Sirak's April Update!

My Friends!

I hope that April was a month that was well-rested and was a time of personal growth and sanctification. If you wouldn't be able to describe April in such a way then I pray that May would be a month that we all set goals and make the necessary decisions to follow Christ better. I thank you all for your consistent prayers and partnership in the gospel. There are many tough days in campus ministry but God is constantly reminding me to be faithful as I am encouraged by your faithfulness.

Last night we had our end-of-the-year party for UTD FOCUS. It was a celebration of what God has done this year and we honored the many students who were a part of it. I am consistently blown away at the level of commitment and consistency that our student leaders possess. These are men and women who are in class full-time, many of them work part-time and have other obligations but still decide to lead a small group and make disciples on campus. I never want to take for granted how God has blessed our campus ministry through these students and last night was a celebration of their commitment and the work they can look back on and say, "God did that."

I've got a lot of pictures to update you with what's gone on in April and I hope that if you have any questions, prayer requests, comments, or concerns that you wouldn't hesitate to contact me! (See pictures below)

Our UTD 2015-16 UTD/Richland FOCUS Staff! It's been such a pleasure to lead our campus with such bright ministers. From left to right: Nicki, Dani, Brandon, Carmen, Mandy, Victoria, Laurence, Peter, and me (Sirak)

Daniel (left) and I got to meet weekly to lead a group of our small group leaders as they led our community small groups. Daniel is a Ph.D student studying Neuroscience. He's been one of my favorite people to be around this year, love that guy!

I didn't get to be in this photo because I was serving punch in the cake line, however, this is the men's core that I got to lead this year with Karlo (middle of photo, purple button-down shirt).

During the evening, we sang worship songs and celebrated what God has done this year through his people and campus!

Our Richland FOCUS group!

We took a selfie right after the above photo. Why not right? I love these students!

Kale (right), one of our small group leaders and I. Kale and I met weekly to minister to one another and pray for our campus. The students in his core group were impacted greatly through his leadership!

Our Richland FOCUS' men's bible study! We have met every Wednesday this year and these guys have become some of my closest friends. 

It wouldn't be a men's bible study without a selfie, would it? I'm so thankful for these dudes. 

John, one of our male small-group leaders shared on why it's important to give & invest in the vision.

Our group that has been showing up to our Richland FOCUS combined group.

Our Friday Night Fellowship gatherings at UTD have grown so much this year. These students really love getting together to worship and they've welcomed our Richland FOCUS students with open arms!

Sagar (middle), one of our FOCUS Alumni was on campus last week and we all got to catch up with one another. Rhett (left) was in Sagar's bible study his freshman year and Sagar (middle) was in my bible study his freshman year. The circle of life is complete. Rhett has done such a great job meeting and discipling students this year!

At our end-of-the-year party, the Richland FOCUS group took a selfie together! I love these students so much. I am beyond thankful to call myself their campus pastor! We have one more meeting this Wednesday and then the year is a wrap :) 

Please be praying for our students as they enter summer. We have our summer FOCUS that is going to be meeting on Thursday nights this summer, however, we have a few weeks in-between before we begin. Pray that our students would spend their time wisely and that those going back home to their families would be a light to them.

Thank you all for your support and friendship over the years. I'm blown away that I get to spread the name of Jesus on his college campuses and call you all my partners. I love you all and will be in touch soon!

Your campus missionary,

Sirak

Sirak's March Ministry Update!

My friends! My people! My team!

I hope this message finds you well-rested and that your month of March was encouraging and re-energizing. So much has happened in March but before we go into the details I wanted to share a scripture with you all:

"Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, 'children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation'. Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain." Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)

As busy as the month of March was for many of us, I found myself challenged not to complain or boast of the wrong reasons. It is important to know that while we do the work of God people are watching us. As I have led the Richland ministry this year I have seen that many students 'know' who I am without me ever introducing myself. People watch and see what we are up to and it's important for us to stay a light even when we are most comfortable. We are not immune to the attacks of the evil one nor do we live outside of the flesh. I am also reminded of another scripture:

"Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!" Romans 7:24-25 (NIV)

I just wanted to encourage you all with this so we can look back soon on the month of April and be confident that we were a light to those around us! Okay, so now on to what happened in March...

