Hi
Well, quite a lot has happened since we last wrote to you in January, so we thought it was time to update you all. We are trialing a new blog-style format and would appreciate your feedback on it. Send any feedback you have to daniel.neil@fusion.org.au. Also, don’t forget to like and share on social media. the more people interacting with the site, the more easily google can find us!
God continues to be faithful in providing for our needs and opening doors and opportunities both on a personal family level and on a ministry level. The journey continues to be one full of challenges and surprises and what follows is just a short snapshot of our journey in 2017.
Kim’s artwork ‘business’ is slowly gaining momentum and work is increasing. It has been so exciting to see people responding so positively. what’s also been great is the way in which Kim is continuing to grow and develop her skill as an artist with her latest works being her best yet! For more photos and details on Kim’s art check out her website!
Another good thing to come from Kim’s increased artistic activities has been the ability to replace Dan’s car, essentially used to commute to and from work and between the fusion office and St Ives high school. The old Subaru was rapidly approaching the end of its life and was going to cost us lots of money to keep on the road. So, rather than do that, we decided to put that money into a replacement – a 2007 Toyota Yaris. We feel very blessed and grateful for the provision of this car at an incredible price.
Our work with Fusion continues to provide new & exciting challenges. At the end of last year we closed down Jacks Youth Cafe to evaluate and redirect. I am pleased to say that we have just finished first term of our new Study Space program which aims to address the growing issue of study stress among young people. Students can come and get free help with their homework and learn some new skills to help them manage their time and stress. We have some wonderful volunteers who really care about the students and investing in their lives.
Jacks Youth Cafe is now open on Friday afternoons only and we have a nice group of young people attending each week. We’d love to be connecting with more young people, particularly those who might be struggling and in need of a friend or a listening ear.
The Fusion Toy Library continues to be very popular with new families discovering our unique community each week. I really enjoy Toy Library each week! We have a wonderful, faithful team of volunteers who have built meaningful relationships with many of our families. Diversity and community are features of this program and we are looking towards what might be right next steps for the mums, dads, grandmas, grandpas and of course the children we’ve come to know and love.
In the next few months we have a few events coming up, the first of which is Sleep In Your Car on August 11 – 12. Sleep In Your Car is Fusion’s annual advocacy campaign designed to highlight the struggles the homeless in our community face and raise much needed funds for Fusion and frontline homelessness services. This year we are partnering with Streetwork who have been doing great work in the Chatswood area and have recently opened a branch in Hornsby. Our goal is to raise $5000 and so far we have raised just over $380. If you think you’d like to get on board and join us in sleeping out either at our event or at a venue more convenient (eg home, church, etc) then head on over to the Sleep In Your Car website to register. You can register as an individual or even better, get a group of mates together and register a team! I guarantee you’ll have fun! Alternatively you can sponsor me or someone else you know here.
A couple of other important and exciting meetings have happened in the last couple of weeks. The first was a meeting Daniel had with some of the local youth ministers. This was a great time of encouragement, sharing highlights and challenges and praying for each other. This is exactly the type of thing we have been praying for and are now praying these new relationships will grow.
The other was a meeting with a couple who are very interested in creating community among isolated people from multi-cultural backgrounds. Multi-cultural Community dinners are something we have been wanting to do but have not had the time or resource to get it off the ground.
We are planning to run a Families course, written by Fusion’s own Sallie Hammond, which is all about nurturing and growing healthy family relationships. The Families course is 12 hrs run over 4 weeks and will most likely be in the latter part of term 3. If you would like to know more about the content, check out the Families course website. If you’d like details of the course when they are available, send us an email and we’ll make sure you stay in the loop.
Prayer points
Family
- Give thanks for God’s provision of the new car and good favour with the seller, allowing us to get a great price.
- Praise God for God’s the opportunities Kim has had to paint more.
- Pray for the ongoing health challenges for the family (send us an email for more details).
Ministry/Fusion
- Pray for our Sleep In Your Car event that people will engage with the event and will be challenged to think about homelessness in a new way.
- Give thanks for a new connection with some local youth ministers and leaders. Pray that this relationship will grow, and that through it more young people will be reached for the Kingdom.
- Pray for more workers to help with the work and for wisdom as we equip and empower those already serving with fusion
- Pray for plans to start Community Dinners as a way of building connection and community in our increasingly multicultural region. Give thanks for our new friends considering taking this on.
- Pray for God’s continued favour and provision for the work.
- Pray for Myf Webster and her family as she carries some significant challenges.
Thank you all for your continued prayer, support and encouragement! Please feel free to contact us. We’d love to hear how things are going for you.
In His name,
Daniel, Kim, Micah & Jesse Neil
