At 4 p.m. PDT/7 p.m. EDT on May 22, 2019, university students from across North America will attend the fourth “Is This Thing On?” (ITTO) live-streamed conversation during the annual Adventist Christian Fellowship Institute. Those gathered will have the opportunity to engage with Seventh-day Adventist Church leaders from the North American Division (NAD) during a 90-minute livestreamed conversation. Sharing comments from the conversation on social media, especially Twitter and Facebook, is encouraged during the event.

The dialogue with Dan Jackson, president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America; Alex Bryant, executive secretary; and Randy Robinson, treasurer, will be held at the Life Adventist Church of Berkeley, California.

“Our church only becomes stronger when we talk to each other, pray with each other, and learn from one another,” said Jackson.“I look forward to an open dialogue on the issues important to young people. It’s especially exciting to be with our friends from public universities.”

“Having this type of dialogue with Adventist young people from public colleges and universities is a first for us, and we are really looking forward to hearing what they have to say,” said Bryant.

This will also be the first “Is This Thing On?” for Robinson, who is looking forward to answering questions on finance and how the church works. “In the mission of the division, stewardship is an important issue,” Robinson said. “I look forward to talking about my philosophy of ministry, . . . and promoting efficiency.”

The program is unscripted; questions will be taken primarily from the live studio audience. Subjects will likely include the Bible, young adults in the church/society, church policy, Adventist lifestyle, race relations, and more.

The young adult audience featured during the ITTO live event will primarily be attendees of the ACF Institute. According the website, ACF is about following the mission of God through the Seventh-day Adventist Church on college and university campuses in Bermuda, Canada, Guam-Micronesia, and the United States. “ACF is a ministry of students, by students and for students, supported by local Adventist churches and resourced by Adventist Conferences, Unions and the North American Division. It includes concerned parents, faculty, pastors, chaplains, church leaders, church members and hundreds of volunteers.”

The event will be hosted by Julio Muñoz, associate director of the NAD Office of Communication, and Mylon Medley, news writer/news producer and assistant director of the NAD Office of Communication. Those in the audience and watching online are encouraged to use #NADNOW.

The first Is This Thing On? Event, held on March 14, 2017, drew more than 23,000 viewers, with hundreds of questions and comments pouring in during the event and directly after. The second event on December 2, 2017, at Oakwood University drew 11,300 views and about 2,000 reactions and posted comments, which included 975 questions and statements regarding the conversation. More than 80,500 Twitter accounts were reached through almost 400 tweets and retweets. The third event, held on May 12, 2018, at Walla Walla University, drew almost 8,850 views, with 1,200 comments, reactions, and shares on Facebook alone.

—NAD Office of Communication