Friday, January 14, 2011
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
FOCUS Fall Semester @ ISU
Here is a compendium of the God-graced events that rocked the campus of Illinois State University this semester:
AUGUST 2010
-Charismatic Conference
The Diocese of Peoria hosted their 24th Annual
Charismatic Renewal Conference, and a group of ISU students and our lovely Religious Sisters were right then to experience it. We learned about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we praised our Lord during the mass, and had many opportunities to join in singing praise & worship songs to our King. Several students experienced being prayed over for the first time, and some were even brave enough to participate in the healing mass. Although the event's special guest, Anne the Lay Apostle, was not able to be present due to illness, our speakers and Bishop Jenky were there to lead us in prayer and worship. Us ISU students even got a special, private talk by one of the event speakers after the Conference was done on the aspects of Spiritual Warfare. He was also able to clear up any and all questions we had concerning the gifts of the Holy Spirit, Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the overall Catholic Charismatic Movement. Everyone left feeling even more on fire with the Holy Spirit and with love for Jesus and His Church.
-Festival ISU
Every new school year, dozens of new freshman arrive on campus and are eager to get involved with some of the numerous RSOs (Registered Student Organizations) we have at ISU. This is why ISU created what is known as Festival ISU. Festival ISU is an event hosted on the quad, where all of the RSOs on campus set up tables and booths and hand out freebies and info to the students about their respective groups. We here at St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center always make sure that we are right there providing information to these students on how to get involved here with the church and the events we host throughout the year. I was specifically asked to be in charge of the Evangelization effort for isuCATHOLIC this semester. This meant coordinating and gathering all of the materials we would give away, I created a PowerPoint slideshow showcasing past events at Newman, and recruited students to help run the tables. It was a daunting and time-consuming task, but it was well worth it. We reached out to many students and many are now full time regulars at the Newman Center!
-Newman Camping Trip
What's a better way to get to know students, then to
spend a 
weekend together in the great outdoors? This is exactly what happened during our Newman Camping trip this semester. We spent a weekend together in the great outdoors. We played frisbee, cooked hotdogs, some students jumped into the freezing cold water at sunset, we went canoeing, played psychiatrist around a bonfire, and ended the weekend with a beautiful outdoor Mass on Sunday morning celebrated by Fr. Ryan Bredemeyer. All of the students loved getting away from the hassles of homework and school, and had a great time with fellow believers, friends, and community.
SEPTEMBER 2010
-Bible Study Coordinator
One of the methods FOCUS utilizes when reaching out to students in challenging them to grow in their faith is to start bible studies. Though these studies are generally first led by the missionaries themselves, those students in Discipleship then take charge and lead their own study for other other students. When the FOCUS program was present at ISU we had a good number of studies (it was through a FOCUS bible study at ISU, that I met Paul, who would lead me back to Christ). When the FOCUS program left ISU, this left many students in want and need of small group bonding and fellowship. After talks with the Sisters at the Newman Center, they agreed to let the students begin these studies back up again. In order to keep track of these studies and make sure the material was true to Church teaching, she appointed me as Bible Study Coordinator. This entailed becoming aware of all the studies that had begun and ordering the study guides for the students and leaders. We grew to around 5 different studies which met throughout the semester covering topics ranging from Salvation History, to Christ-like Leadership for Men, to Scriptural Apologetics. This knowledge of Scripture and fellowship with fellow believers in so crucial for growing in one's faith, and it was a great blessing to see these studies begin again.
OCTOBER 2010
-Koinonia 41 Retreat
(First some backround info) Every semester campuses across the country host a retreat known as Koinonia. It was on my Koinonia retreat in Oct 2009 where I gave a total surrender to Jesus and told him I was sick and tired of living a life solely focus on me and my own pleasures. He answered my prayer in a very special (and personal) way, that I couldn't ignore it. The God of the entire Universe cared enough to call me out and tell me He wanted me for himself. I began giving up the lifestyle of partying (while I was on the retreat, I was still recovering from a leg injury incurred during a drunk-driving accident prior). I gave myself entirely to him. I was filled with an insatiable desire to live entirely for Him and His Kingdom and to know everything I could about Him. I began going to daily Mass, reading Scripture, my Cathechism, the lives of the Saints, and whatever else I could get my hands on. This led to me going on FOCUS conference in Orlando, FL in December 2009, where I decided that God was leading me to become a fulltime FOCUS Missionary. I was then asked to be on staff for the retreat the following Spring, and then to co-lead the retreat the following Fall for Koinonia 41.
