Helping Young People Discover Joy in Mission

Involvement in mission is vital for the spiritual growth of the youth in our church. When young people actively participate in mission work, they not only grow in faith but also develop a deeper commitment to serve again. Nj Fajut, Southern Asia-Pacific Division (SSD) Voice of Youth (VOY) president, expressed his desire to see more young people engaged in mission after witnessing lives transformed for Jesus. He shared, “I hope we can do more of this so that more people will surrender their lives to Jesus.”

How can we engage the youth in mission? Let me use Jesus’ framework in making disciples and involving them in mission. Ellen White states, “Christ’s method alone will give true success in reaching the people. The Savior mingled with men as one who desired their good. He showed sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, ‘Follow Me.’ ”[1] White outlines Jesus’ strategy for reaching people, including our youth. The key steps are: (1) connect with the youth, (2) care for them, (3) capture and cultivate their confidence, and (4) call them to follow Jesus.

Connect With the Youth

Young people tend to work better in groups because they value fellowship and enjoy being together. This strong sense of connection is also what makes peer pressure such a powerful influence—leading them to make either positive or negative choices.

A recent State of the Youth Awarenessstudy among SSD youth found that most young people turn first to their friends when facing personal challenges. Another study revealed that the majority of young people joined VOY because of the invitation of friends. Friends (69.7 percent) ranked first as the most effective agents of recruiting students and youth into short-term mission projects such as the Voice of Youth.[2] They feel comfortable sharing struggles with their friends, and they often respond to the invitation of their peers. We need to take advantage of this by equipping and mentoring our young people.

Connecting with the youth as mentors who desire their good is crucial to leading them into mission. Jesus connected with the youth, whom He later called to follow Him. One thing I do when I want to bring a group of young people into short-term mission and service is to meet with the leader of the group, the person who brings everyone together. Connecting with that leader is connecting with the group. I have found this to be a successful step to get young people involved in mission.

As youth workers we need to connect with the youth, be with them, eat with them, laugh with them, be interested in what they’re interested in, and be a blessing to them and to their parents as well.

Care for the Youth

Young people face struggles of many kinds. One of the best ways to show that you care is by offering a listening ear. Too often they are bombarded with words—instructions, classes, seminars, and advice—but what they truly long for is an authentic relationship in which they can share their hearts without fear of judgment. They feel loved when they are genuinely heard. You may not be able to meet all their needs, and they do not expect you to. But they find refuge and freedom when they can express their struggles openly and safely. What they need most is a caring youth leader and mentor who sincerely desires their good.

As you lead young people, it is helpful to understand their challenges. The SSD State of the Youth Awareness study shows that many of the top issues youth face relate to such mental and emotional challenges as coping with stress and anxiety. Understanding their needs is essential to caring for them in a way that connects not above their heads but with their hearts. If youth leaders and mentors truly care for the youth, they move closer to engaging them in mission. Moreover, caring must be genuine and authentic, because young people can quickly sense when it is mechanical.

Prayer should never be treated as a harmless pastime, but as a strategic weapon for mission.

Another way to care for the youth after understanding their needs is to pray for and with them. Lead them to cast their cares upon the Lord. When communion with God is sought through prayer, great things are accomplished. Prayer is the foundation of great accomplishments in the work of God and the kind of ministry heaven approves. Prayer aligns our thoughts and actions with the will of God. So it is crucial to pray fervently for the youth. As one Christian writer observed, prayer should never be treated as a harmless pastime but as a strategic weapon for mission.[3]

Ellen White comments on the role of prayer in reaching people for Jesus. She writes, “Do not neglect earnest prayer that you may possess a lowly mind, and that angels of God may go before you to work upon the hearts you are trying to reach, and so soften them by heavenly impressions that your efforts may avail.”[4] The things you cannot do in reaching the hearts of young people God will do for you in response to fervent prayer.

Capture and Cultivate Their Confidence

Once youth leaders have connected with young people and shown them unselfish love and care, young people begin to trust them. They have successfully captured their confidence and now must cultivate that confidence to lead them to engage deeply in the mission God has entrusted to them. It is here that youth leaders can introduce possible ways to do short-term mission together.

The biblical way to help youth become involved in mission is to allow them to discover, develop, and be deployed according to their giftedness.[5] This is a gap that needs attention if we are serious about involving the youth in ministry. Knowing and using the spiritual gifts God has given our young people is key to youth engagement in mission.

