This has been a fun group to lead this past year! You’ve heard my lamentations over the bygone days when it was a group about this size which met in a faculty advisor’s home (2018-2019). Covid was a 2 year long wrecking ball that just about wiped it out. Last Fall was truly a defining moment when my hopes for a Graduate Christian Fellowship in my town were re-forged. Here are a few benchmarks since August 2022:

24 new contacts from Creighton’s SPAHP Orientation

8 Saturday morning brunches at the Perry’s home

13 Student participants in those gatherings

4 Syntrek pairs identified and meeting

3 Faculty mentors meeting up with students

1 UNO grad student, the rest Creighton

1 Holiday Party

At our last two meetings we had our first conversatiosn about the future of the group and the best way to embrace new students in August. Everyone currently in the group (with one exception) has just finished their first year. A few questions I kicked around with them last Saturday:

So, do we keep this thing going into next year?

YES absolutely. How can we help you find next year’s new students?

Do we combine this group with the first-years or do we make two groups?

YES. Both! Can we move on into some curriculum, yet have the first years learn about Spiritual Friendship via Syntrek? Some things separately but mostly together as one bigger group.

Speaking of Syntrek, do you all want to keep your current partners or would any of you be open to being a Syntrek partner with a new student?

Crickets…

I spent a few minutes showing them Images of Leadership. I’m curious about our second-year students. What would help them build on the discipleship theme of Spiritual Friendship from this past year? We’re going to dip into Images of Leadership for a couple of sessions this summer to see if the theme is a good fit. I’m hoping IOL will become a helpful investment in second-year students before they disappear for OT3/PT3.

These studies are actually vintage by InterVarsity standards, but they provide a scripture-based conversation about biblical leadership. My strategy will be to keep students together as much as possible, but intensify my input for first year students around Syntrek and Mindy Calliguire’s Spiritual Friendship model. Then take my second year students into Rich Lamb’s IOL studies.

I’ll keep you posted on how that goes next year. For now I’m thinking, “How do I double what I can make for brunch?” And “How do I seat more people INDOORS when the weather won’t allow us to use our entire backyard?”

Speaking of updates – the cracked sternum is coming along nicely. Two weeks ago I STARTED SNEEZING AGAIN! It’s been 8 weeks since the accident. Thank you for your prayers. I’d also appreciate your prayers for my funding. I’ll be working with others in my region to intensify our Ministry Partnership Development this summer. I think I’m just going to barely make budget this June 30 (IV’s fiscal year end). I need to firm up my budget considerably heading into fiscal 23/24.

Have a terrific summer!