Ready For the Year

 Hello Ministry Partners!

Thank you so much for joining me in ministry! Without your support I would not be able to get to do this ministry. This month has already been crazy busy. Classes for UNT students don’t start for another week but the apprenticeship is well underway. We’re already two weeks into the apprenticeship. It all started on August 1st where we the apprentices made their commitments for the year and it was also my 24th birthday! My Mom and Dad who helped me a lot today with moving also put a party on for me to celebrate both occasions. (I often feel the tangible love of Jesus in my life through their actions). If you didn’t get to watch the ceremony and would like to here is a link to the recording, it's pretty short. https://fb.watch/7nLEE68s4c/



The next day all the apprentices joined the rest of the full-time staff on a three day retreat that was very encouraging and helpful for moving into this year. Even after being a part of the ministry for five years I was still surprised at the culture that had been created amongst the team that is made up of nearly sixty ministers. The retreat was centered around reminding each other that we need to die to ourselves and live for Jesus! We reflected a lot on Galatians 2:20 which says “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” We reflected on the ways that we need to practice dying to ourselves and spent time praying for one another. This was a great encouragement to me and I look forward to being pushed and challenged to look more like this throughout this year! Here is a picture of the staff at the retreat.


Coming back from the retreat we jumped right into our classes with Old Testament foundations and began reading Genesis. There is a lot of reading to do in the next several days for the class but I am so excited to have a better understanding of the Old Testament, how it points to Jesus and what my history as a Christian looks like. Below is a picture of the apprentices in between classes listening to a lecture.


This past week the staff and student leaders went on a retreat called SICM (Student Institute of Campus Ministry) focused on preparing us for evangelism and discipleship throughout the year. It was such an ideal time for it because it was right before welcome week this next week where we will be trying to meet as many students as we can to invite them into friendship, community, and a relationship with Jesus! A good friend of mine named Josh came up to me to confess some sin and pray for me. It was amazing to hear through his prayers how much God had done in his life and how grateful he was for God to use me and focus in his life. Josh and I spent the last year studying the bible one-one-one and this next year he is going to be a student leader at UTA. Here is a picture of Josh and I hanging after one of our studies.


 I went to SICM in 2017 and it made me so excited for welcome week. This time it is right before welcome week instead of three months before, this and the weird year we have had with COVID makes me so excited to see what God is going to do these next several weeks!! Please be praying for the students and staff’s hearts as we go out this upcoming week on campus inviting students into friendship, community, and relationship with Jesus. Also, if you could pray that the students would be susceptible to our efforts and that we would be able to join Jesus in what He is doing in people’s lives.




God Bless,



Cole

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