(back to the Fall 2010) As mentioned previously I was asked to co-lead this retreat with a wonderful daughter of God named Katie Seidenberg. Katie had been an integral part of me growing in my prayer-life and we had become regular prayer partners and friends. When I learned last April that I would be leading this retreat with Katie, I was enthralled! We quickly began praying very intensely for the success of the retreat and that the Holy Spirit would move those whom God desired to go on this retreat. We made several pilgrimages prior to the retreat to offer up prayers in preparation for the retreatants and team (including one stop at the Shrine of St. Joseph--our patron saint for NK41!) As the weekend approached we were both very nervous, but we knew that God would lead us to what we were supposed to do.
On the retreat we had roughly 30 students who attended (not including the students on staff). We heard talks about different tenets of the faith such as Scripture & Prayer, Christian Living, and Metanoia, we had Confession time, we had Adoration time with the Blessed Sacrament, and we had times of fellowship and games outside. Though the weekend seemed to fly by so fast, so much grace came by way of the retreat! I miss it so dearly, and wish I could go back to that wonderful weekend.
-Newman Day/ 5K Run/ Chili Cook
As a fundraiser for World Youth Day 2011, and in preparation for the Dedication of our new Newman Center and Chapel, we held a Newman Day. This consisted of a 5K run in the morning, and then a Chili Cookoff in the afternoon after the race was finished. Since I am not really the running type, I opted out of the 5K in favor of the Cookoff. I signed up as cooking "Philly Chili" not because it sounds delectable having a Phili Cheesesteak inspired Chili, but rather, I thought the name was pretty epic. Of course, I've never really made Chili before (let alone my own), have had unpleasant experiences with the Crockpot in the past, and I waited until the day off the Cookoff to find out any information at all. I'll let you in on a little secret...cheese....it's all about the cheese. All I did to make my Philly Chili was take cans of Walmart Chili, dump it into a Crock Pot, add cut up cubes of steak, then top it with a ton of cheese. Most people commented that it was the cheese that really pulled the whole thing together (on the other hand, there were no complaints about the wonderful steak cubes either). My creation came in 5th place out of 10 or so chili's and I was happy. For something I created literally an hour before I placed it into the competition, I was pleasantly surprised. Besides the Run and Chili, we also had balloons, face painting, and the Ignite band played a ton of great live music. We even had some visitors come by who would not soon after be our newest retreatants on our Koinonia Retreat I led with Katie. Good times, good fun, and good memories.
NOVEMBER 2010
-Dedication Mass
The moment we had all been so eagerly awaiting. For the past several years we at the St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center had been attending Mass and hosting events in our old Center. To sum it up nicely it was a corrugated shed with wood paneling on the inside. But to the great interest of all involved, the Center underwent construction on what would become a new chapel and additions that would become our new center. This construction seemed to last forever. It was a terribly long wait, and most people didn't even think we were open, much less a church with all of the fenced off areas and tarp coverings over the front edifice and front yard of the building. However in November 2010, we were open for the public, and we got our first peak of the new chapel and center. They were BREATHTAKING. beautiful, great acoustics, and even a fireplace in the Center. On the day of the dedication we had many many priests attend (including Fr. Antonio Dittmer, and Fr. Victor Mosele) as well as Bishop Jenky of the Peoria Diocese, and many relics as well (including but not limited to: St. Therese, St. Martin de Porres, St. Peter, and a relic of the True Cross). Everyone was dressed in their finest attire while Mass occured and as Bishop Jenky basically Baptized and Confirmed the Chapel. Due to overflow, hundreds of people watched the Mass on closed-circuit video in the old Center in folding chairs. You can see a video recap from the News about the mass here: Dedication Video. Our Center was even renamed. Henceforth from that day on, our chapel would be known as the: St. Robert Bellarmine Chapel, and our center as the: John Paul II Catholic Newman Center. Just seeing students walking down the sidewalks from the dorms towards the church was a delight in my eyes. No longer was attending Mass a backdoor venture, but rather, a light in the darkness. I know the Dedication will live on in the memories of all who attended.
In Addition:
In addition to all of the previously mentioned events, our Fall semester at ISU consisted of:
-Divine Mercy groups praying every day at 3p
-Rosary groups praying every day before Mass
-Mass followed by Adoration and Praise & Worship every Wednesday at 7:30
-Treasures of the Faith/Bible Study every Thursday at 6p
-Daily Mass & Confession
-Confession on the Quad every Thursday at 12 noon.
