Inter-America prepares for largest youth congress in Guatemala
Image by Abel Marquez/IAD
July 2, 2014 – Miami, Florida, United States…Libna Stevens/IAD
The Seventh-day Adventist Church will gather some 5,800 youth delegates from across the 37 countries and islands that comprise the Inter-American Division (IAD), for the largest ever territory-wide youth congress. The five-day conference will be held at the Mega Auditorium in San Cristobal, Guatemala City, Guatemala, from July 29 to August 2, 2014.
The event promises to inspire young people to continue being a powerful generation that loves Jesus and serves their communities as they share the love and hope of salvation, organizers said.
“We are so excited to have so many of our young leaders with us during this congress,” said Pastor Benjamin Carballo, youth ministries director for the church in Inter-America. “This congress gives us the opportunity to evaluate the emphasis and initiatives we have been able to promote to our young people in our local churches as well as continue teaching and guiding our young people to continue embracing the commitment to motivate other young people to experience salvation and service in their communities.”
Carballo says most of the youth delegates were chosen because of their dedication and leadership in youth ministries and they represent the estimated 1.8 million young people across Inter-America.
More than 10,000 young people are expected to gather for the youth congress to participate in community service projects, seminars and workshops on leadership, street evangelism, music evangelism, creationism, youth impact evangelism, and more.
Special guest speakers include Adventist World Church Youth Ministries Director Gilbert Cangy, Jose Vicente Rojas of MOVEmentum Ministries, Sammy Reyes of Florida Conference, among others.
The congress will also feature this year’s Bible Boom grand finale competition on Aug. 2, where top winners from the church’s 23 unions, or regions, will be tested on the books of Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, and Micah. This year’s Bible Boom finalists are:
Atlantic Caribbean Union: Samuel Nemours
Belize Union: Cynthia Garbutt
Caribbean Union: Shama Felix
Central Mexican Union: Eliasib Mojica Jaimes
Chiapas Mexican Union: Caleb Balvino
Cuba Union: Kariuska Cintra
Curacao and Bonaire Field: Jullyvienska Van der Wall
Dominican Union: Wandy Familia
East Venezuela Union: Maria Diaz
El Salvador Union: Nelson Hernandez
French Antilles Guiana Union: Josua Favel
Guatemala Union: Servio Perez
Haitian Union: Fredly Dolcin
Honduras Union: Edwin Francisco Zavala Banegas
Inter-Oceanic Mexican Union: Aura Lucina Kantun
Jamaica Union: Shane Johnson
North Colombia Union: Breyden Mendoza
North Mexican Union: Miriam Lizbeth Orozco
Puerto Rican Union: Johanna Rodriguez
South Central American Union: Liz Pamela Correa
South Colombia Union: Maribel Lloredo
Southeast Mexican Union: Kethzia Amyfel Gonzalez
West Venezuela Union: Gustavo Pineda
All general sessions during the youth congress will be streamed live over the internet in Spanish, English and French, from its opening ceremony on July 29, until its closing on Saturday, August 3, 2014.
To view the opening ceremony, on July 29, 2014, at 6:00 p.m. Guatemala Time or 8:00 p.m. Miami Time, go to webcast.interamerica.org
For detailed schedule of the upcoming Inter-America’s Youth Congress, visit us at interamerica.org