For the past 15 years the South American Division (SAD) has been motivating and training young people for mission through its regional Adventist Volunteer Service (AVS). This service has encouraged young Adventists to travel away from their homes in order to serve and share the gospel in different places and cultures.
The I Will Go convention focuses on training new volunteers, and this year it took place at Chile Adventist University in Chillán. From October 22 to 25 more than 4,200 people came together from 26 countries. Under the theme “Light up!” the event called young men and women to step out of their comfort zones and embrace cross-cultural mission.
Many attendees said the event helped them think about the possibilities of volunteer service. Among them was Eduarda Perszel Ribeiro, 25, from Brazil, who shared that in April she quit her job as a store manager to be ready for mission service. Ribeiro attended the I Will Go convention to receive additional training. “It opened a door to show us that there are no borders if you want to serve as a missionary,” she said.
The Strength Found in Volunteering
Her friend, 18-year-old Gabriela Gamin, attended this event for the first time. She is a university student who works for two advertising agencies but is interested in being a volunteer in the mission field. Gamin attended the convention in Chile to better understand how Adventist projects work for young people like her, who are willing to go share their faith to people in different places.
Both the young women and another friend put ideas into practice even before the event. Since October 13 the trio got involved in a local evangelistic meeting and helped renovate a church building in the nearby city of Chiguayante.
The Contribution of the South American Division
Stanley Arco, SAD president, opened the convention, highlighting the regional contribution to world missions. Arco also reminded participants of the stories of Adventist pioneers who experienced challenging circumstances to bring the biblical message to such countries as Peru, Chile, Paraguay, Ecuador, Bolivia, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil.
Arco invited participants to commit to mission service. “If you have come this far, understand that you are responding to a call to mission,” he said.
Elbert Kuhn, General Conference AVS director, stated that South American Adventists have the opportunity to volunteer and to be missionaries to countries where Christianity is a minority. “The I Will Go program is a constant reminder of the call to the South American church, because mission is the best medicine for spiritual illnesses,” he said.
The movement of sending missionaries has grown in such regions as Asia and Australia, Kuhn reported. Since 1996 approximately 40,000 young Adventists have enrolled in the AVS program and have been deployed around the world, staying, on average, between one and two years.
The convention offered participants plenary presentations and training workshops. In addition, there were booths that showcased mission and volunteer opportunities.
Dieter Bruns, the SAD AVS director, emphasized the importance of the initiative. “We bring together young people and adults interested to serve as missionaries,” he said. “The idea is to multiply the concept of mission beyond borders.”
The original version of this story was posted on the South American Division Portuguese-language news site.
