2019 Is Off To a Great Start!

My friends! My team!

It's crazy to think that January 2019 is already almost over! I'm blown away at how much fun our FOCUS Wintercamp was and how many students came. I am thankful that so many of you have been in prayer for us as a ministry in preparing for another wonderful spring semester.

This year for Wintercamp, we brought in Dr. John Stackhouse to speak with our students. Dr. Stackhouse is a professor who used to teach at Regent College and is a Canadian biblical scholar and writer. He spoke with our students on how they can confront the culture of their time & space while still maintaining Christian values and positions. He was very thought-provoking, insightful, and funny! I am grateful to the countless men & women across our globe who have done the difficult work of scholarship and reading to help all of us who follow Jesus to better grasp the gospel.

Many of our students are faced with decisions every day about how to interact with culture, ideas, and what their response should be. Often, it can be easy to dismiss it all and take a backseat to it all but Dr. Stackhouse did a great job at equipping and encouraging the students to step up and engage with the culture around them.

Our Richland FOCUS ministry began having evening services on Thursday nights (we're calling it "Thursday Night Thunder") - see photos below. We had our first meeting after wintercamp and we had more than 50 students show up! Praise God! Please keep praying for us as we prepare and

I hope that the pictures below are encouraging and a great reminder showing us what God is doing this semester! Thank you for your support!

Our student monthly testimony for January! This testimony follows Nicole Jones, a junior involved in our Texas Women's University FOCUS ministry. 

A nice picture of me (right) and my older brother, Menelik (left). 

At Wintercamp, our students threw a 'Mexican Party' equipped with a Pinata and other festivities! It was a blast :) So many of our students really enjoyed their time together. 

Tom and his wife, Kristi, came to join us at Wintercamp! Tom is a pastor on staff with CRU and has been a great resource to me & our Richland ministry the past couple of years. Sloan, my wife (far right) was also there! Cheers!

A photo of our entire FOCUS ministry @ Wintercamp! It was a joy to be a part of what God did that weekend!

When we got back from Wintercamp, we had our first Thursday Night Thunder @ Richland College! It was wonderful & great! We had around 50 students show up :)

So grateful for all of the students who came that night!

A photo of all of the students who came to our first Thursday Night Thunder! It was such a joy to be a part of a special kick-off to a great semester :)

I had the privilege and honor to help lead & facilitate worship for our first Thursday Night Thunder! We have our next one on 01/31 - so please be praying for us!

Thank you so much for your support and partnership for our FOCUS ministry! We are grateful for your partnership and support. None of this would be possible without you and your belief in making disciples on God's college campuses :) Thank you!!!

A photo of our Richland FOCUS ministry! So grateful for these students and their hearts. Our ministry has been a special place where they can know one another and build healthy friendships with each other. Thank you for your support!

Thank you again for believing in what we're doing on God's college campuses. It means so much to me that you would support me through prayer and monthly donations. I'm honored to get to serve these students through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments, or concerns that you may have!

Your brother,

Sirak

2018 Has Come To a Close! So thankful!

My friends! My team! How are things?!

It's crazy to think that 2019 has arrived and that 2018 is over. Fall 2018 was full of encouraging stories and examples of God's faithfulness. God always provides and takes care of his people. I know that firsthand through an experience I had at the beginning of 2019. On the way to staff retreat last week I was involved in a car accident and my car was totaled (pictures below). I am grateful that nobody was injured and that the cars on the road were driving more slowly than usual due to the weather and road conditions. The accident could have been very bad, however, everyone is fine and I am currently car shopping! If you know of any good deals in the Dallas area, please send them my way!

Thank you so much for your support and partnership. Our staff is geared up and ready for our annual FOCUS Wintercamp coming up next week. Our students are excited and have been preparing all year for this. Please be praying for God to move faithfully in touching our students' lives. Wintercamp is always a special time of the year. I remember when I was a student how special it was to get to be with other college students and worship God together at Wintercamp. Please be praying for our many student leaders as they invite the students in their core to wintercamp, that God would provide the finances for all students to get to attend wintercamp (we never want money to be a reason why students don't attend camp), and for safe travels!

Thank you for your support and I hope that the below pictures are encouraging to you! I cannot do any of this without you. I'm grateful for what God did through your partnership for the Fall 2018 semester and look forward to what the spring holds!

Joey, me, Casey, and Ben! I love getting to spend time with these guys every Wednesday to talk through different ways that we can serve & bless the students around us.

My wife and I celebrated our first Christmas together! 

Our Richland FOCUS Christmas party! It was a huge success and our students had a great time :)

Another picture of our Richland FOCUS Christmas party! 

For our Christmas party, we brought in past alum of Richland FOCUS and they did a great job introducing and celebrating the student leaders in our group. It was a blast! This is a picture shortly before they announced the winner of our core performance competition!

Our Richland FOCUS Leadership Team! So thankful for these students :)

Our end-of-the-year FOCUS lunch that we shared together! We spent time sharing how we've seen the people around us go 'all in' for God this year and it was so special to hear from the different people.

Another picture of our group that came to our Richland FOCUS end-of-the-year party!

I got to spend time with Roy (center) and Valentine (right) throughout the fall semester. Roy is an international student from Mexico who attended Richland College in the fall. He decided to follow Jesus and has been a consistent part of our ministry. I'm grateful for him and his time here in America. Valentine has also been such a good influence on Roy and they have become the best of friends. We'll miss you Roy!

Here is a picture of Roy trying to take a picture with Valentine.

I got to attend one (of many) of Sloan's family Christmas events! It was so fun getting to experience what she has a part of her life every year. I enjoyed our time together!

Thank you so much for your support and partnership over the years. I hope that 2019 is full of God's provision and awakening in your lives. I am grateful that you would be a part of my team and that you continually are side-by-side with me on campus as we make disciples for God's glory.

Please don't hesitate to let me know if there's anything that I can be praying for you about in your life!

Your brother & campus missionary,

Sirak