Inter-America to focus on spiritual revival and discipleship, education, institutional development and community outreach during the next five years

May 20, 2011 – Miami, Florida, United States…Libna Stevens/IAD

As the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Inter-America has seen rapid growth during the past 10 years, top church leaders now plan to turn their attention to the spiritual needs of its members. During this week’s executive committee mid-year meetings held in Miami, Florida, leaders voted to focus for the next five years on discipleship training programs, church and institutional development, education, and community outreach.

“We must strive to focus on the spiritual revival of our members, retain them as members and train them as disciples, focus on education in all aspects and continue with the development of the church,” said Pastor Israel Leito, president of the Inter-American Division (IAD).

“During the past ten years strategic planning in the Inter-American Division has undoubtedly seen great growth in response to the mission statement we established in the year 2000,” said Filiberto Verduzco, treasurer of the church in Inter-America as he repeated that statement: “To glorify God, and under the influence of the Holy Spirit, lead every convert to experience a personal and transforming relationship with Christ, and establish the believer to become a disciple in sharing the Everlasting Gospel with everyone.

For Juan Alberto Diaz, president of the Adventist University in Colombia and first time rotating member of the executive committee, the new five-year strategic plan is a must for the territory.

“I feel this should be a part of the blood of the church,” Diaz said. “If every church member, leader, and teacher is able to take ownership of this vision, the strength of the church will be such that the Lord will come soon.” He emphasized that this vision must be communicated to every church member in the territory.

Initiatives and programs voted during Inter-America’s Mid-year meetings included:

Vision One Million
An evangelism master plan for 2011-2015 that envisions to recruit, train and challenge one million disciples to fulfill the gospel commission of Matthew 28. The initiative seeks to select and train church members through a series of training programs to become passionate disciples, actively involved in small groups and other diversified outreach ministries.

Vision One Mission will target regular church members and former members, and upper class and business people, as well as cross-cultural individuals, through various integrated programs from departments and ministries of the church across churches, missions, conferences and unions in Inter-America.

“We will be training the most ever Seventh-day Adventists during this period,” said Pastor Balvin Braham, field secretary and associate director of Ministerial Association for the church in Inter-America. “We want to train one million passionate disciples this year and have them bring one visitor to church in March of 2012,” he added.

The initiative will be coordinated by the Ministerial Association and the Personal Ministries department in coordination with other department and ministries of the church.

It’s the kind of evangelism initiative that will reach and affect every organization and institution to accomplish the mission, said Braham as he presented and emphasized the launch of the initiative to combat the growing population in the territory still in need for the Good News of Salvation.

Revival and Reformation – Second Phase
Church leaders also voted to adopt the second phase of the spiritual revival and reformation initiative called “Heeding the Word”-a program that will seek to promote the reading of the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy books throughout the territory. Already, the church launched its Constant in Prayer initiative earlier this year to inspire a personal relationship with God through a prayerful life and reading of the Bible.

“‘Heeding the Word’ will be a continuation of our Constant in Prayer initiative,” said Pastor Roberto Herrera, revival and reformation coordinator for the church in Inter-America. “One of the greatest challenges the Seventh-day Adventist Church faces today is to continue to be faithful and to heed the ‘more sure word of prophecy’ (2 Pet. 1:10). Therefore we are obliged to study them more profoundly,” he added.

The initiative will be officially launched division wide on July 23 from El Salvador through a special festival of rededication, gratitude and praise. A series of programs and activities will take place during the second phase of the spiritual revival program. Leaders will seek to promote the teachings of the bible and the Spirit of Prophecy books in all churches and institutions.

Activities planned in the second phase initiative include Bible conferences, massive distributions of the Great Controversy by Ellen G. White, massive distribution of bibles, and the study of the 28 Adventist doctrines in churches throughout the year, among others.

Massive distribution of the Great Controversy
In keeping with the Adventist World Church program for a mass distribution of The Great Controversy, Inter-America’s two publishing houses will print two million copies of the book to be distributed throughout the territory during the next two years, according to Pastor Leito.

