Greater New York Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church
Adventist Youth Ministries Department
Pastor Jose’s FYI
9/25/09
1. Adventist Youth Awareness Days (Today & each Friday for the remainder of 2009)
2. Adventist Youth Sabbath & Baptism (Tomorrow @ local churches through Greater New York Conference)
3. Bronx Evangelism (Begins tomorrow, September 26-October 3 @ Emmanuel Seventh-day Adventist Church)
4. Adventist Youth Day of Prayer & Fasting (Next Friday, October 2 through Greater New York Conference)
5. About 300,000 Unique Hits in our Website www.gnycyouth.com in the last 12 Months.
6. Launch of Greater New York Adventist Youth & Young Adult Social Network on Internet
7. General Conference Requests the Greater New York Conference Praise & Worship Team to Lead Praise & Worship During General Conference Session Youth Services in Atlanta 2010.
8. Pastor Jose’s Thoughts & Schedule
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Adventist Youth Awareness Days (Today & each Friday for the remainder of 2009): Today, many Adventist kids, youth, young adults, and adults in Greater New York wore something to work, school, gym or other places that distinguished them as Seventh-day Adventists, disciples, followers of Jesus. We do this as a testimony to others, whom we may not be able to speak to or take the time to engage in conversation. We have heard several testimonies from our youth in regards to the impact that one of our shirts can make at school, the street, and even on a cruise-ship. People look, are interested by the message on the shirt, and ask what is the message all about, what is Adventist Youth Ministries, what is the Adventist Church, and where do we meet? As Seventh-day Adventists living in the XXI century in the capital of the world, we must use any positive means possible to proclaim our hope.
For the remainder of this year, we would like to request that children, teens, youth, young adults, and adults in Greater New York wear something that indentifies you as a Christian, a disciple of Jesus, a Seventh-day Adventist. This is a beautiful and easy way to spread our hope and to bring awareness to our wonderful church, which many don’t know or recognize yet.
Some have mentioned that they cannot wear t-shirts to their offices, we understand that. Suggestions: there are beautiful pins which you can wear on your lapel; you can take a Bible with you on the train and read it if able during the ride, once at work place it on your desk, where people can actually see it. Take a missionary book with you on the train, at the gym, or doctor’s office, on many occasions people will ask. These are the times when you must be ready to respond and perhaps leave the book, Bible, or other positive, beautiful literature with those who are interested.
2. Adventist Youth Sabbath & Baptism (Tomorrow @ local churches through Greater New York Conference): Tomorrow, Saturday, September 26 is designated in the Conference and Adventist Youth Ministries Department Calendars as a Youth Sabbath & Youth Baptism Sabbath. I know of many churches that are doing something very special with their young people, also know of several youth, young adults who will be getting baptized tomorrow.
If your church did not plan for this occasion, just remember that the date is not the most important thing, what is important is that you have your Youth Sabbath and your Youth Baptism at some point. Work with your pastor, elders, and church board to make sure that your church and your young people are able to experience it. If you need some info on how to prepare a Youth Sabbath, visit our website on the Resources Section, or simply click on this link: http://gnycyouth.com/article/articleview/419/1/90/10/90/.
3. Bronx Evangelism (Begins tomorrow, September 26-October 3 @ Emmanuel Seventh-day Adventist Church): It begins tomorrow with the gospel choir from Takoma Academy, in Takoma Park, MD. The speaker is Pastor Melvyn Hayden III. The Bronx AY & Pathfinder Coordinators are doing a great job together with the Emmanuel Church and Pastor Zabolotney. For more info please click on this link: http://gnycyouth.com/article/articleview/885/1/22.
4. Adventist Youth Day of Prayer & Fasting (Next Friday, October 2 through Greater New York Conference): We, the youth & young adults of Greater New York have planned and organized these Days of Fasting & Prayer for several years and have seen great results and wonderful things happened. We don’t these days because of some type of tradition, this is totally Biblical. We pray and we fast because we know the tremendous power of God, which is accessible to us through prayer (Mark 9:29). For some resources on “What to do on a Day of Fasting & Prayer” please click on the following link: http://gnycyouth.com/article/articleview/886/1/61/24/61/.
As you know one of our Initiatives for this Year, under our theme “Be the Bridge” is Prayer. For more info and resources on this, please click on this link: http://www.gnycyouth.com/article/articleview/801/1/183/10/183/. Let’s not keep this to ourselves, invite others to join us on this very special day.
5. About 300,000 Unique Hits in Our Department’s Website www.gnycyouth.com in the last 12 Months: The website of the Adventist Youth Ministries Department, www.gnycyouth.com, has been in operation since the end of 2003. From 2003 to 2008, it was well visited and searched from people in our Conference and throughout the world. Last year, we thought it was time for the website to be improved and upgraded. With lots of hard work and under the direction of Joanne Cortes and Emanuel Pelote, the newly designed website was launched on United Campmeeting last year, September 13, 2008. Since September 13, 2008 to today, www.gnycyouth.com has received just about 300,000 unique hits, thousands of inquiries, notes, and prayer requests and of course lots of materials and resources are downloaded from our website every day, from Greater New York Conference and the entire world. You can be proud to have one of the premier Adventist Youth Ministries Websites anywhere. Special thanks to Joanne Cortes, Emanuel Pelote, and to each leader throughout our Conference who contributes with resources, articles, info, and pictures to keep it updated and relevant.