-All day Adoration from 11a-11p on Fridays
-Much more...
AUGUST 2010
-Charismatic Conference
The Diocese of Peoria hosted their 24th Annual
Charismatic Renewal Conference, and a group of ISU students and our lovely Religious Sisters were right then to experience it. We learned about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we praised our Lord during the mass, and had many opportunities to join in singing praise & worship songs to our King. Several students experienced being prayed over for the first time, and some were even brave enough to participate in the healing mass. Although the event's special guest, Anne the Lay Apostle, was not able to be present due to illness, our speakers and Bishop Jenky were there to lead us in prayer and worship. Us ISU students even got a special, private talk by one of the event speakers after the Conference was done on the aspects of Spiritual Warfare. He was also able to clear up any and all questions we had concerning the gifts of the Holy Spirit, Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the overall Catholic Charismatic Movement. Everyone left feeling even more on fire with the Holy Spirit and with love for Jesus and His Church.-Festival ISU
Every new school year, dozens of new freshman arrive on campus and are eager to get involved with some of the numerous RSOs (Registered Student Organizations) we have at ISU. This is why ISU created what is known as Festival ISU. Festival ISU is an event hosted on the quad, where all of the RSOs on campus set up tables and booths and hand out freebies and info to the students about their respective groups. We here at St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center always make sure that we are right there providing information to these students on how to get involved here with the church and the events we host throughout the year. I was specifically asked to be in charge of the Evangelization effort for isuCATHOLIC this semester. This meant coordinating and gathering all of the materials we would give away, I created a PowerPoint slideshow showcasing past events at Newman, and recruited students to help run the tables. It was a daunting and time-consuming task, but it was well worth it. We reached out to many students and many are now full time regulars at the Newman Center!
-Newman Camping Trip
What's a better way to get to know students, then to
spend a weekend together in the great outdoors? This is exactly what happened during our Newman Camping trip this semester. We spent a weekend together in the great outdoors. We played frisbee, cooked hotdogs, some students jumped into the freezing cold water at sunset, we went canoeing, played psychiatrist around a bonfire, and ended the weekend with a beautiful outdoor Mass on Sunday morning celebrated by Fr. Ryan Bredemeyer. All of the students loved getting away from the hassles of homework and school, and had a great time with fellow believers, friends, and community.SEPTEMBER 2010
-Bible Study Coordinator
One of the methods FOCUS utilizes when reaching out to students in challenging them to grow in their faith is to start bible studies. Though these studies are generally first led by the missionaries themselves, those students in Discipleship then take charge and lead their own study for other other students. When the FOCUS program was present at ISU we had a good number of studies (it was through a FOCUS bible study at ISU, that I met Paul, who would lead me back to Christ). When the FOCUS program left ISU, this left many students in want and need of small group bonding and fellowship. After talks with the Sisters at the Newman Center, they agreed to let the students begin these studies back up again. In order to keep track of these studies and make sure the material was true to Church teaching, she appointed me as Bible Study Coordinator. This entailed becoming aware of all the studies that had begun and ordering the study guides for the students and leaders. We grew to around 5 different studies which met throughout the semester covering topics ranging from Salvation History, to Christ-like Leadership for Men, to Scriptural Apologetics. This knowledge of Scripture and fellowship with fellow believers in so crucial for growing in one's faith, and it was a great blessing to see these studies begin again.
OCTOBER 2010
-Koinonia 41 Retreat
(First some backround info) Every semester campuses across the country host a retreat known as Koinonia. It was on my Koinonia retreat in Oct 2009 where I gave a total surrender to Jesus and told him I was sick and tired of living a life solely focus on me and my own pleasures. He answered my prayer in a very special (and personal) way, that I couldn't ignore it. The God of the entire Universe cared enough to call me out and tell me He wanted me for himself. I began giving up the lifestyle of partying (while I was on the retreat, I was still recovering from a leg injury incurred during a drunk-driving accident prior). I gave myself entirely to him. I was filled with an insatiable desire to live entirely for Him and His Kingdom and to know everything I could about Him. I began going to daily Mass, reading Scripture, my Cathechism, the lives of the Saints, and whatever else I could get my hands on. This led to me going on FOCUS conference in Orlando, FL in December 2009, where I decided that God was leading me to become a fulltime FOCUS Missionary. I was then asked to be on staff for the retreat the following Spring, and then to co-lead the retreat the following Fall for Koinonia 41.
