Pastry Pop Up

Finals can be a rough time for students and often a time when rest and nourishment are a distant priority.  Thanks to our connection with St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in National City and their parishioners who remember the university timeline, and the nimbleness of our ministry, we offered an enthusiastically welcome Pastry Pop Up during the recent end of the semester at SDSU.

St. Matthew’s offered Christmas Craft Faire and Bake Sale the Sunday before final exams last semester, contacted me about extras which allowed me to bring the pop up to hungry students the Tuesday of finals.  This was a reminder of the importance of communicating and connecting with ministry partners.  Thoughtfulness of abundance invites us to see resources, time, and talents not as scarce commodities to be guarded, but as gifts meant to be shared wisely. In a mindset of abundance, generosity becomes intentional rather than wasteful, grounded in awareness of others’ needs and the long-term impact of our choices. This kind of thoughtfulness recognizes that abundance carries responsibility: to listen carefully, to act with humility, and to steward what we have in ways that promote dignity, growth, and mutual flourishing. Rather than focusing on accumulation, thoughtful abundance emphasizes gratitude and purposeful sharing that strengthens community.

The partnership between Agape San Diego and local congregations is essential for nurturing this vision of abundance in faith and practice. Our ministry offer unique access to students during a formative season of life, while local congregations provide intergenerational wisdom, stability, and deep-rooted community presence. When they work together, students are supported not only spiritually but also relationally, gaining connections beyond the campus that encourage lasting engagement with faith communities. This partnership allows resources, leadership, and mission to be shared, ensuring that ministry is not isolated or temporary, but integrated into the wider life of the church and its call to serve the world.

I feel grateful to St. Matthew’s and each of our partner congregations for their commitment to nurture and support our students.