On a warm summer evening around a campfire in the backyard of the Bonhoeffer House, 17 seminarians shared what they hoped for the year ahead at Trinity Anglican Seminary.

Lawn chairs were scattered about and students, new and returning, were beginning to find their way into a new year together and wondering what God might be doing next.

The gathering was simple on purpose. There was no formal program. No lecture. No chapel service. No assignment to complete. Just students, a fire, and a question: What are you hoping for this year?

The idea began last year as a way for returning students to welcome new students into the life of Trinity. Before classes, Morning and Evening prayer rhythms, and studying, filled the calendar, there was a chance to pause and name what each student hoped for during the year.

“It’s both an excuse to just have something informal and get together,” Cale Baker a senior student said, “but also a time to name what that hope is moving into the year.”

For first-year students, many of the hopes centered around friendship. They spoke about wanting relationships that would last beyond seminary and into a lifetime of ministry. One student imagined a classmate officiating his child’s wedding decades from now. An older student quickly replied that perhaps one of them could officiate his funeral in 20 years. Laughter followed

For second-year students, the hopes were different. Having already experienced the pace and pressure of seminary, many were praying for steadiness. They knew how full the year could become. They knew the demands of writing long papers at all hours of the day and night, balancing family obligations, and endless reading to prepare for class. Their hope was to remain faithful and grounded in the midst of it all.

For third-year students, the hopes turned toward finishing well and discerning what comes next. Graduation is no longer far off. The next call, next parish, next ministry, or next move begins to feel real and close at hand.

At Trinity, formation often happens in the expected places: classrooms, chapel, Morning and Evening Prayer, Wednesday Eucharist, and conversations around lunch tables.

But it also happens in places like this. Around a backyard fire. In a student-led gathering. In the courage to say out loud, “This is what I hope the Lord will do in me this year.”

Naming those hopes and putting them before the Lord, as we know, does not guarantee that the year will unfold exactly as expected. Seminary rarely does.

But it does give students something to remember, something to pray about, and something to notice as the Lord works in the midst of the Trinity community.

Please pray for the new and returning students as this semester gets into full swing.