The School Year Has Begun

 Hi to all my ministry partners!

August has been a crazy month, but honestly, for all the right reasons. 

After staff retreat, around 200 students and staff ended up going to Camp Eagle for a week of learning what it means to do campus ministry well, a time that we refer to as the Student Institute of Campus Ministry (SICM). This week was a chance to train students in what it means to be effective leaders on their campuses. By a worldly standard, this might look like saying or doing the "right thing" in order to persuade other students into joining their small group or the ministry. However, these students were instead taught about what it means to have purposeful friendships and an intentional relationship with God. I even left the week being encouraged and challenged to reflect on my own heart in the way I approach others in their own lives. Ultimately, do I expect others to hop into the way I live my life or do I meet them where they're at and let Jesus' kindness lead them to repentance?

Here's a view from Camp Eagle! It seriously was such a beautiful place where you truly got to immerse yourself in God's creation.

This is my sweet friend, Alex. She is also an apprentice with me at Collin College. We ended up riding together to SICM, which led to so many deep and intentional conversations. I'm so excited to get to be working with her! Pictured here is a part to under her car that finally fell off. Don't worry, it didn't cause any damage or danger...hopefully. 

With that, God also reminded me ever so sweetly that this year in the apprenticeship is not about growing more in my character in order to love him better. But, instead, is about loving him more so that he can grow me according to his will and my needs. This honestly has provided so much freedom for me, as I had been struggling with the idea of being 'good enough' for God's grace and provision for weeks on and off for a while now. 

Pictured are my sweet friends Hannah (closest to me on the left), Angelica (middle with the bun), and Emily (right doing something mischievous). Hannah and Angelica were in my core this past year, and this year, are going to be core facilitators at UNT. I am so excited for them, and beyond proud to see how God has grown them over this past year. God really is going to do some amazing things through them, which is thanks to the support you give to our campus pastors to pour into students like them!

During free time, I got to make bracelets with several students from different campuses. It was so sweet getting to spend time with them and befriending them. 

Shortly after SICM, Welcome Week for many campuses started. This typically is the first week students are on campus. For some, it started immediately after we got back from SICM. However, for Collin College, ours was a week later. This gave us time to prepare, and even some time for rest and, for me personally, to catch up on our Old Testament class. 

Welcome Week itself was such a blur, but such an amazing and wonderful experience. While I was at college at UNT, I experienced Welcome Week as a student in making time for outreach and showing up to events when I was available. That itself was exhausting, but from a campus pastor perspective now, I have a deeper appreciation for the effort and time my own campus pastors' put into Welcome Week. While I was tired by the end of the week, it was so rewarding getting to know the different Collin campuses and the students on them. We also had our first Thursday Night Fellowship and first core at the Wylie campus, which had an amazing turn out at both! 

This is my sweet friend, Jordan. She definitely is a goofy gal, but it's been such a joy seeing her get really excited about community. She's someone I've been praying for to get to know intentional friendship and fully realize just how worth being pursued she is by people and God. So, her showing up to FOCUS and willingly involving herself is definitely an answer to prayers. 

David and I hosted a movie night for Wylie students during Welcome Week! This was such a fun night of getting to know others and for them getting to know each other. 

David and I also hosted our first core at Wylie. These students are such treats and I'm so excited to get to be their friend. Cool story, Gabriel (far right) approached a few of us during Welcome Week and professed to be agnostic, but was willing to give God a shot again. He has been so enthusiastic about participating in any way he can, including showing up to core an hour early and even showing up to the Wylie Northeast Church all on his own. He really is so excited for community, and I'm so excited to get to show that to him. Again, this is due to your support. So, thank you so much, and I'm so excited to continue sharing stories like his and others.

I'm so excited for what God is going to do on these campuses this school year, and I'm so grateful to get to be a part of that mission. However, this is all due to your support and belief in what God is doing at these campuses. So, thank you ever so much for that!

With love,

Orion Childers

Prayer Requests:

• The Wylie Collin campus and us outreaching there. There's a prominent desire for friendship there. So, please be praying that we're able to befriend as many of those students as we can-even if they don't choose Christ. 
• My own schedule as we fully start getting into the apprenticeship. I'm definitely someone who struggles with resting. So, prayers for balancing my schedule and being faithful to where God calls me is always appreciated!