FYI This is an update on January and February. That way, we can send out at the end of each month and accurately call it “March Update” (next month) – instead of sending it out 1st of March and it really being an update on February. I confused myself, and didn’t want to confuse anyone else too. General Update That being said, January and February felt like two days, not two months!? January consisted most of coaching volleyball and Pat teaching at church. February entailed having only one car, one big Super Bowl party, and one week in Dallas! Needless to say, we are simultaneously exhausted and excited when we reflect back and then look forward to the next few months! Answered Prayers Before we dive into all that has been going on, I really want to share some of the prayers that God has answered for us over the last two months! By the grace of God, and the kindness and generosity of His children, Pat is fully funded in ministry! We prayed, and asked you to pray that this would happen by March 1, and The Lord has surely done it! THANK YOU SO MUCH! We thank God and for you and your prayers and generosity. This is a HUGE blessing for us as we round out the last few months of Pat’s Residency. Being fully funded allows us to focus more effort on maintaining the relationships with current partners, as well as focus effort on what God has for us post-residency. Speaking of post-residency. In the last update, we had very little direction or available opportunity regarding next steps. Since, Pat has applied for a large number and variety of jobs. Nothing has been finalized yet, but the sheer number of available opportunities and “second round” interviews have been an encouragement and answer to prayer. THANK YOU FOR PRAYING! TCS Volleyball We have had three tournaments in the last month, two of which we won medals! It has been a large time commitment, but also a great experience. It is so great to get to know the girls on our team and see them progress over the weeks. My favorite part is the look they get when they finally master a skill – they are elated and I am so proud. I also hurt so much when they have bad days at practice, or lose a tough match. So much of what I experience with them has been a sweet reminder of the ways Jesus loves me. (And makes me grateful for how patient He is, Amen!?) The program we coach for is called Total City Sports (TCS), which is a non-profit organization that since 2009 has been bringing youth sports at a club (“travel team”) level to kids in Austin, who otherwise might not get the opportunity to play. Our highest priority is to engage and develop young women through the sport of volleyball. 7 out of the 8 athletes on our team alone are receiving financial assistance to play club volleyball this year… which comes to $10,775 in donations that are necessary for these girls to get to play! Part of how TCS raises money for club volleyball scholarships is through a program called Amplify Austin. At 6:00 pm this Thursday (3/2/17), “Amplify Austin Day” officially begins! Amplify Austin Day is a 24 hour period of giving to support local non-profits, and TCS Volleyball is hoping to raise much needed scholarship dollars for our athletes! Feel free to donate here: https://amplifyatx.ilivehereigivehere.org/PatrickandTCS Pat Teaching Pat spent two solid weeks preparing and teaching two different Sunday-School lessons for our high school and middle school age kids, and one class for the volunteers that serve at our church campus. It gave him a new appreciation for the work of pastors to prepare weekly to teach. It was a lot to keep up with! One lesson was discussing the tendency people have to believe false narratives about our identity in Christ; another lesson was about how sin is a heart condition, not an action; the last lesson was about what it means to have a “missional identity.” We trust and pray that the Lord is using all of it for His purposes. Because of your prayers and support, he is able to minister and serve our church, and since the Church is the whole body of believers, we thought sharing the material with you might also encourage you – in seeing what you are supporting through Pat in ministry, but also your personal studies!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
2nd Timothy 2:3-4"Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him." Support Page!Ready to financially partner with me? Awesome! Check the Contact Page for the Link
|