Ashlyn's Ministry Updates

 Hello everyone! Can you believe it's already March? I sure can't. Time is passing by too quickly, I only have three months left of the apprenticeship! That doesn't mean we are ramping down at all! Ministry has been thriving here in Dallas, and we are always grateful for the generous donations of all our supporters around the country to keep that going. Staff Retreat Because of a rise in Covid cases in January, the FOCUS staff was not able to go on our winter retreat. So, it was successfully moved to the second week in February! We stayed at a gorgeous campus in Bernett Texas. We were surrounded by nature and had all the amenities we needed to spend a week in fellowship and remind each other why and for Whom we are doing this ministry. We had five sessions where senior staff shared their wisdom of working in ministry for years and had discussion times to flesh out what the future could look like. We also spent time in meditation and prayer - my favorite part was when we wer...

 Hello and welcome back to my monthly update email! January was a very full month as we kicked into gear for the Spring semester.  The weekend before school went back into session, FOCUS held our annual ministry-wide Winter Camp. The SMU and TWU Dallas ladies stayed in a comfy cabin together, and we attended memorable sessions given by the esteemed Rikk Watts, a professor from Regent College who provides content for some apprentice classes. Rikk set up the weekend by presenting the premise that Jesus not only paved the road for Christians throughout history but had a very significant impact on Western culture in general. He painted a beautiful story of just how incredible the Lord of our salvation is. We also had times for "walk-n-talks" during the weekend, where we paired up with students in the ministry to share our stories and get excited about what God was doing in each others' lives. It was a very fruitful weekend, and I left feeling rejuvenated and on fire for campu...

  I'd like to say a belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all! I hope your holidays were full of blessings and peace.  On the ministry end of things this past month, we only had about half the month before students went home for the break. But the shorter amount of time did not hinder us from packing our days full of fellowship! We wanted to make sure our students did not resign themselves to weeks of isolating finals-studying, so we planned for lots of opportunities to gather as a community.  Of course, we had our annual Christmas party. This year, the theme was "Christmas Cup" where each Core had the chance to compete in various Christmas games to win a Grinch-shaped mug. Our games included gingerbread house decorating, "tree decorating" (see picture 1), and some pretty creative Christmas karaoke presentations. Unfortunately, my Core did not take the title of Christmas Champions, but the fun we had was more than enough to reward us with feelings of...

 Welcome back to my updates, everyone! It’s been another packed month of ministry, and I feel I have way too much to share about! This blog is going to be a mixture of ministry updates with some reflections on my experience so far as things are ramping down for the semester.  Emo Night!   This month we did an SMU girls night event that is now my favorite event we’ve ever done: Emo Night. Laura, a student in our ministry, and I hypothesized that most people have had their own experience of an “emo phase” in their middle/high school lives, and we wanted everyone to share theirs with each other. So we pulled out the eyeliner, leather jackets, and black nail polish to create an unforgettable night. We began with some cookies and brownies, an important staple for any girls night. Then we jumped into poetry and diary entry reading. Turns out we have some very talented poets and writers! It was so special to see these girls be vulnerable about some of their darkest moments and h...

Welcome back to my ministry updates! October was quite an eventful month! With the arrival of the new season came some FOCUS classics like Fall Camp and the Halloween Party. Fall Camp (part one) was at Camp Lebanon with the SMU campus. It was such a sweet time of rest and fellowship, with worship sprinkled in to remind us of why we're really here. We stayed overnight at this camp and spent a lot of bonding time together - it was evident when we got back to campus that many new relationships had started, and old ones had been strengthened. Fall Camp (part two) was a one-day retreat with some girls from TWU Dallas. Although we didn't get to stay the night, it was a great bonding experience! We set up worship stations where the girls could reflect on God's goodness in their lives, along with some fun crafts like pumpkin painting. For our most recent Fall event, we had a Karaoke Halloween Party at SMU! I performed a rendition of "Into the Unknown" with my good friend ...

  Counting Every Blessing Hello everyone!  Just a reminder, if you are receiving these emails it's because you have invested in my year as a campus pastor with FOCUS, and I am so full of gratitude for your generosity. God has been doing some incredible things so far on the SMU and TWU Dallas campuses, and it's only possible because of your gift!  As I've said before, I am taking classes as a part of my apprenticeship. These classes include an Old Testament course, taught by Regent College's Iain Provan and other FOCUS pastors, pastoral ministry courses, leadership courses, and even a financial stewardship course. I have been able to process through important topics and issues pastors today are facing in their communities, such as how should the church address the polarizing climate of today's culture while continuing to love people well. We have also covered topics like balancing work and rest, discovering different spiritual practices, and stewarding finances well....

Welcome back to my ministry updates blog!! A lot has happened since my last update. The past few weeks have been filled with so many memories, fun times, and awesome God moments.  Three weeks ago, FOCUS took 150 student leaders on a retreat called SICM (Student Institute of Campus Ministry) to learn about how to make the most of student ministry and form strong bonds. Many topics were covered in lectures held on the beautiful Camp Eagle campsite, including how to form spiritual friendships, how to plan for Core (small groups), and how to do outreach on diverse campuses. One of my favorite moments was going on the 3,000-foot zip line with some new friends! After getting back home from SICM, we jumped right into Welcome Week at SMU and TWU Dallas. Every day had a fun event planned - a Coffee House set up on Monday, Glow in the Dark Capture the Flag on Tuesday, Fireside Hangout on Wednesday, Thursday Night Fellowship on Thursday, and mini-golf at Top Golf on Friday. We met so many new...