We had a group of students from Western Washington University visit us during their spring break to help us with our week-long evangelism initiative (see pictures below). It was such a blessing to have them and so many great spiritual conversations came out of that week. I posted some pictures of our displays that we used to engage students in spiritual conversations.

"If you could ask God any question what would it be?"

"Should we believe in something that can't be scientifically proven?"

After outreach at Richland, our students all gathered to play some board games and hang out during the afternoon. 

We did outreach at UTD and our displays were such a great tool to help spark spiritual conversations. 

"When you die you rot! But does the real you disappear?"

Our Friday Night Fellowship gathering! Victoria (one of our interns) preached that evening and did such a great job.

To kick off our outreach week we had an all-campus worship event! It was so cool to see the many different campus ministries come together and worship together as a united group.

We did outreach at Richland College and our displays attracted many individuals to come and engage us in spiritual conversations. 

Pictures of our outreach at Richland College.

(From left to right: Brandon, Andrew, Dylan and me (Sirak)) Our good friend & FOCUS Alum, Dylan, is going to be moving to San Diego to pursue his dentistry career and we all went out to top golf to reflect on past years and pray over Dylan.

We are wrapping up the year here pretty soon and please be praying as we strive to finish the year well and push our students to continue their growth in Christ. I am so thankful to have you all as my partners in ministry and please don't hesitate to let me know how I can be praying for you!

You all should be personally hearing from me as we get closer to summer so I can encourage you with stories of how your support has contributed to the Kingdom growing on God's campuses :)

Your campus missionary,

Sirak

Our February Update!

My friends!

I hope that February was a restful month for you all and that you had a great Valentine's day! It's so bizarre to think that it's already March and we've only got a little over two months left before the students are out for summer. Our 2016 has been full of so many spirit-filled events where students are hearing the gospel and responding to the presence of Christ on campus but don't be fooled, we're definitely not going to be slowing down at all as we finish well this school year.

When I was studying sociology at UT Dallas I got to take several classes taught by Professor Sheryl Skaggs. She was a very impactful professor who taught from her heart and cared deeply for her students. Over the year she has become a good friend of mine and our ministry at UT Dallas. She came to one of our Friday night services and shared how follow Christ shapes and influences how she teaches and how she interacts with students. Our students were impacted deeply through her words and left our large-group confident that they, too, can impact and build relationships with their instructors (see photos below!).

One of our small-group leaders, Karlo (Richland College), was invited to our week-long campus ministry training week, SICM, and hosted a pancake dinner to raise funds. He had a great turnout and raised over $300.00 to go to SICM! It was so encouraging to see our Richland guys working together and helping Karlo make this event a success! Karlo has given so much to our Richland ministry and it was such a cool thing to watch the students give back to him.

Thank you so much for your support and enduring partnership in campus missions. So much of this wouldn't be possible without you by our side as we meet students and reach them for the gospel. Keep our student leaders in your prayers as we finish the year strong and head into summer with new and renewed minds focused on Jesus.

Professor Skaggs, instructor of sociology at UT Dallas, came to one of our Friday Night FOCUS services to share what it means to follow Jesus while being a professor.

Epiphany Episcopal Church opened up their doors to our students to attend one of their traditional episcopal services on a Saturday night. They wanted to host our ministry and tell us that they're so thankful for what we're doing on campus and to find ways for us to partner with them.

Another shot of our time at Epiphany Episcopal Church!

The students at Karlo's pancake fundraiser! We had such a great turnout and the students really loved being helping Karlo raise funds for SICM.

Our Richland students! From left to right: Miles, Kah, Catherine, Chad, Karlo, Edwin, and Henry.

More of our students at Karlo's fundraiser playing Avalon. Have you all heard of this board game? It has sort-of taken over our ministry :) Our students love it!

Thank you so much for your support and partnership - I hope that the Lord fills you with a deep sense of his presence and abiding love. I want you to know if you need prayer for anything don't hesitate at all to let me know. You all are alongside me every time I set foot on campus and I couldn't be doing this without you. I love you all!

Your campus missionary,

Sirak Asfaw

Sirak's January Update!

