Church of the Nazarene leaders from Nicaragua and the North Central Field Nazarene Youth International gathered August 22 to present plans for INDESTRUCTIBLE 2016, the Mesoamerica Region's Nazarene Youth Congress. The congress will be held in Nicaragua from July 19 to 23, 2016.

The 78 leaders present worshiped God and listened to the Word, shared by Regional Director Carlos Saenz, who challenged leaders to have a great vision for the event, to trust that God will provide the resources, and above all, trust God will do great things in this generation of young people. Regional NYI Coordinator Milton Gay led the planning portion of the gathering.

Special guests included Pastors Ed Belzer and Clint Tafoya of the First Church of the Nazarene in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, who will be part of the re-launch of the Genesis Project and the planting of three new churches on the Nicaragua Central District.

Nicaragua's four district superintendents, along with a leadership team, were also present. They pledged to open the doors of their churches to receive delegations and are already making arrangement for all attendees. 

"Nicaragua has an amazing social and ecclesiastical history," said Odily Diaz, North Central Field NYI coordinator. "The Nicaraguans are developing after a war that lasted more than 10 years. Today, it is the safest country in the Americas. Young Nicaraguans will be impacted with the presence of all the young Nazarenes from the region, because people are willing to grow, to invest, and share with others, work on planting three new churches, and the leadership is willing to provide the same track.

"The INDESTRUCTIBLE Regional Congress is based on Acts 5:39," Diaz said. "It will be a festivity full of God’s Word, worship, praise, service, fellowship, learning and consecration. We will have the Regional Youth Bible Quiz competition, concert, plenary, workshops, forums, Maximum Mission, games, regional market, and many more surprises.

Congress plenary speakers Felix Ortiz and his wife, Sara Bonet, have worked since 1979 with the Agape organization, known as Campus Crusade. They have focused on leadership training and development in Spain, Europe, and Latin American countries. Felix is the author of books on training youth leaders, including Raices (Roots) and Pastoral Juvenil en Profundidad (Deep Youth Pastorate). Both speakers will train district presidents, councils, and other field and regional leaders on the theme “Training in Youth Ministry.”

Howard Andruejol has facilitated youth training and projects for leaders across Latin America during his 15 years in youth ministry. He is currently director of the Youth Specialties Institute in Guatemala and executive editor of the Youth Leadership magazine. Andruejol will train young people on issues of culture, service, and other strategies.

Other presenters include General Superintendent Jerry D. Porter, Global Mission Director Verne Ward, Regional Director Carlos Saenz, Global NYI Director Gary Hartke, Leonel de León, and others.

Because July 19 is a holiday, local churches will receive delegations prior to this day. The hotel check-in date will be Tuesday, July 19, starting at 11 a.m with a welcome lunch. The conference will end Saturday, July 23 at 2 p.m.

Delegations that would like to go sightseeing before or after the event should communicate with each coordinator to arrange additional housing. 

Register through your district NYI president or NYI field coordinator, on the web at jniregionmesoamerica.org or indestructiblejni.com, or through the Mesoamerica NYI Facebook or Twitter pages.

--Church of the Nazarene Mesoamerica Region