COVID-19: Staying the Course

March 15, 2020

Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”
Matthew 6:9-13 (ESV) (my emphasis)

As I reflect on this passage, I am encouraged in times like this, that God is good and he has a plan for his Kingdom to come. At Kawartha Youth For Christ/Youth Unlimited, this is also our prayer. On Friday, March 13, 2020, we made the difficult decision to pause all of our programs to do our part to flatten the curve on COVID-19. It was not an easy decision as we care for some of the most vulnerable in our communities. Some of the youth we work within our Peterborough and Bancroft youth centres consider “The Bridge” and “The SwitchYard” home. Homelife for many of the youth is more challenging than facing this current pandemic. With that in mind, I want you to know KYFC is committed to staying engaged with the youth and families we work with. We are implementing creative and effective ways to reach out to youth given the current circumstances. Please pray with us that we are able to stay the course and follow Jesus as we pray “your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”.

Please Pray:

• That our staff and volunteers continually find creative ways to come alongside youth and families.
• That KYFC can come alongside local churches offering support to youth and helping to ignite evangelism efforts.
• For financial resources, resources that will allow us to take advantage of creative ways to love our communities during this time. Also to be able to continue to pay our staff and honour all of our commitments.
• Pray for Revival. We believe wholeheartedly that God is at work in this generation of young people to reach the lost with the hope of Christ.

What are we doing?

• Meeting regularly on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays mornings with our staff and volunteers to pray together through video conferencing.
• Encouraging our staff to spend time in reflection, prayer and seeking God’s direction in their own lives and in their ministries.
• We are working remotely. Our Staff are submitting plans and ideas to their Supervisors to ensure time is spent finding creative ways to engage and minister to their communities, both for right now and for the coming months. We not only minister to youth and their families, but also to volunteers, churches, partners, and community organizations.
• Giving additional time and focus to administrative areas to ensure ministry effectiveness.

We look forward to coming out of this season stronger to continue the mission of seeing “every young person living fully in Christ”. We do this by caring for the whole person, sharing the life-changing message of Jesus, and daring them to follow Jesus and make disciples. We remain committed to this and are excited to see how God is going to work in the lives of the youth we are connected with!

Thank you for your prayers, encouragement, and support. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me at guy@youthunlimitedkaw.com. We would also love to pray for you, our partner and friend in this mission, so please feel free to reach out if you have a prayer request.

Sincerely,

Guy Freeman, Executive Director
on behalf of the Board and Staff of Kawartha Youth For Christ / Youth Unlimited