6. Launch of Greater New York Adventist Youth & Young Adult Social Network on Internet: On November 21, our Department will launch the Greater New York Conference Adventist Youth & Young Adult Social Network; this network is similar to Facebook, with the unique characteristic that our Social Network will belong to us. Each youth and young adult will be able to create a personal profile, and each youth group, college & university group, AY Society, Small Group, as well as Pathfinder & Adventurer Clubs will be able to create their pages and groups within the network in order to communicate better within the Department of Adventist Youth Ministries in our Conference. Stay tuned, I will send you all of the info very soon so you and your church can be part of it.
7. General Conference Requests the Greater New York Conference Praise & Worship Team to Lead Praise & Worship During General Conference Session Youth Services in Atlanta 2010: Just a few days ago I received a phone call from, Pastor Jonatan Tejel, Associate Director of the General Conference Youth Ministries Department requesting that our Youth & Young Adult Praise & Worship Team lead the Praise & Worship at the General Conference Session Youth Services in Atlanta 2010. Congratulations to our Praise & Worship Team, they have sung for years at the Youth Tent and Youth Dome and will now be leading Praise & Worship for the young people at the General Conference Session in Atlanta. I am sanely proud of them. I know they will do their best for God and will also represent our Conference with class during the 2010 world session.
8. Pastor Jose’s Thoughts & Schedule: The last two weeks were bitter-sweet. On September 12, together with my family and Pathfinder Coordinator Agatha Irish, we attended a beautiful Pathfinder Service at Richmond Hills Church, Director Raymond Ali, Pastor Peter Dookie gave us such a beautiful and hospitable welcome. In the afternoon, Joanne & I visited with the Collegiate & University Students in Manhattan, Alex Espana and the team are doing a beautiful ministry with tremendous potential for expansion throughout the colleges and universities in the Greater New York area.
Sunday was a beautiful day for Taste of Life, with a great team of young adults who worked together with area churches and pastors to put together an excellent event, with over 2,000 people in attendance and about 900 registering, leaving with us their personal info, some asking for help in special areas. Then on my way back from Taste of Life, met Angel Reyes, Volunteer Assistant for Pathfinder Ministries in Greater New York, at the South Side Hospital in Bay Shore to visit Chris Bramwell. When we visited Chris on that night, and kept in touch with Chris’ family during the week, things did not look good at all. We honestly thought we would lose him. On Wednesday evening, I visited the Pathfinder Week of Evangelism at University Spanish Church, Moises, the club director and the entire club were there, with a great attendance and lots of visitors. Evangelism organized by the Pathfinders for the Church, my friend, Pastor Jesus Aquino, former Youth Director in Dominican Republic did a great job preaching. On Thursday, came back with Pastor Shane Vidal to anoint Chris, still did not look good, yet he managed to say amen at the end of the anointing prayer. Then, United Campmeeting came, a beautiful day, with a full dome for the worship service, Phil Mark’s baptism, and the ordination of six loved colleagues.
During the United Campmeeting worship service we offered a collective prayer for Chris and his family, about 2,000 youth and adults praying together for one person. It seems that God heard our prayer, because it was about that time that Dwaine Bramwell texted me and mentioned that Chris was trying to get up from the bed, was talking and looking much better. Just knowing that he was doing better was already a blessing for him, his family, and for all of us. Nevertheless, last Wednesday, as I called Dwaine to see if Chris was finally home, as he had mentioned, Dwaine told me to wait for a few moments, and guess who got on the phone, it was Chris. It was beautiful and unbelievable to speak with Chris and to hear his words of thanksgiving to God for His miracle and to us for the prayers and support. Once again, I was assured that we serve a powerful and omnipotent God, and that’s awesome.
Tomorrow, we’ll be at French Gethsemane for Pathfinder Day (11 AM), at Queens Faith for Pathfinder Induction, we will celebrate the beginning of the Pathfinder Club at Queens Faith (3 PM), at Richmond Hills Spanish (8 PM), and at Wyandanch Spanish (11 PM) for respective Prayer Vigils. On Sunday, Executive Committee in the morning and a Special Fund-Raising Program for a Multi-Purpose Complex in the Northeastern Conference, during the program the Governor General of Jamaica, Pastor Patrick Allen, will be honored. On Monday, it’s Joanne’s B-day, so the boys and I are preparing something very special for her. Monday evening we are off to the Atlantic Union Youth Directors Advisory, till Thursday, and next Sabbath we will be at the North Bronx Church with the Youth and Pathfinders of the Bronx.
Always keep us in your prayers, lots of love, and a Happy Sabbath!!!
Keep in touch:
www.gnycyouth.com (website)
ay@gnycyouth.com(Secretary’s E-mail address)
gnycyouth@aol.com(Pastor Jose’s E-mail address).
http://www.youtube.com/user/gnycyouth (For videos on YouTube)
Jose Joanne Cortes (on Facebook)
Pastor Jose & Joanne (on My Space)
(516) 627-9350 (Greater New York Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church)
(516) 467-5212 (Direct Line to Veronica/Adventist Youth Ministries Department Office)
(516) 749-2080 (Joanne’s Cell)
(516) 749-6057 (Pastor Jose’s Cell)
(516) 627-9272 (Greater New York Conference Fax)
|
>>
Printer-friendly page
Send this page to a friend
