February Update!

Hello Friends!

Let's talk about January!

Wow!! What a month! I feel like normally January last forever, but this one flew by. I think this has been my favorite month of ministry so far and I think God is doing some really exciting things!

Winter Retreat!

Every year our entire ministry comes together for winter retreat! It is a time of sermons, fellowship and lots of fun! This was my third year attending and getting to see what all goes into it from a new perspective just adds a whole new level of appreciation for those who plan it! From across our campuses we had around 700 in attendance! Praise God! 

The week after retreat all I could reflect on was the story about Jesus feeding the 5000. I really got to see how much he can do with our "small" efforts. I think to the worlds standards, my small group of 8 girls wouldn't been impressive, but to God? Its so exciting! Each of our small efforts on these campuses led to 700 people praising him together for 4 days! I took time to pause one morning during worship and look around at everyone. It was beautiful and really felt like a glimpse of what our eternity will look like.

                A morning hike with some UTA friends                                Chris and Helen!

This is some of the girls from my core last year and this year on a coffee run! 

My sweet core!

The apprentices! 

Caitlynn's baptism

I got to meet Caitlynn last March and she quickly became a light in our core and ministry! She radiates the love of Jesus and has such a caring heart! It has been sweet to watch her grow in her faith and this month she got baptized! I am so excited to see how God continues to use her! 

FOJ

FOJ (Focus on Jesus) is a one on one study our ministry does with our students! It is 10 lessons long and goes through scripture to learn more about who Jesus is and why he is important! I did FOJ with Reagann from denton and it was incredibly helpful in helping me grow to look more like Jesus! While our staff does lead them, our student leaders do too! 

Some more moments from this month!

Got to spend time with Chris! She was my cofa last year and is one of my best friends! She is part of the denton ministry and is leaving for the coast guard this spring! Were soaking up the last couple months we have before she is out of state!

The past 2 winter breaks there have been a group of students who have hosted "Winter Focus". The goal was to have a space to interact with community for those who were in town for the break! I got to attend it last winter and this one! This is from our final night for this years break. We did a series over 2 Timothy! 

Prayer request:

This months has been joyful and I think a lot of our students are in some exciting decision points with their relationship with Jesus. Will you join me in praying that they will seek Jesus earnestly in these decisions about their future? That they would fully trust him and surrender? 

Thank you!

Every month of ministry I continue to feel deep gratitude for the work God is doing. These updates are just a glimpse of the Lords work. Reflecting back to the story about Jesus feeding the 5000, your support is incredibly impactful and doing more than I can capture in words and pictures. Thank you for joining me in reaching students and telling them about the goodness of God! 

Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

 “Bring them here to me,”he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.   Matthew 14:16-21

With so much love,

Madison