March 2026 Update
Level 2, Term 4 Begins
My apologies for being so late in making this update—some weeks little happens, some weeks are quite busy, and its tricky to juggle deadlines even now. This term is unusual in that all the deliverables are due by May 6th, to leave the run-up to graduation open for interviews, goodbyes, immediate planning, and my senior sermon; because of this (and my tardiness), April’s update will be sometime after that date. That does mean things will be touch-and-go until then, but we shall persevere!
The local campaign was an interesting experience, as I hadn’t gone door-to-door like this in many years. Americans generally do not react favorably to strangers knocking on their door anymore, so we limited ourselves to leaving hangers on doors, speaking with those already outside. Lubbock has apparently grown considerably over the last few decades, so “Sunset” CoC is no longer on the western edge of town; there were some 40,000 people just southwest of us who had never been officially approached before. We talked to people of all sorts, engaged in discussion if they were amenable, and set up bible studies with the curious. Reactions were mixed and varied wildly, naturally—Sunset reported an increase in new attendants and a few baptisms, but there are also a noticeable increase in the number of ‘No Soliciting’ signs in the neighborhood! Overall, it was a positive experience, and I’m certainly far more comfortable and bold doing this sort of direct outreach than when I first started this journey. Below is a map of the territory we covered in one week: I traversed all through Maedgen Area, the Sundowner Apartments zone, Coronado, and Melonie Park.
My classes for this term are: 1) 1st & 2nd Timothy/Titus; 2) Wisdom Literature; 3) Revelation; 4) 2nd Corinthians; 5) Special Events Preaching; 6) Congregational Ministry. There is no 7th short course this time. Sunset’s curriculum is pretty thoughtfully laid out, with each of these topics either caping a theological thread present throughout scripture or dealing with the nitty-gritty practice of church affairs. The Special Events lab deals with funerals, weddings, and other public speaking events, and it’s already an emotional rollercoaster!
Unfortunately, the graduate trip to Israel has been canceled due to the conflict currently embroiling the region. A partial refund is currently being worked through the system, so if you donated specifically for that purpose, contact me to hash out a return channel—however, I would honestly appreciate if you let me use it for basic support, as I’ve actually recently lost some of the regular backing I was counting on while in school. It’s predictable, I suppose, that graduation would herald a drop like this, but I’m still too committed in 8-hour school days with largesses of homework to get a part-time job at the moment. I also have a summer ministry internship, missions and youth classes in the Fall, and hopefully the jump to living in Mongolia next year; all these give me more leeway to tent-make a la Paul—and certainly I have pursued the vision alone in the past—but it’s hard to understate just how helpful letting other believers participate in my work has been. I’d still probably be saving money to go to Sunset if I’d initially refused to trust God over my preferences! I hope you all will continue to stick with me into the future—all this labor hunched over desks at SIBI is just the appetizer for the real ministry to come.