Seminary Student Helps Launch Indonesian Ministry

To support and give back to the growing Adventist Indonesian community in the United States

The AIYMCON team met for a leadership retreat in Silverthorne, 科罗拉多州.

Xander集团, Master of Divinity student at bet365中文大学, will be co-hosting the first ever Adventist Indonesian Youth Ministries Convention, 也被称为AIYMCON, 在拉夫兰, 科罗拉多州, 7月10日至14日. 亚萨合 created the convention in collaboration with peers across the country in an effort to support and give back to the growing Adventist Indonesian community in the United States.

Born in Jakarta, Indonesia, 亚萨合 came to the United States when he was just two years old. He grew up in New Jersey and later 科罗拉多州, noting the sizable Adventist Indonesian populations in both states. “My whole life I’ve grown up in Indonesian churches,他说. “I feel like I have a burden for the Indo community.”

亚萨合’s journey with ministry began in high school at Campion Academy when he was asked to share a testimony for the school’s week of prayer. He witnessed several people come forward requesting baptism after he shared his story. 亚萨合 went on to study nursing at Union Adventist University (then known as Union College), but after his freshman year he switched his major to theology, completing his bachelor’s degree at Southern Adventist University. He credits his time at Southern for helping become involved in youth ministries. “I started working at one of the local Korean churches, 他们雇了我做全职员工,他说, sharing that he worked t在这里 for three years before coming to Andrews.

The concept f或AIYMCON was born in early 2023. 亚萨合 came up with the idea of a faith-based convention for Adventist Indonesian American youth and pitched it to his friend Praise Tinungki, current president of Advent-Indo Youth Ministries, 或AIYM, 在南加州. The name AIYMCON—a combination of AIYM and conference—was created by Steve Suinda, an bet365中文大学 graduate who serves as an elder at his local 密歇根 Indonesian church. 在一起, 亚萨合, Tinungki and Suinda created the vision f或AIYMCON, 建立领导团队, 并开始了规划过程. The trio continue to serve as the lead executives for the project.

“We’ve seen a lot of our friends leave the church, 还有一些人干脆抛弃了信仰,股份亚萨合. “We wanted to do a program to give back to them and try to help them to come back, but also to minister to the next generation growing up.” The team aims to provide a space w在这里 youth can see opportunities and success among Indonesian adults who have stayed in the church. “First and foremost, I just want them to have an experience with Jesus,亚萨说.

亚萨合 and Tinungki created a team to lead AIYMCON consisting of individuals from across the country—notably Washington, 南加州, 密歇根, New Hampshire and New Jersey—w在这里 they knew of large Adventist Indonesian communities and had peers they could connect with. They wanted to represent the various ages and walks of life of the AIYMCON attendees. 结果是, the team has members ranging in age from high school to mid-thirties and includes church members, 青年领袖, 长老和牧师.

However, such broad representation presents its challenges. “Communication has been hard because everyone’s in different time zones, 每个人都过着不同的生活,阿萨承认道。. 为了克服这个问题, they’ve grouped people in the same time zone together to work on planning different aspects of the convention. Digital communication has also been immensely helpful, allowing for long distance communication and text records of the planning process. “I just want to give the leadership team a shoutout,亚萨说, “They’re a big reason why AIYMCON is happening. Their hard work towards this vision is what keeps me going. 没有他们，就没有aiymon.”

AIYMCON will take place at Campion Academy 在拉夫兰, 科罗拉多州 7月10日至14日. 主题是“多样性中的统一”,” encompassing the assembly of youth from across the United States and Indonesia. 该团队计划了几项活动, 包括晚祷和礼拜仪式, a career expo with presentations from young Indonesian professionals and seminars on issues that young people deal with, such as mental health and intergenerational trauma. For more information about the convention, please visit the AIYMCON 网站.