First online meetup features inspiring testimonies and practical opportunities to use creative talents to share Jesus.

October 25, 2026 | Miami, Florida, United States | Libna Stevens, Inter-American Division News

The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Inter-America brought together digital content creators, young people and church members for its first Creative Disciples Online Meetup on October 22, aiming to inspire participants to use their talents to share Jesus, build a community of faith-driven creators and encourage greater participation in the church’s mission.

Streamed live from the Inter-American Division (IAD) headquarters in Miami, Florida, the gathering formed part of preparations for OneVoice27, a worldwide evangelistic initiative that will mobilize church members through digital outreach and local congregations in 2027.

Abel Márquez (right), communication director of the Inter-American Division (IAD), introduces the first Creative Disciples Online Meetup alongside co-hosts Daniel Torreblanca (center), IAD youth ministries director, and Keila Trejo (left), IAD community manager, during the live broadcast from IAD headquarters in Miami, Florida, on October 22, 2026. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
Abel Márquez, IAD communication director, welcomed participants alongside Keila Trejo, IAD community manager, and Pastor Daniel Torreblanca, IAD youth ministries director.

“This project does not belong to the communication department, the youth ministries department or the stewardship department,” Márquez said. “It is an initiative of the entire Inter-American Division in which everyone can participate.”

Márquez explained that creative discipleship extends beyond traditional preaching to using innovative approaches and personal abilities to introduce others to Jesus.

“Mission is not ours. Mission belongs to God,” he said. “He invites us to participate, and we, as disciples, join in His mission.”

Abel Márquez, Inter-American Division communication director, encourages creative disciples to use their talents and digital platforms to share Jesus. [Photo: IAD Screenshot]
Trejo encouraged participants to connect with one another as viewers introduced themselves through the YouTube live chat.

Digital Creators Share Their Experiences

The program featured Adventists already using digital platforms to share their faith

Salim Bencosme, a content creator from the Dominican Republic, described how he began sharing biblical messages on social media six years ago to reach audiences beyond traditional church settings.

Adventist content creator Salim Bencosme of the Dominican Republic encourages viewers to use social media to share Jesus during the Creative Disciples Online Meetup on October 22, 2026. [Photo: IAD Screenshot]
“God placed in my heart the desire to take the truths we shared from the pulpit to social media,” Bencosme said.

He encouraged viewers to become digital missionaries and join OneVoice27.

“You can become a useful instrument for God so that people may know that Jesus is coming soon,” he said.

From Ibagué, Colombia, Diana Cedano shared how she and her husband have combined their beauty business with digital evangelism, initially sharing Christian literature and personal testimonies with clients before expanding to Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Diana Cedano of Colombia shares how her digital ministry has connected people across countries through messages of faith and prayer. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
Cedano said their account has attracted nearly 14,000 followers, generating prayer requests and messages from viewers in different countries, including individuals seeking connections with nearby Adventist congregations.

The couple has since dedicated more time to producing faith-based content and supporting local Adventist institutions.

“It is not about followers or likes. It is about what is in your heart and your purpose in appearing on a screen,” Cedano said. “Do you want people to see you, or do you want them to see Jesus?”

The meetup also highlighted efforts in the French Antilles–Guiana Union, where communication director Cedric Adrassé reported that approximately 30 people attended a recent meeting to identify volunteers interested in digital evangelism.

Cedric Adrassé, communication director of the French Antilles–Guiana Union, reports on efforts to build a network of digital evangelism volunteers across the territory. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
Participants offered skills in creating inspirational posts, Bible verse graphics and short films, while a QR-code registration system was introduced to recruit additional volunteers.

Five Ways to Participate

Torreblanca outlined five opportunities for church members to participate in OneVoice27, beginning with monthly digital content challenges designed to engage at least 10,000 participants, including Adventurers, Pathfinders, Master Guides, university students and other church members.

The challenges will be announced on the 27th of each month, with participants sharing content on the second Sabbath of the following month. Those who participate will be eligible for a commemorative pin.

A second opportunity involves becoming Ambassadors of Hope, forming teams of seven to establish Mission Points in homes, parks and other community spaces where union-wide digital evangelistic campaigns will be broadcast in September 2027.

Daniel Torreblanca, youth ministries director of the Inter-American Division, outlines five ways church members can participate in OneVoice27 during the online event. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
“Young people will reach places where we cannot even imagine,” Torreblanca said.

The third initiative encourages youth federations, congresses and camporees to produce short films, culminating in a festival during the final week of August 2027 featuring 25 selected productions, one from each IAD union. The effort will involve the Communication and Youth Ministries departments and Hope Channel Inter-America

A fourth initiative will introduce a monthly podcast offering practical tools for creative evangelism while encouraging local churches and youth groups to produce their own programs.

Finally, young people will be invited to preach using resources prepared around the theme “All Things New” ahead of the September evangelistic campaigns.

Keila Trejo, Inter-American Division community manager, highlights the connections forming among creative disciples through the live chat during the online meetup event. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
Together, the initiatives aim to mobilize creative disciples across the IAD’s 25 unions and strengthen local church outreach.

A Call to Make Disciples, Not Just Content

In a closing devotional message, Pastor Abner De los Santos, president of the IAD, urged participants to view creativity as a means of discipleship rather than an end in itself.

“What would happen if each of us used the special talent God has given us?” he asked, challenging musicians, artists, filmmakers and communicators to use their abilities to help others encounter Jesus.

Drawing on 1 Timothy 4:12, De los Santos reminded young people that they need not wait until they are older or more experienced to participate in mission.

Pastor Abner De los Santos, president of the Inter-American Division, urges creative disciples to use their talents to share Jesus and make disciples during the online meetup on October 22, 2026. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
“You do not need to be famous to be faithful,” he said. “You do not need thousands of followers to share hope. You do not need a professional studio to create something meaningful for God.”

Referring to the biblical account of the boy who offered five loaves and two fish to Jesus, he emphasized the importance of placing one’s abilities in God’s hands.

De los Santos cautioned against measuring digital evangelism solely through views or followers.

“Creativity is a tool; the message is Jesus,” he said. “Our purpose is not simply to attract an audience. Our purpose is to make disciples.”

The first Creative Disciples Online Meetup was streamed live from Inter-American Division headquarters in Miami, Florida, on October 22, 2026. [Photo: Libna Stevens/IAD]
Comparing the church to a choir whose different voices contribute to a single message, he encouraged collaboration.

“One voice does not mean one talent,” he said. “It means one message, one purpose and one Savior.”

He closed with an appeal for creative disciples to place their talents in God’s hands and inspire others to share the hope found in Jesus.

To watch the Inter-American Division’s Creative Disciples Meetup, click: HERE for English, HERE for Spanish, HERE for French.

Digital content creators interested in joining the IAD’s Creative Disciples Network can complete the registration form HERE to stay connected and receive updates on training opportunities, collaborative projects and upcoming OneVoice27 activities.