putting on our own SICM conference here in Texas from August 8-13! We've looked at multiple camps and settled on Camp Eagle west of San Antonio. But just as we raise money for sending students to SICM in Washington, we need to now raise money for students going to SICM in Texas. Thankfully, it won't cost as much, but we want to come out of the pandemic swinging with as many capable student leaders as possible! Like most churches, ministries, and businesses, this pandemic has curbed our momentum, but with God's grace it hasn't done as much damage as we feared it would. But we hope with SICM, we can develop leaders who haven't gotten the full ministry experience this past year and teach them to live out the values of a disciple of Jesus, and then we can start next year with a bang.

Showcase

So to raise money, we are still having our annual Showcase fundraiser this year! Every previous year, it's been a live concert, but this year we've moved our talents online. This will be my sixth year running the show, and let me tell you, it's only gotten better and better each year. I definitely did not enter campus ministry looking to be a music video producer, but to raise money for student leaders, we're going to make the best music video-esque live concert we can. So I'm super excited to put it on. I hope you'll tune in wherever you are! It's going to be live at 6:30pm Central Time at anyfocus.org/showcase! Pre-show starts at 6:00pm! You'll be able to catch a brief interview with me if you tune in for the pre-show!

Thank You!

I was able to volunteer at our vaccine mega-center for two full days and received my first dose of the vaccine. I'm hopeful that this summer I'll be able to visit many of you! It was such a discouragement to not get to see so many of your faces last year. But you guys have been so faithful and continued giving even when things looked tight, the future was uncertain, and how ministry would work was unclear. But this past year, I trust that God has been doing something else, something more important than just continued numbers growth. And I thank you guys so much for being so generous and allowing me to continue working for God's kingdom here in Texas. 

A Little Story

This past week I was able to go camping with a few guys from my small group from last year. Because of online school, many of us are no longer in Dallas, but spread all over the state. However, five of us were able to make it. We got to catch up on how our year of ministry was going, what God was teaching us, the ups and downs that we had experienced, and poured back into each other's lives. During our trip, I was able to coordinate with one of our other guys in Austin to visit him as he was doing less well this semester. I posed the question to the guys, "Would anyone want to drive 3.5 hours with me to Austin to have dinner with him?" Three of the four immediately said yes. We ended meeting in the middle the next day in Waco, but still that they would accept a four-hour roundtrip just to spend a few hours with one of our guys reminded me of Jesus and the one lost sheep. It doesn't matter the cost, the one is worth it. This is what God is doing here, and I'm thankful just to be a part of it.

What Do Campus Ministers Do Over Christmas Break?

What do campus ministers do over Christmas break? 

With some of our students gone, do campus ministers just chill and do nothing? Absolutely not! The productive, efficient side of me would never allow it. The nice thing about UTD is that many of our students live in the area or stay in the area for much of the break. And with the massive adoption of Zoom and video chatting, there is nowhere on earth safe from campus ministers! So the students' holiday break gives us a unique opportunity to not have to compete with school and homework. Yes, there's still family and holiday events but it's much easier without the daily pressures of school! What the break also gives us the chance to communicate is that our ministry with them is not just a job, but a calling, a friendship, a true relationship. Families and friends get together during the holidays, coworkers and bosses generally do not. So I've loved being able to keep up with some students, to hear about their families, to see their Christmas haul, to be there for them as family members pass away and holiday celebrations aren't the same. Being a pastor doesn't end with the semester.

Another opportunity we have during the break is more time to gear up and get ready for the next semester. Just like summer break gives us the chance to really prepare for the fall semester and map out the year, the winter break lets us reassess and prepare for the spring semester. We debrief and tweak our Friday livestream service, consider what our student leaders need to grow in and learn, and brainstorm what new outreach initiatives we might take. The momentary breath is much needed to look at the big picture. 

Students are just about to come back to school and we are ready for them! Now that we've had a few weeks to put our heads together and pray and think about what God wants done this semester, I am so excited to get to be in the swing of things with these students again. God is good, even in the midst of this pandemic. 

Thank You!

Dinner with the roommates!

