A New Year's Message from Michael: Faithful Steps Still Count

Dear Dream Makers Community,

As we step into a new year, I want to name something honestly, without minimizing it or spiritualizing it away: for many of you, the idea of “moving forward” may feel heavier than hopeful. Not because you lack ambition or faith, but because life has required you to carry more than most people your age ever should.

When responsibilities stack up, when survival competes with dreams, and when every decision feels loaded with consequences, it can feel paralyzing. Scripture does not deny this reality. In fact, Proverbs reminds us, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty” (Proverbs 21:5). That verse is not a demand for speed—it is an affirmation of steady, faithful movement.

Here is the truth I want you to hear: your life is not defined by one big decision made all at once. Transformation rarely works that way. Growth is formed through small, intentional steps taken consistently, even when they feel unimpressive or unseen.

Jesus Himself speaks to this principle when He says, “Whoever is faithful in very little is also faithful in much” (Luke 16:10). Faithfulness is not measured by how loud your progress looks, but by how present you remain in the process. Sometimes faithfulness looks like showing up when you’re tired. Sometimes it looks like asking for help. Sometimes it looks like choosing not to quit, even when clarity hasn’t arrived yet.

If you are overwhelmed, you are not weak. If you feel stuck, you are not broken. Isaiah reminds us, “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (Isaiah 40:29). God does not ask you to leap ten steps ahead—He meets you in the one you can take today.

Every step matters. The paperwork you completed. The appointment you kept. The boundary you held. The prayer you whispered when words were hard to find. These are not small things. They are evidence that you are still moving, still choosing life, still responding to the grace that meets you daily.

You are seen. You are deeply loved. And even when progress feels slow, God is still at work in you. Keep taking the next faithful step you can manage. That is more than enough for today.

 

Michael D. Davis-Thomas
Dream Makers Advisory Board
Instagram | Podcast


Keep this prayer graphic as an encouragement by right-clicking and saving it to your photos!


Sign up below for our former foster youth newsletter:

Next
Next

Thinking of You This Christmas