(back to the Fall 2010) As mentioned previously I was asked to co-lead this retreat with a wonderful daughter of God named Katie Seidenberg. Katie had been an integral part of me growing in my prayer-life and we had become regular prayer partners and friends. When I learned last April that I would be leading this retreat with Katie, I was enthralled! We quickly began praying very intensely for the success of the retreat and that the Holy Spirit would move those whom God desired to go on this retreat. We made several pilgrimages prior to the retreat to offer up prayers in preparation for the retreatants and team (including one stop at the Shrine of St. Joseph--our patron saint for NK41!) As the weekend approached we were both very nervous, but we knew that God would lead us to what we were supposed to do.
On the retreat we had roughly 30 students who attended (not including the students on staff). We heard talks about different tenets of the faith such as Scripture & Prayer, Christian Living, and Metanoia, we had Confession time, we had Adoration time with the Blessed Sacrament, and we had times of fellowship and games outside. Though the weekend seemed to fly by so fast, so much grace came by way of the retreat! I miss it so dearly, and wish I could go back to that wonderful weekend.
-Newman Day/ 5K Run/ Chili Cook
As a fundraiser for World Youth Day 2011, and in preparation for the Dedication of our new Newman Center and Chapel, we held a Newman Day. This consisted of a 5K run in the morning, and then a Chili Cookoff in the afternoon after the race was finished. Since I am not really the running type, I opted out of the 5K in favor of the Cookoff. I signed up as cooking "Philly Chili" not because it sounds delectable having a Phili Cheesesteak inspired Chili, but rather, I thought the name was pretty epic. Of course, I've never really made Chili before (let alone my own), have had unpleasant experiences with the Crockpot in the past, and I waited until the day off the Cookoff to find out any information at all. I'll let you in on a little secret...cheese....it's all about the cheese. All I did to make my Philly Chili was take cans of Walmart Chili, dump it into a Crock Pot, add cut up cubes of steak, then top it with a ton of cheese. Most people commented that it was the cheese that really pulled the whole thing together (on the other hand, there were no complaints about the wonderful steak cubes either). My creation came in 5th place out of 10 or so chili's and I was happy. For something I created literally an hour before I placed it into the competition, I was pleasantly surprised. Besides the Run and Chili, we also had balloons, face painting, and the Ignite band played a ton of great live music. We even had some visitors come by who would not soon after be our newest retreatants on our Koinonia Retreat I led with Katie. Good times, good fun, and good memories.
NOVEMBER 2010
-Dedication Mass
The moment we had all been so eagerly awaiting. For the past several years we at the St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center had been attending Mass and hosting events in our old Center. To sum it up nicely it was a corrugated shed with wood paneling on the inside. But to the great interest of all involved, the Center underwent construction on what would become a new chapel and additions that would become our new center. This construction seemed to last forever. It was a terribly long wait, and most people didn't even think we were open, much less a church with all of the fenced off areas and tarp coverings over the front edifice and front yard of the building. However in November 2010, we were open for the public, and we got our first peak of the new chapel and center. They were BREATHTAKING. beautiful, great acoustics, and even a fireplace in the Center. On the day of the dedication we had many many priests attend (including Fr. Antonio Dittmer, and Fr. Victor Mosele) as well as Bishop Jenky of the Peoria Diocese, and many relics as well (including but not limited to: St. Therese, St. Martin de Porres, St. Peter, and a relic of the True Cross). Everyone was dressed in their finest attire while Mass occured and as Bishop Jenky basically Baptized and Confirmed the Chapel. Due to overflow, hundreds of people watched the Mass on closed-circuit video in the old Center in folding chairs. You can see a video recap from the News about the mass here: Dedication Video. Our Center was even renamed. Henceforth from that day on, our chapel would be known as the: St. Robert Bellarmine Chapel, and our center as the: John Paul II Catholic Newman Center. Just seeing students walking down the sidewalks from the dorms towards the church was a delight in my eyes. No longer was attending Mass a backdoor venture, but rather, a light in the darkness. I know the Dedication will live on in the memories of all who attended.
In Addition:
In addition to all of the previously mentioned events, our Fall semester at ISU consisted of:
-Divine Mercy groups praying every day at 3p
-Rosary groups praying every day before Mass
-Mass followed by Adoration and Praise & Worship every Wednesday at 7:30
-Treasures of the Faith/Bible Study every Thursday at 6p
-Daily Mass & Confession
-Confession on the Quad every Thursday at 12 noon.
