BARAKA MUGANDA Director  
Report written by LULDMILLA LEITO Administrative Assistant

“If we are to keep the young people in the church, we must utilize their talents.” —Baraka Muganda.

You may have heard of us. . . . We’re called the Youth Department, and we embody some of the most energetic servants for the Lord. Many years ago Ellen G. White wrote, “We have an army of youth today who can do much if they are properly directed and encouraged. We want our children to believe the truth. We want them to be blessed of God” (General Conference Bulletin, Jan. 29, 1893).

Ours is a history of challenge—challenge to meet the love, drive, and need for God. It is a history rich with youthful determination that pays off with a widespread need to share God’s love. Our primary focus is the salvation of our youth through Jesus Christ and to equip and empower them for a life of service within God’s church and community. “Innovating ideas” is our motto, and to be heard is our goal.

The past quinquinnium witnessed many milestone celebrations for the department—from the 120th anniversary of the Adventist Youth Society to the fiftieth anniversary of Pathfindering. Youth all over the world are claiming their stand for Christ and are eager to spread the message. Throughout the years major events have shown us that being a servant of God has nothing to do with age, education, or position. All it takes is the desire and the drive.

Major Activities
From 1995 to 2000 the Youth Department has been fortifying the youth force. There has been a strong spiritual movement to which thousands have given their lives. Youth societies and Pathfinders everywhere have taken the passion for serving the Lord very seriously. Several major media have covered youth gatherings and events during the past several years. “Our precious youth are on fire for God everywhere,” explains Alfredo Garcia-Marenko, associate director for senior youth. “I saw them praising and serving the Lord indoors, outdoors, inside the denominational and public convention centers, as well as on the streets, supported by the media, church, and civil authorities.”

In a dramatic display of commitment, more than 4,500 Romanian youth came together on September 12, 1999, to write out the Bible from memory in 28 minutes. “Our youth wanted to demonstrate that the Bible means a lot to them,” said Adrian Bocaneanu, president of the Adventist Church in Romania. Led by Jan Paulsen, thousands of young people lined the park avenues to write their sections on a giant scroll of paper that ran for 1.7 miles (2.8 kilometers).

This past year also saw youth witness and celebrate their love for God through the electronic media. On December 31, 1999, young adults across the North American Division and the world gathered to welcome three important events: the Sabbath, the new year, and the new millennium. Genesis 2000 was uplinked via satellite to the North American Division, and the event could be seen by the rest of the world via the Internet. This four-hour program, produced by twenty-somethings from start to finish, proves that there is a strong young adult movement in the Adventist Church today.

Departmental Achievements
1. Youth in Missions has been launched, in which hundreds of youth participate in the training of volunteers. Many are showing interest in serving overseas and in local communities.

2. Heart, Hand, and Mind: Youth in Missions project kits augment volunteerism within the youth programs. This kit, containing a video and guidebooks for leaders, youth, and parents, has been sent to all divisions.

3. Juniors, senior youth, and young adults have their own devotional series to complement their principal devotional readings and the Morning Watch.

4. The Youth Department addressed the primary focus of its existence and developed five yearly emphases to achieve its goal:

1996—Spirituality: Developing and maintaining a living and meaningful relationship with God.

1997—Leadership: Living and leading out in the life and work of the church.

1998—Mission: Participating in the finishing of God’s work on earth.

1999—Stewardship: Committing totally to God the use of time, talents, energy, influence, and finance.

2000—Celebration: Celebrating with God for all accomplishments and entering with Him confidently and joyfully into a new century.

5. Youth congresses became training grounds for evangelism, missions, and service. Many divisions have a new approach to youth congresses and use different names for them. In South America they call them “Super Missions”; in other parts of the world they are known as “Impact the City/World.”

6. New youth lifestyle brochures to meet the needs of young people will soon be found in the hands of the million youths who fill up our churches.

7. The quarterly Youth Ministry ACCENT magazine, the official General Conference Youth Department publication, has a new face. This magazine publishes program ideas and leadership development materials for local youth leaders around the world church.

The March Is Strong—50 Years of Pathfindering
We celebrated the fiftieth year of Pathfindering in 1999 as clubs around the world joined with other clubs for camporees. We’ve seen this year how God can use youth of Pathfinder age to touch lives. All around the world the Pathfinder march is stronger than ever.

South America: Spanish and Brazilian government officials recognize the Conquistadores and Desbravadores as model youth to be emulated by others.

Europe: Latvia is one of the newest countries to include Pathfindering in the church structure. In 1998 Mrs. Gune Rimane brought their first club, wearing their fancy maroon-and-black uniforms, to the Trans-European Division camporee in Norway. Impressed with what they saw, they immediately set about planning their first camporee for the following year.

Africa: Africa may have more Pathfinders than any other continent. One church in Zambia has named a 17-year-old former Pathfinder as its first elder. A 15-year-old girl in Malawi has memorized about 90 percent of the Bible and can recite any chapter, complete with voice inflections representing the persons speaking in the chapter.

Asia: Pathfinders from Pune, India, rehearsed for weeks with friends and neighbors before they hopped on a train for “train evangelism.” They spend one hour riding the train, singing songs and distributing some 850 magazines, 1,000 tracts, and 500 special stickers printed with the Advent message.

Hong Kong has had a small but enthusiastic program going for many years. One of their favorite pastimes is drilling and marching. It paid off in 1999 when a delegation participated in the fiftieth anniversary camporee in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, performed in the drill competition, and won first place.

Inter-America: At a division camporee held in Puerto Rico in 1998, the report of Pathfinder outreach ministry included 21,146 voices of junior youth campaigns and similar projects for a total of 56,986 baptisms—all in one year.

A report comes from Colombia that a 10-year-old girl serves as the associate pastor of her church. She preaches one Sabbath a month at church and every other Sabbath in the central plaza of her town. Forty-two people have been baptized through her ministry and the work of the Holy Spirit.

Looking Ahead
Young people everywhere are taking positions of leadership in this new millennium. With 75 percent of the church being comprised of those under the age of 30, more youthful views are being implemented into church doctrines.

“The church must continue nurturing the young people to make them not only Adventists, but to encourage them to remain Adventists for the rest of their lives,” says Baraka Muganda, youth director. “The church must make the commitment to keep their fire blazing for the Lord. Therefore, we are planning to develop strong programs in discipleship in order to help young people to appreciate and own the church they love.”

As we face the new century, the Youth Department plans to develop stronger programs in discipleship. We want our youth to love the church and also to take more active interest and positions in the church. More resources, such as lifestyle brochures and manuals, will be published to give the youth a start on their journey to share Christ.

“We must continue to make missions and volunteerism the signature of the Youth Department. It is the intent of the Youth Department to help the youth find joy and satisfaction in such service and see it as both a privilege and a responsibility,” says Muganda. “The youth of today want to feel challenged. Often they claim to be bored with the sermons, programs, and church in general. What better way to challenge them than to make them essential partners in soul winning?”