Several times when I speak for youth events, I ask how many of them know their spiritual gifts. Usually only three to five out of 100 raise their hands. When I ask them to name their gifts, many find it difficult to do so. This is crucial because, as a church, we believe that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to continue the work He started. He distributed gifts for the work of ministry in the church. But if the youth are not aware of them, how can they minister using their God-given gifts? How can there be total youth involvement when they are unaware of their spiritual gifts?

The fruit of the Spirit defines who we are as Christians, while the gifts of the Spirit define what we do as Christians. When young people discover both, their faith becomes active. As the Administrator of the church, the Holy Spirit has gifted every believer with spiritual gifts to empower them to serve with joy and enthusiasm. Helping the youth discover and use their gifts is one of the most powerful ways to cultivate their confidence and strengthen their involvement in mission.

Call Them to Follow Jesus

Addressing the first three steps on how to involve the youth prepares them to respond to the call to follow Jesus in reaching out to others. The SSD Adventist Youth Ministries (AYM) annually provides avenues for children of church employees to get involved in such short-term mission opportunities as the Voice of Youth (VOY). VOY is a gift-based ministry of the General Conference to involve the youth in mission. At the time of this writing, the children of SSD employees have already completed three VOY programs.[6]

Youth who engage in mission not only experience blessings themselves but also become instruments of transformation, touching the lives of their peers and helping to advance the kingdom of God.

In December 2024, 37 young people joined the VOY program in Mindoro, Philippines. The group was divided into two teams, reaching two sites in the towns of Gloria and Bansud. SSD AYM trained these young people in various parts of conducting public evangelism based on their gifts. They were given tasks including coordinator, speaker, health lecturer, children’s coordinator, and others. They were also trained to facilitate groups in discussion and united prayer after each night’s message.

To ensure proper groundwork for public evangelism, SSD AYM partnered with the Mindoro Island Mission VOY team. The majority of that team were Master Guides and Master Guide trainees. They worked together to pray, run the program, evaluate, visit homes, and more. Parents and local leaders mentored them and gave necessary instruction to train this army of youth.

After several months of groundwork and a week of reaping, the SSD youth shared the blessings of joining the Voice of Youth. El Jireh Estacio, who served as the health lecturer and music coordinator, shared, “Joining VOY in Mindoro has been an eye-opener to me, as I was able to see that people of different races and cultures could work harmoniously together. It gave me a sense of belonging to the mission entrusted to us by God.”

We visited a group of young people who had organized themselves for a short-term mission, hoping to inspire them. But from the moment we arrived, it was clear that they were the ones inspiring us. Despite the floods that greeted us along the way, they fetched us and welcomed us with heartfelt songs that brought tears to our eyes. As we stepped off the boat I found it difficult to speak; their courage and commitment to share the gospel amid the flood had already touched my heart deeply. We chose to stay an extra day to baptize those who had surrendered their lives to Jesus.

The impact of their dedication continues to bear fruit. Three years later Kenneth, one of those baptized, is now a third-year Bachelor of Theology student at the Adventist University of the Philippines. Youth who engage in mission not only experience blessings themselves but also become instruments of transformation, touching the lives of their peers and helping to advance the kingdom of God.

Inspired to Serve

Youth involvement in mission is crucial for the growth of our young people and of the church. When they are engaged using their spiritual gifts in a group setting, their commitment to stay and serve the church is strengthened. To lead them into mission, youth leaders must follow Jesus’ method of reaching people: connect with them closely, care for them lovingly, capture and cultivate their confidence patiently, and call them intentionally to follow Jesus in fulfilling the gospel commission.

This requires prayerful dedication for the church to get them involved in mission. Once they experience it, they will love to serve until Jesus comes. Indeed: “With such an army of workers as our youth, rightly trained, might furnish, how soon the message of a crucified, risen, and soon-coming Saviour might be carried to the whole world!”[7]

[1] Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, Calif: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1905), p. 143.

[2] Petronio M. Genebago, “Adventist Youth Ministries Handbook for Youth Directors, Coordinators, and Leaders” (unpublished manuscript).

[3] John D. Robb, “Prayer as a Strategic Weapon in Mission,” International Journal of Frontier Missions 8, no. 1 (1991): 23-31.

[4] Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1948), vol. 2, p. 53.

[5] James W. Zackrison, Adult Sabbath School Lessons: Spiritual Gifts: Keys to Ministry (Nampa, Idaho.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1997).

[6] Petronio M. Genebago, Voice of Youth: Empowering the Youth for Evangelism, Equipping the Church of Today and Tomorrow (Caloocan, Philippines: Philippine Publishing House, 2016).

[7] Ellen G. White, Education (Mountain View, Calif: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1903), p. 271.