Preparing Hearts and Hands
Across the Northeastern Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, anticipation is building as churches, youth leaders, and young people prepare for Global Youth Day (March 21, 2026), a special occasion when young people around the world intentionally step beyond church walls to serve their communities in practical and meaningful ways.
Global Youth Day continues to remind us that ministry is powerful when faith is made visible through acts of compassion, kindness, and service. It is a day when young people become living sermons—demonstrating that the Gospel is expressed in words, and also through helping hands, listening ears, and hearts willing to respond to human need.
This year, preparations are underway across the field as local youth ministries and Youth Federations organize outreach initiatives to touch lives in practical, memorable ways. From community service projects and neighborhood engagement to prayer, visitation, and acts of encouragement, young people remain at the forefront of planning and leading each local expression of service, continuing the spirit of Global Youth Day as a youth-led movement of mission and witness.
In a meaningful expression of interdepartmental partnership, the Sabbath School Department, under the leadership of Pastor Easton Marks, will come alongside local youth leaders by supporting the projects selected and led by the youth. This partnership reflects a shared commitment to strengthen the impact of service while preserving the leadership and vision of the younger generation as they engage their communities.
Local congregations and pastors are warmly encouraged to stand alongside their youth by supporting these outreach efforts in practical ways. Churches may assist through local giving for outreach-related purchases, donations of items for food distributions, clothing collections, or hygiene drives, and by helping young people prepare, organize, and distribute resources within their communities. Such support strengthens each initiative and affirms the value of youth leadership in mission.
As the day approaches, every congregation is invited to pray intentionally for its youth, for the communities they will serve, and for every life that may be touched through even the simplest act of kindness. When young people serve, heaven rejoices, communities notice, and faith becomes visible.
This article was written by Dr. Paula Olivier, Director, Youth & Young Adult Ministries, Northeastern Conference and President, BAYDA (Black Adventist Youth Directors Association).
