Walking up to a complete stranger and offering to pray for them is a bold move—even more so when you are 14 years old, and you’ve never done anything like it before.
Yet that is what more than 200 young people faithfully chose to do on Thursday afternoon during the sixth annual Amazing Facts Youth Conference (June 17–20). The four-day event hosted at the W.O.R.D. Center in Granite Bay, Calif., was devoted to the theme: “Send Me: Here I Am, Lord!”
Over and over again, the 600-plus youth in attendance were encouraged to dedicate their lives to Christ and devote themselves to His service. Guest speaker Cami Oetman, vice president of Adventist World Radio, shared, “God chose you to be born at this time in Earth’s history. He needs you to share the three angels’ messages with the world. God started this church with young adults who believed God had called them to share a special end-time message with this world, and He is going to finish it with young people.”
Other speakers included Doug Batchelor, president of Amazing Facts International; Carlos Muñoz, director of AFCOE; Daniel Hudgens, assistant director of AFCOE; and Justin and Charissa Totossian from Australia.
The young people responded eagerly to appeals to follow Jesus and work for Him. “Regardless of what their full-time calling might be, God has big plans for each young person,” says Pastor Doug. “He has a place for each of them in outreach, and even as full-time missionaries. The young people I talked with over the weekend had caught that vision.”
A Simple Way to Share
After a brief training on how to share their faith, young people and the adults accompanying them prepared to go into the community to pass out literature and pray for those who needed it. Drivers and riders coordinated into outreach groups, and pairs of young people picked up their allotment of books. After a special prayer, the young people filed out of the Granite Bay Hilltop Church and into a world in need of the Savior.
Teams of teens fanned out into shopping malls, parking lots, and apartment complexes. They wore “Hey, Let’s Pray!” t-shirts and carried stacks of Footsteps (a reprint of the classic Steps to Christ) to share with anyone who wanted one.
For some young people, this was their first time doing outreach, and they went out with a little trepidation. Yet an hour later, all the young people returned to the church with stories to tell of how God had led. Even the shyest could say that God had been with them.
- “It was scary at first, but we locked in, and it got easier every time we talked to someone about Jesus and prayed with them.” —Kasey
- “We went to 20 doors, but no one would open up for us. I’d thought that every door would be a success, so I was ready to give up. Then a lady named Jess opened the door, and she seemed like the nicest person in the world! She wanted prayer and the book. That made all the rejection worth it. I realized that even if we reach only one person, it’s worth it.” —Daniel
- “We prayed for two ladies in the mall. One of them said she was so grateful to see young people doing things like this and said she would read the book. The other lady started crying when we asked if we could pray for her. Those were divine appointments.” —Selah
Providing young people with experiences like this is an intentional part of Amazing Facts Youth (AFY). Daniel explains, “We send kids out for outreach for a few reasons. We pray they experience divine encounters that will boost their faith. They meet people of various backgrounds, such as Muslims, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and atheists, which gives them experience talking with others in a winsome way. The youth always experience worry when they first go out, so this gives them a chance to get out of their comfort zone and see how God can lead, give us strength in our weakness, and give us courage in our fear. It also helps them understand that if they can go pray with strangers, then they can pray with those they know at home too.”
“I realized that even if we reach only one person, it’s worth it.”
Even parents who attended with their youth were inspired to be more actively involved in evangelism in their communities. Alvin, a father of three from southern California, said, “It’s been rejuvenating. It makes me want to do more for my church. I’m going home with a mission.” He and his family were attending AFY for the first time.
A Full Weekend
While the conference was dedicated to inspiring and equipping young people for ministry, the weekend was also a welcome spiritual retreat and social connection for the hundreds who attended. The opportunity to reconnect with old friends and build new friendships with like-minded young people was a real blessing.
“It was fun making new friends,” said Faith, from Oregon. “It’s really nice knowing that everyone here believes the same way I do.”
The young people socialized between meetings, over meals, and in the evenings at afterglow. “People didn’t want to go home at the end of the day,” said Tony Scarpino, who leads the online AFY events throughout the year and helped coordinate the conference. “It was wonderful to see their smiles and how much everyone appreciated what God was doing in and around them.”
Six Years of Growing Young People
AFY began in 2020 as a way to reach out to young people who were feeling isolated during the COVID-19 pandemic. The biweekly online meetings quickly grew into a close-knit family of young people. Recognizing the need, Amazing Facts hosted our first youth conference in 2021. Since then, the conferences have grown every year, attracting families from across the United States.
The biweekly online meetings have also become a birthplace for spiritual leaders. Many of the young people who first started attending online now regularly attend the AFY conferences and help plan and run the events. Many of them have also become strong leaders for Christ in their own communities.
“Being a part of AFY gave me confidence to become the youth leader at our church,” said Bishop, from California. Roper, from North Dakota, agrees: “AFY has helped me share Christ with my friends.”
Not all who attend the AFY conferences attend the online meetings, but all are invited. “If you are serious about lifting up your peers in prayer and are willing to get involved, then please join us!” says Roper.
Watch archives of the presentations and learn more about Amazing Facts Youth here: afyouth.com
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