My friends!

I can't believe it's already February! First off, I have so much to tell you all - FOCUS winter camp, Richland FOCUS beginning, baptisms, new 1 on 1 bible studies beginning, and birthdays! The Lord has been the rich provider of 2015 and I am so excited to see what he has planned for 2016 :)

Thank you all so much for your partnership and believing in the vision of reaching college students for the gospel. Almost 5 years ago I invited many of you on this journey with me to see what God had planned and it is so crazy to see just how much God has done through your partnership and faithfulness. Please be praying for us as we enter the spring semester with momentum and energy from our FOCUS winter camp. Our students had a great experience at camp but we know that much of what was learned and experienced can be pointless if we don't translate it into real life on our campuses with the students in our spheres of influence.

Many of the students at Richland College come from lower socioeconomic conditions and need to work part-time, are on government aid for tuition, or work full-time. This presents challenges but God answered a huge prayer this year and Richland College paid for our entire camp! We put in a request to the Office of Student Life and we are blown away at how generous the college was in helping our students all pay for camp.

Our Richland FOCUS group on the way to Winter Camp! God is so good in helping us get these students to camp. Richland College even let us use their campus vans to transport the students to and from camp!

A picture from the back of the auditorium at winter camp. We brought over 500 students from across our FOCUS campuses to camp!

I had the opportunity to lead our community in worship during our Saturday evening service. It's always such a great experience getting to sing songs to our Lord in a room full of his children.

Chad (left), Edwin (center), and me before one of our sessions. I love getting to hang out with these Richland students and show Jesus to them.

Our students got to know one another real well at camp - it was something that our group really needed to start off the spring semester strong!

A pictures of all of the FOCUS campuses together. This was our largest camp to date and I feel it was so impactful and encouraging to the students who came.

After our first meeting of the year our students planned a board-game day in the Richland cafeteria - it always encourages me to see them love and serve each other. 

I got to help with worship on the Sunday night set with some of the other students. It was wonderful to help serve in this way.

One of our UTD students, Simi, committed her life to Jesus and was baptized in the UT Dallas pool. 

I am so excited to see what God has planned for 2016! It has been a joy to have you alongside me as the mission of Christ is furthered everyday on God's college campuses. I hope that these pictures and stories encourage you to continue in your partnership and pursuit of Christ to chase after his plans for you this year :) Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any prayer requests or questions/comments!

I love you all so much and am forever grateful to have you on my team!

Your campus missionary,

Sirak Asfaw

A New Year But His Truth Remain The Same!

 My family!

I can't believe 2016 is finally here! 2015 brought about new friendships and opportunities to share Jesus' love on his college campuses. I thank you for being a part of the process alongside us as we made and matured disciples in 2015 - I am so excited to continually see what God has planned for us in 2016 :)

Please be praying for us as we wait to hear back from Richland College on requested funds for our winter camp. Every year we come together as FOCUS campuses and celebrate what God has been doing with all of our students across the metroplex. The cost of this camp is $150.00 per student (Jan. 15th - 18th) and we requested financial aid & vans from the college. Please pray that our request would fall into the hands of the right people so that we can invite as many students as possible!

Thank you so much for being a part of this vision for God's message to reach college students all across the metroplex. I think that God has HUGE plans for 2016 and is calling us to do what he does: remain faithful. In Galatians 6:9 it says, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." For some people, the beginning of the year warrants moments and opportunities for discovering the hidden message and meaning that will unlock what will make this year 'special' - for us, as disciples, we know that Jesus calls us into faithful service and obedience :) I pray that for many of you, this year will be no different than previous years and that you all will remain just as faithful as you have always been.

Enjoy the pictures below! I got to help lead a mission trip in New Orleans with some of our FOCUS students and have a few pictures from that trip!

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One of our Richland FOCUS students, Henry, and I enjoying some coffee before he heads to class! Henry has been such a consistent part of our group and is a positive energy everywhere he goes.

I had the opportunity to help with filming/editing our "Its Worth It" videos. It was a great experience and helped get the message out about our Keep FOCUS Growing initiative!

I got to help lead a mission trip down in New Orleans. This is a photo of our team of students having a group discussion/devotional time before we left for the day. 

