I Can’t Out-Love God
I can’t believe it is already December! I am almost at the halfway point of this apprenticeship which is so cool in some ways and honestly sad in other ways too. We are wrapping up the semester as my girls take their finals and get to go home to their families for Christmas break!
One of the girls that I get to meet with several times a week is named Ava. She and I lead our small group (called core) together. One thing you have to know to know Ava is that she will tell you that she is so stressed, needs to study so much, and she thinks that whatever she did went poorly- but then she aces everything she does. I’m serious this girl is so smart. She decided to take the MKAT and go to med school in the middle of her junior year and switched majors, but is still going to graduate on time! Ava is also so funny, she is a great friend, she loves to play volleyball, and she loves Jesus with all of her heart. It has been such a blessing to know her and be her friend. Would you pray for Ava that God would ease her anxiety about the future, help her know that her emotions are so good, and give her confidence in the gifts and abilities that He has given her?
Some other highlights from my core this month:
These are my friends River and Kaylie. We ran a turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning together!
This is baby Ava (there are 2 Ava’s). She and I have been meeting weekly to study the bible together and we just finished! I have loved seeing her realize just how much God’s hand had been in her life even when she had no idea who He was. I am sad to not see her as often now, but so excited for her to be sent into the world to show others just how good our God is!
While I reflect on the time I get to spend on campus, I am overcome with affection. I would do anything for these girls. Yet, no matter how much I love them, my love will never come close to how much God loves them and how much he loves all of us. What a joy that we have a father who is so so good!
I Want To Know You Lord
When I am not on campus or with students, I am either locked in my house reading or in class discussing what we read. Just the other day, we finished the Old Testament along with about 5 other books and many, many hours of podcasts and lectures. I have learned SO MUCH. This is from the book I am reading for Holy Spirit class:
“Ethics for Paul is an issue related to the known character of God. The purpose of Christian ethics is the glory of God, the pattern for such ethics is the Son of God, the principle is love because love is the essence of who God is, and the power is the Spirit of God. Since the first mentioned fruit of the Spirit is love, the Spirit not only empowers the believer for ethical behavior, but by indwelling the believer the Spirit also reproduces the pattern and the principle of that behavior." - Gordon Fee
Kinda confusing right? I think Fee is saying that Paul teaches ethics not as moral abstract rules, but as behavior that reflects Gods character. And we are able to do so because of the power of the Spirit in us. This is the kind of amazing stuff I am getting exposed to and I love it so much. The more that I learn, the more I realize just how little I know.
On the other hand, the apprentices voted, and they think that I am the most likely to win the Hunger Games.
I am not really sure why…
I Will Rejoice in You!
Outside of the apprenticeship, life has been really great! The biggest update is that I GOT A DOG
Her name is Mango and she is a mini long hair dachshund. She loves all the friends that come over and made it on the Denton FOCUS Instagram week one because she is so cute and everyone loves her. In other news, I had a very sweet thanksgiving break (got to see several of you!) and went to a Benjamin William Hastings concert with my friends Jessica and Claire from UTD.
Every time I sit down to write this blog and share about all the things that are going on I feel so overwhelmed with thanks. I could not do what I do without you all. For those of you that gave to our Keep Focus Growing fundraiser- a double thank you! Our students are so blessed by many people that they do not even know.
The song that inspired me this month was Teach Me How to Love You More by Taylor Armstrong. It is so good you should give it a listen! Thanks for being here!
Love, Hannah