-All day Adoration from 11a-11p on Fridays
-Much more...
What a semester!
I'm so sorry for not keeping this updated. Truth is, when you are finishing up your last semester of college and working at and traveling between two different campuses, it doesn't leave you much time to sit down and work on updating a blog (even though I really want to let you all know whats goin' on at all times!) Anywho: My next two posts will list & describe some of the events that went down this semester at both Illinois State University and Bradley University. Stay Tuned & Go with God!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Behold, the Wonders of Peoria!
I figured since I informed you all about my Spring placement campus at FGCU, that I should keep you all informed with some information about my Fall placement campus, Bradley University! I will be serving on Team Bradley alongside Jacob and Joy Laskowski, Brett Drvol, Joanna Brady, and Amy Brammer. The campus is smaller than ISU and smaller than I had imagined, but possesses some really great features & accolades. Here are some fun facts about Bradley University:- Founded in 1897
- Founded by Lydia Moss Bradley
- Located in Peoria, IL
- Faculty: 389
- Team: Braves
- Students: approx. 6,100
- 38 Sororities & Fraternities
- St. Joseph Newman Center houses seminarians during the summer.
- founded in memory of Bradley's deceased husband and six children
- rated as one of the Top 25 Most Connected and Top 25 Most Entrepreneurial Campuses according to The Princeton Review and Forbes.
- notable alumni include:
-Jack Brickhouse: former announcer for the Chicago Cubs
-Neil Flynn: actor--the Janitor from Scrubs
-Bobby Joe Mason: Harlem Globetrotter
-Kirby Puckett: Baseball Hall of Famer
-dozens of current and former professional baseball, basketball, and soccer players.
- named after the Peoria tribe.
- settled in 1680
- Used to be a saying in Vaudeville, that if it could succeed in Peoria, it would succeed anywhere. "But will it play in Peoria?" has now become a commonly used metaphor.
- Hosts the headquarters for Caterpillar Inc.
- mass production of penicillin developed here.
- Peoria Chiefs, Class A minor league team, is affiliated with the Chicago Cubs.
- home to baseball legends: Kirby Puckett, Mike Dunne, and Jim Thome (they are proud of this one, there are signs everywhere boasted about Thome, haha)
- site of The Peoria War in 1813
- site where in 1854, Abraham Lincoln declared that the United States should move towards restricting and eventually eliminate slavery.
- In 1926, Charles Lindbergh included Peoria as 1 of 4 cities on his air-mail route.
- Legend has it that he offered Peoria the opportunity to sponsor his trans-Atlantic flight which would have named his plane The Spirit of Peoria.
- Theodore Roosevelt referred to Grandview Drive as the Worlds Most Beautiful Drive.
- Hosts the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception.
- Hosted Mother Teresa's visit in 1995.
- Archbishop Fulton Sheen served as an altar-boy at the Cathedral of St. Mary's and his cause for canonization rests under the direction of Bishop Jenky of the Peoria Diocese.
St. Joseph, Pray for Us!
Friday, July 23, 2010
Spring Placement!
So yesterday, Becca Sitte, our Regional Director, called me to inform me that they were going to reveal my placement for the Spring semester a little bit early in order to get acquainted with the team. My campus for the Spring 2011 Semester will be *cue drumroll* FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY (FGCU)! Located in SW Florida in Ft. Myers, here are a few facts about the campus:
Both myself and my roomate from Summer
training, Tom LaRocque, will be joining the team at FGCU in January. Heading up the team during the Fall will be Melissa Weeder and Jamie Willhelm (2 amazing god-loving ladies).
I am really excited because this is a first year FOCUS campus, the school is still young, and there is SO MUCH room for God to work here. The Bishop is very excited to have us and I know the ladies will do an amazing job kick starting off FOCUS's first presence on the FGCU campus. (Hopefully hurricane season won't rock the campus too hard this year).
Until then, aside from praying for my future team, students, and campus, I will set FGCU aside in my mind so that I can fully concentrate on my current powerhouse team at Bradley University. GO BRAVES! The Holy Spirit is going to do amazing things this year on both campuses and I feel extremely blessed to be a part of doing God's work in both of these places. Summer is winding down fast, and before you know it, I will be serving the Newman Centers, FOCUS, and students at both Illinois State University and Bradley University. Aye aye aye, three campuses, I need your prayers more than ever! Maybe even consider joining my support team and become one of my Mission Partners! I'd love to pray for you and have you join my team for Christ!
Theotokos, pray for us.
