As digital evangelism becomes the forefront of evangelistic and missional efforts by the worldwide membership of the Seventh-day Adventist church, the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists has developed a new, exciting app, Adventist Teams. The app will allow members around the world to source and distribute quality, Biblical content for friends and family in the digital space.
Adventist Teams is a result of the focus of the worldwide Adventist church on Total Member Involvement (TMI). Ted N. C. Wilson, President of the Seventh-day Adventist Church is excited about Adventist Teams and looks forward to its launch. “We wish God’s blessing on ‘Adventist Teams’ as this app reaches out, through church members, to those around you and, yes... the world,” he said. “Your personal involvement will be directed by the Lord and will be a great part of Total Member Involvement. Jesus is coming soon… stay close to Him, His Word, His righteousness and help proclaim the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14 as you participate in ‘Adventist Teams.’”

Sam Neves, associate director of communication for the Seventh-day Adventist World Church, reiterated the central importance of equipping every Adventist with the capacity and tools for online involvement in the Great Commission and the proclamation of the Three Angels’ Messages. “Our mission is to proclaim these three final warnings to the world and even though our mass communication models are important, God called each of us to be the ones delivering the message. After all, God could appear in the sky and announce the second coming in seconds. He doesn’t do that because we are the ones who can best communicate his love without causing fear.” For Neves, this “why” behind the “how” is imperative. “Adventist Teams,” he says, “is the most fun way of fulfilling this mission with a team of like minded people who cannot wait for Jesus to come back.”

“The success of digital evangelism efforts depends on how engaged and involved church members become”, says Alyssa Truman, coordinator of Adventist Teams. After a successful digital evangelism campaign in 2020 run by Adventist World Radio with the support of the communication department of the Adventist World Church, it became evident church members needed a set of tools to equip and enable them to work collaboratively in digital mission activities. Since then they have been developing Adventist Teams, an app that hopes to impact the algorithms of all social platforms by having thousands of Adventists consume and share the best Adventist content. 

These big questions included the topic of the Sabbath, Jesus’ second coming, and the mark of the beast - all very popular topics given the climate of the world. “We wanted to find a way to continue to engage them and help them find great content they could share with their friends,” Truman said. 

The app isn’t just “another resource” for church ministry, but rather is a tool for each of God’s people connecting in the digital space: “Each member,” she shares, “has been asked by God to proclaim the Three Angels’ Messages to the world. For those that want to answer this call, especially in the digital world, Adventist Teams is a tool they need.”

How does Adventist Teams work?

Anyone can use the app - you don’t have to be a digital wiz or a Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram user (to name a few of the many social media platforms out there). 

Once you have been invited and have signed up, you can begin browsing different resources from the local church level to the Adventist church and associated organizations such as Hope Channel, Adventist Media, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency, etc, for content that is relevant and helpful to your intended audience. Truman went on to share: “whether they are looking for resources on doctrinal beliefs or health or family, we are always trying to find new fantastic resources that they can share.” Those working behind the scenes of the Adventist Teams app are always looking for content that is doctrinally-sound and supports a cross-section of queries and questions on how to live a better life here on earth now, and prepare for eternity to come. 

Apart from finding existing resources to share, the app will allow users to share their own created content, content that Truman said is intended to be “evangelistic in nature, with members world-wide, who in turn, can share it with others.” In essence, the Adventist Teams app is a one-stop-shop for trustworthy, and relevant content for a world in need of Jesus and in need of a deeper knowledge of God’s word and His heart.

Developing Disciples, Developing Leaders

Truman reiterates that “it is of the utmost importance to help raise up more leaders in the church. People who inspire and motivate others to share their faith.” She shares that this app has multiple purposes: to create, to source, to share and to inspire and empower. She continues: “Adventist Teams is invite-only, so that people are encouraged to invite others to join and take a personal interest in helping and encouraging them to proclaim the good news to the world.” She goes on to state that there are different levels of leadership within the app. These levels come with different perks, incentives, and corresponding responsibilities. As an individual digital missionary and also through the work of your “team”, these may be achieved. “You can’t be a leader if you aren’t inspiring and supporting others” Truman relates, “nor can you be a leader if you aren’t leading by example.” 

Inspiring a generation of digital missionaries

For both Alyssa Truman and Sam Neves, this is a deeply personal project, but their belief is that it is a passion shared by millions of Adventists around the world. “As a lay church member, one of my struggles in sharing my faith was finding resources on specific topics that I could share when I saw people asking questions.” Truman relates as a lay member to the struggle of countless church members. There’s a knowledge that right now, in this world, in this social climate, we are called to minister in the online space. This ministry may look like sharing existing content, and engaging with the circle of friends and family online that God has placed us into special contact with, or it could be to steward creative talents and create for the great commission. As Truman states, “we have so many incredibly talented people sitting on our pews wanting to use their talents and now there is a place for these creatives to share with the world church allowing more people to be reached.”

For more information and to register for the launch on November 1st, please visit the official Adventist Teams website, https://adventistteams.org/.