Thank you for your support! I know that this year life has looked different for all of us. Thank you for continuing to invest in ministry, trusting that God is working through all circumstances. The end seems to be near, and we're preparing and expecting a return to community and in-person relationships that comes with a vengeance. Pray for hearts to be open to God and laborers ready for an intense season!

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

 

Deep Dive

This year we've rebranded our typical large group fellowship on Friday nights to "Deep Dive". Instead of attempting to recreate our in-person services into an online format, we wanted to take advantage of the opportunities online provided. So our livestream Deep Dive began with the purpose of taking a 50-60 minute deep dive into scripture. So over the course of this semester our students have completed their deep dive into the gospel of Mark. Online has had its challenges, as many of you have experienced yourselves with church in this season. Surprisingly, based on our student survey that we push through our small groups, close to 200 of our students attend semi-regularly. Thank God for their consistency and their thirst to know him more!

Holidays in the Park

Instead of a Halloween party, Thanksgiving service, or Christmas party and service, this year we had to get creative and combine all of them into an outdoor event! To keep our students safe, but also feel like a family and have community, we had Halloween games in the park in the afternoon, a socially-distanced Thanksgiving dinner under the stars, and then a Christmas service on the church lawn together. Thank God it was a beautiful day, because the forecast earlier in the week had said it was going to rain! But that's the risk that comes with having to do everything outdoors this year! And you'd think that eight hours outdoors would be a beatdown for the students, but they felt like it raced by! 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We all know that this year has had its own set of unique challenges for all of us. It hasn't been the ideal year for many of us, but just as with Joseph, with Moses, with Job, and with Jesus God makes things work together that are beyond our ability to comprehend. I hope you all have had a very merry Christmas, and I'm sure that our New Year's celebrations will look very different this year. But I pray that God is doing transformative work in us through the good times and the hard times. Thank you all for sticking with campus ministry this year despite its uncertainties. I can attest that God is indeed still working on our campuses! Thank you all so much for your support!

When Fears are Stilled, When Strivings Cease

Pandemic Ministry

Whew, what a chaotic and wild ride campus ministry has been and continues to be during this pandemic. As rules by the government changes, as the university flip flops on what they're going to do, it's been difficult trying to figure out how best to approach ministry this year. Butfor good or for ill, the university decided to open its doors for on-campus housing and in-person classes. And as long as there are students on campus, we want to be there for them. We estimate that the university population is between 40 and 50% of normal capacity, but that means over 10,000 students on campus. And with so few offerings of friendship and community, they are desperate for connection. We've tried lots of different kind of events and online options for them to try out so that their college experiences might be something they woudl remember fondly; that Christians loved them and wanted the best for them.

Small Groups

As always, the core of our ministry are our small groups, which is why we call them cores. But this year, even more than previous years, that value is holding true. We've been doing our best at equipping our small group leaders to do ministry with less support from our staff. With our large group sermons being streamed online and a huge shift away from large group events, the touchpoints between our staff and students has been constricted to mostly one-on-one interactions. So our students have become extremely creative and have put forth enormous effort to host their groups outside, to build relationships from behind a mask, and to keep everyone safe while also trying to care for everyone's emotional and spiritual health. Thank God that not a single student has contracted COVID in our ministry. 

Pizza Theology

We also just got through our second entirely online Pizza Theology! We decided to tackle how to think like a Christian in society. It focused on culture, politics, societal issues, and you can watch both parts here! You can also watch all of our large group teachings that we call Deep Dive there as well! Even during this time we have a new generation of college students being built up in their faith and exploring Jesus and we want to stay faithful to God's call for us to be at this campus. 

Thank You!

And finally, thank you all so much for sticking with me during this trying time. I hope you all are safe, are encouraged, and if there is ever anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate in reaching out. I pray that we will all get through this together and that God will use this time to refine us even further.

My Comforter, my All in All

What a crazy time we live in. I hope everyone is doing alright in this time! I know that times are unprecedented and fear and uncertainty is high, but remember that there is nothing that this world can throw at us that our God has not already overcome. If there is anyone in need or anyone in pain, I would jump at the chance to be the first to be able to offer help in any way. 

