Dave Morgan / Youth Unlimited January2012
STEPPING UP
This Past Month
Like everyone I think? This New Year started off with a bunch of commitments (New year resolutions) to our selves and to others right? I know mine did! My New Year resolutions are to read the bible from cover to cover this year and shed a few pounds. Well I have been on track with the reading so far but let’s just say the food tastes the best it ever has, LOL, I’m so weak!
We have begun our Floor Hockey with the young dads this year; we meet every Thursday evening at 7pm and go until 9pm. Our turn out has been good, but we believe for more young dads to come out and experience community with other young fathers. Please Pray for an even better response and commitment to showing up and giving back to their community.
I have also been actively involved in a World Vision grant proposal for the past few months. World Vision approached Youth Unlimited/Stepping Up a few months ago asking us to submit our vision for these young fathers in Surrey. World Vision and Stepping Up’s vision is very similar in the respect that we both want to better the lives of young children emotionally, spiritually and practically alleviating poverty. “How are we going to do this?” you may be asking? Our solution is helping young fathers stay in their child’s lives and by breaking cycles of dysfunction that so easily trap these young parents generation after generation. Please continue to pray for us as we have a few more months in this process with World Vision. Their partnership would be able to bring the resources needed for holistic help and healing to these young fathers, Thank you!
Our Need
Great things are happening in the lives of these young fathers and the preparation for future plans with these young dads and this ministry is on their way in great stride. However, WE NEED YOUR HELP. Our monthly donations need to increase; we depend each month on your giving to further the Gospel in this community and in the lives of these young fathers in Surrey. As well, we depend on your giving as a source of our monthly income. I did some research over the past weeks and discovered that about 10 percent of those reading our Newsletter every month are supporting us financially! By just 10 percent of you giving to this ministry we are gaining amazing traction in the lives of these young dads and helping us with some of our monthly expenses too! Last year we had four people come to salvation through this ministry. Praise God! We are believing for more this year! As I’m writing this I’m overwhelmed with the potential and possibility that if 50 percent or even 75 percent of those who read our newsletter every month, commit as little as Twenty five dollars a month or perhaps fifty dollars a month, we would be able to accomplish so much more in the lives of these young fathers, as well we would see our family’s needs met each month too! Would you consider committing financially this year to our ministry? I know so many of you give to other amazing ministries already! But, would you prayerfully consider giving to this ministry, Youth Unlimited/Stepping Up young fathers? Could you commit financially to this ministry this year? Your partnership financially would be such a blessing and would keep us in the community reaching out. I know that many of you have a desire to give to these young fathers but for some reason are not yet! Let this be the year you start giving to a young dad and his small child. Thank you for your consideration!
Dave and Shaina’s Update
Christmas has come and gone, and all the preparation that leads up to it seems to be a distant memory. We had the wonderful opportunity to go to Florida to visit my family for Christmas. The entire Morgan family hasn’t all been together in over 13 years. My sister and her family live in St. Petersburg Florida and my parents are there for the winter months (escaping the cold Edmonton winter). It was my Dad’s desire to have his whole family together again for Christmas, so he graciously flew all of us down there to be with them. I can’t express how special it was to all be together. We definitely do not take for granted the value of family, especially when the only time we can see each other is over the computer. It was a wonderful and memorable time together…It was even worth it to fly ALL DAY with a 21 month old toddler (there and back). Actually, Liam handled it very well. We were a little worried before, as he is a very active little boy! It was also really special to have the Morgan cousins all together for the first time. Shaina is busy with her daycare, doing her best to get it licensed. We have hit a few snags in the process and it is setting us back a little. We made the decision to open the daycare so that Shaina could be home with Liam. We still feel it is the best decision and we know that once everything is confirmed with licensing it will be a good opportunity for us, but in the mean time it is very difficult to wait. But sometimes this is what God requires of us, so that He can show us just how He is capable of looking after our needs, if we only just trust in Him. We are doing our best to do that, and God is always faithful, however we really desire your prayers for us during this “waiting period.” We are human and doubt is a natural response to setbacks. Please pray for us to find one extra child (full time…5 days a week), as well as peace and patience in waiting for government responses to certain things. But Praise God for all that He does and All that He is going to do in all of our lives, we are truly grateful for His Grace in our life.
You can do as much as you think you can,
But you'll never accomplish more;
If you're afraid of yourself, young man,
There's little for you in store.
For failure comes from the inside first,
It's there, if we only knew it,
And you can win, though you face the worst,
If you feel that you're going to do it.
~Edgar Guest~
