I'm in Arizona!!! I can't believe I'm finally here or how hot it is. No one was lying when the said Arizona was hot. Anyway, my trip was great. I didn't get lost (ha Dad), I had beautiful scenery, and I made it in 2 days. The mountains were my favorite and I took many pictures while I was driving. :)
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| My drive was so gorgeous! |
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| My new home state! |
I am living with Sheena (another FOCUS missionary) and Donna (a 63 year old widower). Donna is really awesome and lets us stay at her house, which is really cool! Almost all the houses here are made of adobe. It looks like mud. Cacti are also everywhere and I think they're really ugly.
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| My house! |
On my 1st day here, we went on a trip to Southern Arizona and visited a Crucio church. It was absolutely beautiful. Our 2 priests for ASU are Father Clements and Father Muir. They took us out to the boarder (yep, my arm was in Mexico for about 2 seconds) and we had Mass in the very spot where Mass was said for the 1st time EVER in Arizona. It was soooo cool and absolutely beautiful. There's this random alter out in the middle of a field. It's a little strange because there's no church, but Father Clements said that he loves to go out there and say Mass at random times throughout the year.
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| Father Clements |
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| Father Muir |
I met the some of the women Student Missionaries (Student Missionaries are students who were in Bible study last year and were mentored 1 on 1 by a FOCUS missionary. They have been equipped to lead their own study and will do so this fall! So exciting.) and Sheena and I had them over for dinner. I was able to hear how God has been working in their lives this summer and learn more about them. My favorite part was when we all shared our testimonies (Your life story about when you either found Christ or developed a deeper relationship with him.). The women opened up in a beautiful way. Many of them were lost and didn't know who to turn to. The majority of them had fallen into the party scene and had stopped going to Mass completely until a FOCUS missionary reached out to them on campus. Sadly, Christ was not a priority for them until they were able to experience what a life with Christ is like. Without FOCUS missionaries these women would still be lost! God is so powerful and the Holy Spirit is truly transforming these women into warriors for Christ.
The following evening, we brought all the student missionaries together and developed a plan of action for fall outreach. Fall outreach is when we meet as many of the incoming freshman as possible. Studies show that students are more dedicated to an organization if they enter it at the beginning of their freshman year. We gave them our goals for this year and gave them tips on how to talk to students and how to present the gospel! It was awesome to see the excitement on their faces. Fall outreach began this past Saturday. It was freshman move-in day and we handed out fliers with Mass times and water bottles from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.....it was a long and sweaty day. Many students (and parents) were thankful to know when Mass times were. I also had many opportunities to meet freshman women who want to be involved in Bible study!
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Our shirts say Catholic Devils! haha... ASU's mascot is the Sun Devil
We wore these on freshman move-in day...our students wore them too! |
Our 1st back to school Masses were also this past weekend! I went to 5 Masses to greet students and develop relationships with them. Our Mass times are at 8 am, 10 am, 12 pm, 6 pm, 8 pm, and 10 pm. Please pray for students to be open to joining a Bible study!
- Prayer requests:
- For the Greek system, specifically sororities. Please allow God to help me meet an influential women who I can begin a study with.
- For all students who have yet to learn about Christ.
- For all missionaries in the world. Pray they continue to spread the good news of our Lord.
Fun note: I dedicated 1 of my Holy hours to the Greek system. I prayed for God to introduce me to at least 1 woman who could help me start a Bible study....God answered the next day, but He gave me 2 women!!! Prayer and God are so amazing. Never ever cease to pray.
Please know you're in my prayers every day. Contact me anytime with updates. I'll see you in the Eucharist, Anna.
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