Transitions

You would think that shelter-in-place would have meant a slight reprieve from work. But no! Over the past two months, I've worked harder than ever. Making the transition from in-person to online, and keeping up with so many relationships when there are no more natural touch-points adds up! We had to shift and communicate to our students all the changes that were happening. We knew that many of them would fall off without structure in their lives and we tried our best to give them some while they were staying at home unexpectedly.

Livestreaming

We built a soundstage in my brother's garage in just a week and we've been online and live-streaming ever since! We've since moved to the church since summer started but if you haven't checked us out already we stream every Thursday at 7:30pm at twitch.tv/utdfocus! 

Small Group

My core has also moved to zoom every week, and thankfully we've had pretty consistent attendance. These guys have filled my heart with such joy this year because of their love for one another. We just had our last one where we ended the year with encouragements. Every year I've led core, we've always ended with encouragements. In our society, men seem to be discouraged from speaking their feelings and from expressing their love for one another. So every year, it's always so impactful to hear them speak to one another with love.

Thank You!

Thank you guys so much for supporting me another school year. None of these experiences would be possible without your support. Even the extra work is fulfilling because I know that my efforts honor God. Please, please, please don't hesitate to reach out if there is anything that I can pray for you about. God knows there's lots to pray about these days. But we can trust that his purposes will be fulfilled and that his plan is better than any we can think of. "because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us." (Romans 5:3-5).

Here in the Love of Christ I Stand

A Word of Hope

A lot has changed in the past few weeks, and everything is up-ended. The world as we know it is different, campus ministry looks different now, but what hasn't changed is God's sovereignty and that people need him. It's often in the grim times that people realize their need for God a whole lot more than when they think they have life under control. 

It's times like these when I think of James 1:2-4, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." 

As well as Genesis 50:20 when Joseph is responding to his brothers realizing that he's in a position of power that could save them and their families from famine because they sold him into slavery decades ago when he was a boy. "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."

However, "the saving of many lives" seems inappropriate for such a time as this. But we as followers
of Jesus believe and can say

"'Death has been swallowed up in victory.'

'Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?'

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

We don't believe death is final. We believe that Jesus has conquered even death. And we believe that he's coming again to make all things right. That is why in the face of an unknown future, we can have hope and we can have stability because we've built our houses on the rock. 

Changes

So, what has changed for campus ministry? Unfortunately, many of our students have gone home for good now. UTD has extended spring break an extra week (the students are only halfway through their first week), and they're moving to online classes for the foreseeable future. The University is also kicking out students on campus unless they have no suitable alternative (not sure how tenable that will be). FOCUS has had to cancel the outreach trips from Washington we had planned on hosting because the campuses were shutting down the week they were coming. SICM is up in the air right now as we wait and see what happens. Social distancing measures have been put into place and we are working on and figuring out how to have our FOCUS core group and large group meetings move to online format. We're continuing to have our one-on-one Bible studies continue in-person if possible or over the phone. But not only are we figuring out how to continue doing what we normally do, we're also trying to discern what opportunities God may want us to take advantage of in this unusual time. We're not satisfied with just doing Plan B of everything we usually do, doing everything but in a suboptimal way. I firmly believe that there are opportunities that we wouldn't usually have because of the circumstances. Already, I've heard of core groups where guys who came once or twice and have been wildly inconsistent and flaky throughout the year come out of the woodwork and be excited to join the group again. There's something in us that, when times like these happen, we want to know we're not alone, that there are people ready and willing to walk beside us. And I hope and pray that all of you have that as well.

Thank you all so much for all your support, through finances, through prayer, through emotional support. I couldn't do this without you. And in the coming weeks, what I do will be different, but people need Jesus. Now, seemingly more than ever. Students don't typically do too well over breaks when they don't have structure and they don't have this community to spur them on to love and good deeds. So pray, please pray, that we can meet their needs in that, that the good news could be dispersed and preached because of their migration home, not dispelled and kept distant. Instead of bemoaning the loss of students this school year, I choose instead to be thankful for the time I did get to be with them, develop relationships with them, and make memories with them.