GYC Conference Feedback - 14 points

In December 2016 I got to experience a long standing dream of mine to attend a Christian youth Conference called Generation of Youth for Christ (GYC), in Houston Texas, in the USA. (See: https://gycweb.org /) It was actually miraculous how God worked for me to get to attend, (See a bit of the testimony here), but it was one of the best experiences Providence has allowed me to have.

Since 2012, I've had the privilege of being involved in a number of similar conferences (in planning, attending and speaking); perhaps only on a much smaller scale than GYC, but with the same essential structure. One of my intentions in attending this conference was to draw lessons for myself (should I be given the chance to be involved in planning another such conference), and anyone else involved in other like conferences in future.

For the benefit of some of my friends who’ve asked, here’s 15 points I took away from the experience:

1. ATTENDANCE The number of GYC attendees has grown exponentially since it began around 2002. The highest, if I’m not mistaken, was around the range of under 8 000, a few years back. This year’s conference was attended by less than 4000. The opinion response I got when I queried this was that “the GYC crowd is growing up…” I’d just also add that growing secularization in the states may be contributing to this.

This year's conference was attended by around 3500 people (which is on the lower end of the usual average of 5000) and this number is in part due to certain things that were in place that lead to the growth and expansion of GYC. (See pt. 6)

2. CONTENT On the whole, the program content was great: Challenging, inspiring and well prepared. In terms of quality of this content, I was as blessed at GYC as I was at other like conferences (ALIVE Kenya, IMPACT Zambia, Mission Cohort etc. 1 Cor. 12:11 I guess)

3. GENERAL PROGRAM SET-UP The setup had Morning, day-time and Evening "Main services" (Plenary and devotions). There were also about 20 seminars all running parallel to each other and at the end of the day (around 8:30pm) there was time network and to check out booths and exhibitions.

4. FOCUSSED (UNCHANGING) OBJECTIVE Among the strongest things that keeps GYC going, from my observation, is a very clear vision, and the consistent commitment to that vision. I believe this is what keeps previous attendees coming back, and what inspires those who’ve never been to GYC to want to attend it. (Check it out here.)

5. COMMITMENT TO IDENTITY I think of the previous point in view of my involvement in planning the last 3 Mission Cohort (MC) conferences. The main objectives for these (MC) conferences have always, without variation, been the same:

1. To revive and sustain a missionary spirit among Seventh-day Adventist youth & young professionals.
2. To train and equip young people for service
3. To facilitate networking among mission groups and Adventist young people
4. To do outreach and call others to Christ

6. GYC AS A SYSTEM There are certain systemic factors in place, outside of the actual conference itself, that I observed to be what has led to the growth of GYC and it's conferences. 2 Major factors include:

• CAMPUS - A missionary training program for university students on secular campuses. The first group of young people who were part of planning GYC were graduates of this program and were scattered across various different universities around USA and the world. These were strong influencers in rallying like-minded cohorts to come together on the earlier GYC's
• Audioverse - An online free audio sermon platform where presentations, seminars and sermons from previous conferences were recorded and made available for download. I'd say that the rich content from the past GYC's os one of the strongest forms of it's marketing, especially because of its endless scalability. (Audioverse played a part in my GYC trip also: https://youtu.be/7txWEOZ_c9w)

7. DIVERSITY I enjoyed the very evident [ethnic] diversity at GYC, as well as how freely I could relate to various people genuinely, as brothers. I didn't find myself only hanging out with individuals who looked like me. In an increasingly polarizing America (and world), this is a strong demonstration of the gospel.

I got to spend one night with some individuals who were part of planning previous and then-current GYC’s and got to learn that that diversity was very intentionally pursued, both in the planning committee as well as in the attendees.

8. INNOVATION I was impressed with the great use of technology. This added to the excellence that God's work deserves. During the conference, there was a GYC app where I had the program, speaker bio's and announcements), the registration desk was a digital registration where I just "checked in" on the devices that were set up, my tag had a qr code on which had all my details and was scanned whenever I went for meals. No one was running around during the conference asking for people to still pay any outstanding amounts.

