In an effort to generate excitement among world church leaders about the General Conference’s (GC) initiative, “I Will Go,” slated for 2025 to 2030, an afternoon interview session with strategy leaders was hosted by Vanesa Pizzuto, communication and media associate director at the Trans-European Division.
Mike Ryan, GC general field secretary for global mission, joined Pizzuto on stage to offer his perspective surrounding the importance of “I Will Go.”
“We live in a world that is changing rapidly,” Ryan said. “As trends and patterns change, we find at the core there is a tremendous need for mission.”
Ryan emphasized that having a mission re-focus slogan allows the church to react to what the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy (SOP) are leading believers toward.
Pizzuto, agreeing with him, said the foundation and purpose of the church remains the same, but the strategy of how that information is brought to the world is modified based on emerging patterns seen in the world.
“We are asking every member to find one thing to do in mission work,” Ryan said. “That is what is so exciting, because there are things that we at the General Conference may not think of.”
In an effort to generate excitement regarding “I Will Go” from delegates and general attendees attending the session, a large sculpture has been placed on the stage forming the word “Will Go.” Ryan demonstrated that the missing “I” is meant be a person standing next to the sculpture, illustrating to the individual that they are being called to go.
“We want everyone to become a member of the Mission Refocus club,” Ryan said.
Behind-the-Scenes Research
In a video presentation, David Trim, director of the GC Office of Archives, Statistics, and Research, explained to viewers the important role that research plays in helping church officers develop a focused strategic plan.
“Without research, we don’t really know what’s happening in the church, and therefore church leaders can’t respond with appropriate plans,” Trim said.
Examples of questions researched at the GC when putting this plan together included:
How many Adventists are reading their Bible?
How many Adventists are praying every day?
How many Adventists believe firmly in the 28 fundamental beliefs?
Through this research, Adventist Church leaders were able to make informed decisions when developing the Key Performance Indicators that make up the strategic plan.
Tracking Key Performance Indicators
Lisa Beardsley-Hardy, director of the education department at the GC, shared through a video presentation the importance of not only doing research for the strategic plan but also tracking data while the plan is in place.
“US Marine Commander General Robert Barrow is attributed to have said, ‘Strategy is for amateurs, logistics is for professionals,’ ” Beardsley-Hardy said.
This quote, Hardy explained, highlights the strength behind focusing on key performance indicators (KPI).
During the early stages and the course of “I Will Go,” Seventh-day Adventist academic institutions will be reviewing all KPIs, with each institution choosing one or two focus areas to be their specialty.
Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives
The strategic plan breaks down this initiative into four goals and objectives.
Communion with God
Seventh-day Adventists will grow into spiritually mature disciples through daily communion with God. The Holy Spirit will prompt them into a deeper relationship with Him through prayer, Bible study, mission work, stewardship, and application.
Identity in Christ
Church members will affirm their identity as God’s children, being rooted and established in faith and truth, keeping the commandments of God, seeking things that are above, and bearing fruit in every good work.
Unity through the Holy Spirit
Church members will be united in the body of Christ through the Holy Spirit, expressing that unity through the teachings of the Bible, loving fellowship, worship, witnessing, serving the needs of others, and preparing for the latter rain of the Holy Spirit.
Mission for All
Church members will be equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit engaging in personal and public proclamation of the eternal gospel (Revelation 14:6), following the Great Commission (Matthew 28), and remaining true to Jesus’ approach to mission.
Total Member Involvement
As a practical way for world church leaders to promote and be involved with “I Will Go” and their own local churches, James Howard, GC Sabbath School and Personal Ministries director, shared a disciple-making plan rooted in Total Member Involvement (TMI).
“Total Member Involvement is for everyone,” Howard said. “It is a call on every church and every member to become actively involved in making disciples using Christ’s method.”
The three preliminary steps are:
Emphasize spiritual revival: Every church should begin its evangelistic efforts with an emphasis on seeking God and experiencing spiritual revival and reformation.
Establish an interest list and review process: Getting members involved in making disciples is all about generating and working with interests.
Provide personal evangelism training: Personal labor was Christ’s method, and it is the key to all successful evangelism.
Howard concluded with a call to action.
“Every church should be a training school for Christian workers,” he said.
An example of how local churches can become these training centers was presented by Almir Marroni, publishing ministries director for the GC, and Michael Eckert, GC publishing ministries assistant director.
“Our goal at the publishing ministries department is to have every single member share truth-filled literature to the world,” Eckert said.
Eckert and Marroni shared that there are currently 42,000 literature evangelists going to homes to spread the gospel through GLOW tracts. These are pocket-sized booklets with relevant information in relation to the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s beliefs. GLOW stands for Giving Light to Our World.
They expressed to world church leaders their desire to have GLOW tracts and other pieces of faith-based literature on display inside every local Seventh-day Adventist church.
A video presentation from the Nepal Section of the Northern Asia-Pacific Division (NSD) further highlighted how quickly the Seventh-day Adventist message can spread when utilizing TMI.
“We are eager to join the worldwide church in Global Total Member Involvement,” said the publishing director for the Nepal Section, James David Wilson Jr. “Our goal is to establish a local church literature ministry in every congregation across Nepal.”
According to the video report, every church in the Nepal Section has plans to participate and will be receiving custom-made GLOW tract shelves.
For more coverage of the 2025 General Conference Session, including live updates, interviews, and delegate stories, visit adventist.news and follow ANN on social media.
