November 2025

What a month it was! Thank you for praying, sharing, and contributing to our Keep FOCUS Growing annual fundraiser. We raised close to our goal, but it’s not too late to give! You can still contribute by clicking here.

Our church had a church retreat—it’s always sweet to get to see everyone for an extended period of time, not just for a couple hours on Sunday morning. To exist in the same place, to live life together, and eat meals with each other, it’s something special. We talked about The Unhurried Life and leaving space for God to work instead of working off our own agenda. You can listen to the sermons on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It’s always a good reminder to reevaluate your schedule and what you’re caught up in to see if that’s really where God wants you to be.

FOCUS at UT Dallas had an alumni night (a number of people came up to me to tell me that I really wasn’t an alumni of UTD, but I led core on campus for a year!). It was nice to see some old friends and to reconnect with the mission and see students passionate to see God work in them and through them.

For Thanksgiving, I was able to host a Friendsgiving for our church and local students who did not have a place to be that day. I had people telling me that they really weren’t sure what they were going to do on Thanksgiving, one due to their mom passing this past year, and they were grateful that we were hosting a home cooked meal! My buddy Stephen smoked a turkey for us and everyone brought sides and other dishes as they were able to. And if you look closely, you’ll see somebody brought spaghetti tacos. (Ask me about that story.)

The following day we went over to Steph’s parents to have a smaller meal and to be with family. It’s always good to be there—I find myself able to slow down and rest easier when I’m there. It also helps to rest easier after you’ve had a good meal. 😉 

We also had our semi-annual Pizza Theology! New Testament scholar Rikk Watts flew in to talk about the book of John! You can watch or listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Unfortunately, as you all know, I’m the worst at taking photos at events, so all you get is a picture of these empty pizza boxes. There’s always something crazy about close to 500 students taking 5 hours out of their weekend to grow deeper in their faith and also trying to handle a dinner rush of that size.