- Founded in 1991
- NCAA Division I School
- Colors: Cobalt Blue and Emerald Green (Gold accent)
- About 11,115 students
- Team: Eagles
- Mascot: Azul the Eagle
- 16 Fraternities & Sororities
- Over 100 clubs
- Newman Club is FGCU's oldest club!
- Past Hosted Speakers: Maya Angelou, Mikhail Gorbachev, Dick Cheney, Joe Biden
Both myself and my roomate from Summer
training, Tom LaRocque, will be joining the team at FGCU in January. Heading up the team during the Fall will be Melissa Weeder and Jamie Willhelm (2 amazing god-loving ladies).I am really excited because this is a first year FOCUS campus, the school is still young, and there is SO MUCH room for God to work here. The Bishop is very excited to have us and I know the ladies will do an amazing job kick starting off FOCUS's first presence on the FGCU campus. (Hopefully hurricane season won't rock the campus too hard this year).
Until then, aside from praying for my future team, students, and campus, I will set FGCU aside in my mind so that I can fully concentrate on my current powerhouse team at Bradley University. GO BRAVES! The Holy Spirit is going to do amazing things this year on both campuses and I feel extremely blessed to be a part of doing God's work in both of these places. Summer is winding down fast, and before you know it, I will be serving the Newman Centers, FOCUS, and students at both Illinois State University and Bradley University. Aye aye aye, three campuses, I need your prayers more than ever! Maybe even consider joining my support team and become one of my Mission Partners! I'd love to pray for you and have you join my team for Christ!
Theotokos, pray for us.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Blog Time
Hello world!
I recently got back from
New Staff Training (NST) for FOCUS. It was held in Champaign, IL at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. What an amazing blessing. Not only was I surrounded by 80-90 new first year missionaries from around the country, but build into my day was mass, holy hour, and classes on such topics as Salvation History, Prayer, and Apologetics.
While there we found out which schools we will be serving at for the
upcoming school year. Because I felt called to stay at Illinois State University for another semester, I will be finishing the one class I have left there, while also doing various ministry tasks around campus. I am a Servant Leader for ISU's 41st Koinonia Retreat. This means I am in charge of coordinating, hosting, and executing this powerfully amazing retreat. I feel incredibly blessed to do this. However, I digress. On the evening when everyone was finding out which schools they would be serving at, I received a card from the Bradley University Team in Peoria, IL informing me that I would be a part of their team for the Fall Semester! On my team are Jacob and Joy Laskowski (a newly married couple of missionaries), Brett Drvol (a 3rd year missionary), Joanna Brady (a fellow 1st year missionary), and finally Amy Brammer (another 1st year missionary).
I am extremely excited, and am now going full burst attempting to gather as many Mission Parters that will join my team to offer both prayers and financial support. Us missionaries still gotta feed ourselves and pay the rent. This is the reason for starting this blog, to help keep my Mission Partners informed of all the current events related to my mission. So as you read this, please continue praying for myself, my team, and the campuses of Illinois State University and Bradley University.
Go with God.
I recently got back from
New Staff Training (NST) for FOCUS. It was held in Champaign, IL at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. What an amazing blessing. Not only was I surrounded by 80-90 new first year missionaries from around the country, but build into my day was mass, holy hour, and classes on such topics as Salvation History, Prayer, and Apologetics.While there we found out which schools we will be serving at for the
upcoming school year. Because I felt called to stay at Illinois State University for another semester, I will be finishing the one class I have left there, while also doing various ministry tasks around campus. I am a Servant Leader for ISU's 41st Koinonia Retreat. This means I am in charge of coordinating, hosting, and executing this powerfully amazing retreat. I feel incredibly blessed to do this. However, I digress. On the evening when everyone was finding out which schools they would be serving at, I received a card from the Bradley University Team in Peoria, IL informing me that I would be a part of their team for the Fall Semester! On my team are Jacob and Joy Laskowski (a newly married couple of missionaries), Brett Drvol (a 3rd year missionary), Joanna Brady (a fellow 1st year missionary), and finally Amy Brammer (another 1st year missionary).
I am extremely excited, and am now going full burst attempting to gather as many Mission Parters that will join my team to offer both prayers and financial support. Us missionaries still gotta feed ourselves and pay the rent. This is the reason for starting this blog, to help keep my Mission Partners informed of all the current events related to my mission. So as you read this, please continue praying for myself, my team, and the campuses of Illinois State University and Bradley University.Go with God.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)