There was a lot of materials and equipment to pick up and haul to prepare for the Christmas party we were putting on for the kids in New Orleans!

Part 1 of our Christmas party for the kids of Holleygrove. 

All the kids & family out for our Christmas party!

My cousin and I. She is in kindergarten and I am so encouraged by my aunt (her mother) knowing that when Sophie (my cousin) goes to college there is a vision for there to be a campus ministry greeting her on move-in day!

I hope that these pictures encourage you and remind you of the fruit that comes through your commitment and faithfulness. It's all for Jesus and done through the power of the Holy Spirit. I love you all and can't wait to tell you all next month all that God is doing!

Your brother,

Sirak

Happy Thanksgiving and (almost) Goodbye to 2015!

My friends, my family, my brothers and sisters. I hope that your November was full of family, quality-rest, encouragement, and reminders of our God's faithfulness. It is crazy to think that 2015 is almost over - as I look through my previous blog entries I am overwhelmed with how faithful and omniscient our God is. He really is all-knowing and is always aware of what we need despite our (at times) selfishness and seeking only our wants.

Please be praying for our students as we move into our Christmas break. We encourage our students go back home with renewed minds and hearts. Many of our students will be travelling back home and may be tempted to fall back into old habits of laziness, selfishness, and boredom. We encourage our students to have positive attitudes, seek to serve their families, and use this Christmas break to spend time seeking the Lord and preparing for the spring 2016 semester. It's extremely important to spend these breaks productive - oftentimes when our students spend the break purposefully their families begin to see the powerful life-changes that the gospel produces!

I meet weekly with Stephen & Kufre (two of our small group leaders this year) and last Wednesday we ran into Jared, a FOCUS small group leader from 2004! His daughter Kailey (far right) was there and we took a photo together symbolizing the different generations of FOCUS student leadership!

I had the pleasure to shoot and edit our "Keep FOCUS Growing - It's Worth It" videos. See link: www.anyfocus.org/itsworthit for more information. These videos were shared on Facebook/Twitter in hopes of raising $45,000 to fund our ministries monthly expenses.

We had an outreach event at Richland College on Tuesday & Wednesday the week before break. We met many students and are praying that those interactions would blossom into a 1 on 1 bible study and a great spiritual friendship. Richland College is a very deep-thinking campus and the students are consistently desiring deep spiritual conversations - pray that Christ would be their focus and goal. 

I had the privilege to go to Rome, GA for Campus Renewal's campus ministry training conference. I got to meet many college ministers from all over the nation. To my right is my friend, Jung-Woo. We went to high school together and graduated from Plano East High School in 2006. It wasn't until last year that the Lord crossed our paths on campus at UTD and now he is a campus pastor with another organization! It was so encouraging to see him and get to hear what the Lord is doing through his life. 

John Cheng, one of the campus pastors with CRU in Dallas/UTD, and I with his daughter, Hope. Hope was in the ICU with a bacterial meningitis infection and has been in recovery. Please be praying for this precious family and for their daughter, Hope. That she would be fully healed and that they would have a wonderful holiday together. They have been such an encouragement to me and everyone else at UT Dallas that they cross paths with. 

Over 50 college campus pastors gathered to fellowship and learn how we can effectively serve and challenge our students. It was such a blessing to be a part of this 3-day conference. Campus ministry can be challenging and stretching at times. It was encouraging to be able to see what all God is doing across the nation through hundreds of other campus ministries and that definitely inspired me to not grow weary!

I am so thankful for your support and friendship throughout this campus-missions process. You all are building God's kingdom NOW on his campus through your support. Your prayers and monthly donations have helped plant a campus ministry at UT Arlington and have paved the way for three 1 on 1 bible studies I am involved in at Richland - please be praying that these relationships would inspired generations of students to follow Jesus and give up all they have for the gospel.

As we enter the Christmas holiday season I want to encourage you with this scripture from Isaiah:

"Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost." Isaiah 55:1

Let's approach God this holiday season and seek to glorify him through our obedience and sacrificial lives. 

I think you for your partnership - let's have a great break and spring semester!

Your missionary,

Sirak