“There’s an awareness that the words you share could be used by God to shape the future of thousands of lives,” Pokluda said. “My desired goal is always to point people to Jesus and to remind them that their lives matter in His story. Speaking at Passion is an opportunity to pour into the next generation of leaders, and that responsibility is one I don’t take lightly.”

As the spring semester kicks off at Baylor, students are diving into new classes, tight schedules and a wave of responsibilities. Amid the hustle, self-care often takes a back seat, but experts and students alike emphasize its importance for maintaining balance and avoiding burnout. From mental health resources on campus to personal strategies for managing stress, prioritizing well-being is key to a successful semester ahead.

It’s easy to play the blame game in the midst of something so terrible, but pointing fingers doesn’t help anyone right now. Some Californians have lost everything in these fires. What should be the focus of peoples’ conversations and efforts is how to help, not who to blame.

So many of our day-to-day goods are outsourced internationally. Abusing sweatshops, cheap labor and raw material costs from other countries only hurts us. If we push our legislation to promote more domestic manufacturing, not only are we boosting our own economy, we are providing Americans with job opportunities and a sense of pride by producing domestically-made materials.