Kevin Pike Ministry Blog #36

June Update 


    Hello everyone! Hope your summer has been going great! The heat can't stop, won't stop Focus! I can not wait to tell y'all all that has been going on, let's jump into it :)

Summer TNF (Thursday Night Fellowship)

    This summer, we’re still meeting up every Thursday night! During the school year, we host the event just for students at Collin College, but in the summer, we open it up to all of the FOCUS campuses—and it’s a blast! We’ve had record numbers of students showing up. The church is packed with young adults who want to spend their summers with others rather than wasting it.

The service usually consists of worship music, announcements, a sermon, and then ends with more worship music.

I would love for y’all to come on down and join us for a service! You can find us at Care Church in Richardson every Thursday night at 7:30 PM. Hope to see you there—let me know if you want to come, and I’d be happy to show you around!

Here are some photos from our past services:







Ministry Update

    This summer, even though the majority of my time is spent fundraising, I’m still meeting up with students to help them grow in their relationship with God. I’m currently meeting with eight students, and we’re going through the Bible as well as other related books. Five of the students I’m meeting with are going through FOJ (Focus on Jesus) with me. That’s our 10-week—though it always ends up being longer—study on who Jesus is. Each week, we read selected scriptures that help us see the words of Jesus and figure out who this man was. It’s been such a blast to do this study with these guys; they’re so eager to learn, which makes it incredibly fun and fulfilling for me.

I’m also going through three different books with three of the other students I meet with. I’m reading Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools with one, Galatians for You with another, and To Love as God Loves with the third. I chose these specific books because I felt they spoke directly to questions and ideas that each of these guys needed to process. It’s been such a blessing to read through these with young men who are so on fire for the Lord.

In addition, I’m currently reading In the Name of Jesus by Henri Nouwen with the men’s staff here at Collin. It’s a short book focused entirely on Christian leadership and how to live a thoughtful, Jesus-centered life in today’s world. It’s the perfect book for us to be reading as we prepare for the upcoming school year. We see summertime as a chance to recharge, reflect on the year with our staff, and spend extra quiet time with the Lord before the frenzy of welcome week begins. This book reminds us what the goal of Christian leadership is really about: loving others well and not focusing on ourselves.

I often find myself wanting to be a “good” Christian leader—whatever that means—comparing myself to others and wanting to look impressive to those around me. But that’s not what Jesus came here to do. My goal is to become more like Him. Jesus came to preach His message and to serve others. The message is simple, but it can be so hard to truly grasp. This book has been an incredible resource for me this summer, and I’m so thankful for it.

Here are the links to the four books I mentioned above, in case any of y’all are interested in them. I highly recommend each one:


Prayer Requests 

    The summer is a hard time for students as they get out of their usual schedule and now have access to a ton of free time which is not used wisely. It is easy for them to isolate and not spend any time with God. If you could pray that our students spend their time wisely and continue to use their brains, that would be great. Also, please pray that our staff is able to rest well this summer so that we can be ready for Welcome Week.

Thank You 

    Thank you so much for your generous support of my campus ministry at Collin College! Because of your giving, students are encountering Jesus, finding deep community, and growing as leaders who will carry the gospel wherever they go. Your partnership is making a real and lasting difference in their lives, and I’m truly grateful for the impact you're having on this mission.

P.S. Here is a student talking about the impact that FOCUS has had on them since they have found this community. Your donation gets to help real students like Jordan here.




    

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