9. A UNITED EFFORT One of the most humbling experiences for me was when I went to the dining hall for breakfast and, among the line of ushers leading attendees to their meals, was the GYC president directing people, with a smile. I had a few brief interactions with him and was encouraged by his genuine engagement, amidst the pressure of leading at such a major event. He appeared well in-tune with the proceedings, though there were a number of teams running various things.

From the Board of directors (some of whom were there), down to the ushers and volunteers, I saw the glimpses of the unity they shared. It was one GYC [leadership].

10. YOUTH INVOLVEMENT The GYC exec (E-com, as they call it) does well to distribute its responsibilities to other young people who have the mind and spirit of GYC. Hosting a conference that big comes with it's need of extra hands, and most of those who volunteered did so out of their own pocket (still paying for the conference, accommodation and food for staying extra days etc.).

11. ACCOMMODATION AND GENERAL LOGISTICS
Arranging accommodation for the conference was left to the attendees (be it motel, hotel, family etc), and conference meals were also made optional for a fee. The conference was in inner city Houston, which came with a variety of places to choose from. There's also a Facebook page where attendees could find room mates to share with and cut costs (I ended up meeting and staying with great guys through this, and found myself staying at an Airbnb, holiday Inn and Hilton hotel, on different days.I didn't mind.)

Morning and midday meals (which were great) were provided by the conference (for those who paid for them) then a slot in the evening program was open for "networking " and anyone who wanted to get an evening meal anywhere else.

It may be necessary to note, in all the above, that Houston, as with most urban American contexts, generally has more to offer for accommodation, within budget, safety and variety, than some cities in my country.

12. GLOSS WHERE IT MATTERS Comparing my experience at GYC to what I would see when watching it online, I got to see many unexpected differences. The main hall at the conference was a simple, flexible arena, with very basic seating; likewise with the dining hall and some of the seminar rooms. The only really fancy parts of the setting was the main platform, and I assume that was mostly for the cameras. The gloss was only where it mattered, and the basic simplicity of everything else didn't take away from the powerful content and experience.

13. TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES Having attended the conference personally, I got to witness that the running of the conference was not without any glitches and/or technical difficulties; I.e. a missing presenter, late attendees, clashing program items...etc, all of which is very normal. The commitment to excellence was very evident though (for example, even though the hall was half full, the presenter was up to speak at his specific time.)

14. WHY A CONFERENCE A question I asked myself more while at GYC was why such conferences mattered, and how do they fit into the bigger picture of fulfilling Matthew 24:14? If there's one thing I could take away was a reminder that a conference, as an event in itself, is not the ultimate answer to the pressing needs of the gospel. It isn't an end in itself, but forms a valuable link on a broader chain (or system); and it is important to understand the big picture better - the "why."

Someone likened such revival, networking and training meetings as GYC to a "time-out" in a basketball game, and not the game itself. The true power of these events is seen in what it does in the lives of those who attend them, once they've gone back to their homes - once their back in the game. This is why it may not be best to measure the true success of these events by the number of attendants.

Among other questions was in introspecting on the model of such youth conferences in local [African] contexts, how we frame our 'timeouts', how relevant they are.

THE FUTURE OF GYC

One striking thought came on my last night at GYC during a conversation with some brothers who've been part of planning previous GYC's. A point was raised of uncertainty about what the future of GYC looks like.

That question can perhaps also be extend further, as to: "What is the future of this generation of young people who believe they have a part to play in bringing about the second advent of Christ?"

Are they (we) a dying breed? If everything continued as it is now, will the objective be reached? What is the next step up the ladder (beyond conferences) towards the fulfillment of Rev. 14:6, in my lifetime? And what may God be preparing us for through this season of growth in youth ministries and movements?

"I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." Rev 14:6

- Abide