Committee members voted to approve the massive distribution in their territories at cost. The book will be made available to the one million members involved in the Vision One Million plan, and for additional distribution to potential believers.

Schools and universities across the territory will distribute and review the book with students. In addition, thousands of copies will be distributed to patients in hospitals and clinics across Inter-America. A children’s edition of The Great Controversy will also be available.

Study Commission for restructuring canvassing system
A study commission was voted to formulate and design a new model of the existing colporting system throughout Inter-America, which has seen a decline from 7,000 colporters in 2007 to 5,000 today.

“Our publishing ministry is facing a challenge,” Pastor Leito said. He explained that top administrators would visit each union territory during the next six months to meet with regional administrators and publishing ministry directors to study the particular needs of colporters and understand their challenges while continuing to focus on the mission of the publishing ministry, which is to share the Gospel in print.

The commission will also study a way to unify the system among union territories, said Pastor Mirto Presentacion, publishing ministry director for the church in Inter-America. Possible provision for retirement benefits will also be studied as well as the various publications available for sale.

Also voted was a union financial development plan which will disperse special non-tithe funds that will allow IAD unions to complete large projects.

In his treasurer’s report, Verduzco presented the trends of the tithing funds and missionary offerings during the last 10 years.

“The annual increase in tithes in Inter-America is 21% higher than the rest of the church around the world,” said Verduzco, who added that the tithe in the IAD increases 80% faster than any other division.

In referring to offering, Verduzco emphasized that “the church member in Inter-America is the most generous; they give more to mission in comparison to the tithe.” Verduzco reported that church members are 227% more generous than other divisions around the world in tithe and offering. He said it was best seen in the two unions that stand out from the rest of Inter-America when it comes to mission giving: The church in the Dominican Republic and Haiti and the two highest-giving nations with an average of 6.4% more mission offering to tithe ratio. “There’s none like the Haitian Union around the world because they surpass that 10% of mission giving,” Verduzco added.

Verduzco also reported that the finances of the church continue to be blessed. In 2010 the funds were four times better than before.

“Through the years of history, the financial tendency of the IAD has been sustained and I consider that it is one of the best times ever in the history of the church. I want to honor and praise God now who is the one who provides the resources, the one who moves in the hearts of our church members so they can give of their resources,” he added.

Leaders also voted on upcoming division-wide events, territory survey reports, policy amendments, authorized meetings, and human resources management training throughout the territory, among others.

Bertrand Moses, one of two youth delegates brought in to participate in the church business meetings, said the experience was an eye opener.

“I am exceedingly thankful for the opportunity to experience God’s work in action at this level,” said Moses, an Adventist Youth, pathfinder leader and elder in his church in Tobago. “Being here gives me better understanding of how the church operates.”

Moses, who is in his late 20s and is employed as a guidance counselor for the educational system in Tobago, said more young people need to understand how the church works and that church leaders are real.

“It was wonderful to see that our leaders have a sense of humor,” he said. “They are real, all trying to be soldiers for Christ.” He said he plans to share his impressions of the business meetings with his young people in the Scarborough Adventist Church back home.

For Raul Dodanys Morell, age 37, a youth representative from east Cuba, the experience of sitting in the business meetings has been very impressive.

“I have marveled at the way our church operates at this level, the democracy in it, the opportunity that everyone has to give their opinion and have a voice to vote,” said Dodanys.

Dodanys, who has been a youth leader, elder and director of missionary work in the Tunas province, said what impressed him the most was the Vision One Million plan of discipling and reaching out to more people with the gospel.

“I have been blessed to participate in this wonderful movement of the church at this level and regret that more youth aren’t able to witness the leadership of the church this week.”

Moses and Donanys join the more than 10 young people who have participated in Inter-America’s Executive Committee meetings since 2006 when the decision was made to include young people in the church business meetings in 2006.

Inter-America’s next schedule executive business meetings will take place Oct. 30 to Nov. 2, in Nassau, Bahamas.