Reaching Within

SHREVEPORT, LA. – One afternoon, our administrative assistant and I sat down and combed through the eAdventist database looking for young adults ages 18-35 within our conference. We were very encouraged to see that even in our small conference there were thousands of young adults. Out of the over 13,000 members in the Arkansas-Louisiana Conference, nearly a third or 4000 of them are young adults. The problem, however, is that as I travel to different churches around our conference, what I see in churches doesn’t reflect those numbers. Where are these young adults?

This year we will have a heavy emphasis on young adults within our conference. We have established a mentorship program within our Summer Camp where our veteran staff is responsible for intentionally mentoring younger staff members. We have recently added a new week of Summer Camp geared specifically for young adults to help them connect with each other and God. We have also started a school for Master Guides in southern Louisiana with the purpose of encouraging and equipping our young adults so that they can develop leadership skills while assisting their local Pathfinder or Adventurer Clubs. We sent care packages to some of our young adults that are away at college, letting them know we are praying for them. These may be small initiatives, but we understand what God can do with a small initiative. He can take it and feed a multitude of young adults. We want to know our young adults. Each one is special. Each one is important!

By David Craig

Youth and Young Adult Director