Youth Conference

PREPARATIONS ADVANCED for Baptist Youth Conference in Singapore

Preparations are in high gear for the 16th

Baptist Youth World Conference in Singapore from July 17-21.

More than 6,000 youth from approximately 100 countries are

expected to attend. A major feature of the conference is a series of workshops for

youth, youth leaders and young adults. More than 20 workshops will be targeted toward the thousands

of youth going to Singapore. Among these are Practical Advice for Growing in Faith, The Role of Christian Youth in the Fight against HIV/AIDS, and establishing ministries through the creative arts, sports and creation care. Others will examine how to live out one’s faith in school, how to study the Bible, the dynamics of worship, social media, women in the sex trade, the environment, and peace and justice issues. Some sessions will focus on youth telling their stories of life

and ministry in difficult and sometimes dangerous circumstances. Youth leaders workshops include Integrating Youth into the

Church, Engaging Youth who are Involved in Risky Behavior, Balancing Career and Youth Ministry, Encouraging and Leading Young People in Short Term World Mission, and discussions exploring why youth are leaving the church. Young adults will discuss Living a Life of Mission at Home,

Connecting with Young Adults Outside the Church, Maximizing Ministry, and Discovering God’s Purpose, among others. Facilitators and presenters are drawn from around the

world such as India, Singapore, Nepal, Lebanon, Sierra Leone, Argentina, Germany, New Zealand, Canada, the United States and other countries. Registration for the Baptist Youth World Conference may be done online at www.bwanet.org.

a MISSION FOCUSED Youth Conference By Emmett Dunn and Rothang Chhangte

One of the major emphases of the Baptist Youth World

Conference in Singapore from July 17-21, 2013, is mission. It was decided at the onset of the planning process that conference participants should have an opportunity to make an impact and that mission is the means to accomplish this. One unique mission opportunity is a School Kit Project,

sponsored by Baptist World Aid (BWAid), the relief and development arm of the Baptist World Alliance®. Approximately 1,000 kits will be assembled at

the youth conference and

distributed to Myanmar children living in refugee camps. There are an estimated 31,000 school children living in seven refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border. People living inside the refugee camps are prohibited by the government of Thailand from seeking employment outside the camps and are dependent on donations for their daily necessities. The kits will be used to help meet the educational needs of refugee children, most of whom were displaced by wars, conflicts and disasters. Youth groups traveling to Singapore are asked to indicate

how many kits each group can contribute. BWAid is encouraging youth leaders to challenge their youth

to either make monetary contributions or to bring school supplies on their travels to Singapore. They can make a monetary donation of US$10 to purchase a hand woven, environmentally friendly school bag made by women in the refugee camps, plus school materials such as pencils, sharpeners, crayons and rulers; or

US$15 to purchase one school kit filled with school supplies, US$75 to purchase five school kits, or US$150 for 10 school kits. Youth also have other opportunities for mission during the

conference. The BWA has partnered with Stop Hunger Now to fill two 20ft containers of pre-packaged meals for distribution in Asia. Stop Hunger Now is an international hunger relief organization

that coordinates the distribution of food and other life-saving aid around the world. Its meal packaging program provides volunteers the opportunity to package dehydrated, high protein, and highly nutritious meals that are used primarily to support development programs and to save lives in developing countries. It is estimated that in order to fill these containers, the BWA

will require 2,000 volunteers during the youth conference, working two shifts of four hours each. If successful, these containers will carry 285,120 meals. Already, the BWA has secured US$45,000.00 in funding for one container with the hope that additional funds will be forthcoming to fill a second container. The youth conference Local Arrangements Committee in Singapore is confident that this goal will be reached. In addition to the School Kit Project sponsored by BWAid and

the partnership with Stop Hunger Now to provide pre-packaged meals, participants attending the youth conference will have other mission opportunities in Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand leading up to, or following the conference.

Emmett Dunn is youth director of the Baptist World Alliance. Rothang Chhangte is director of Baptist World Aid. APRIL/JUNE 2013 21