While the anchor report of the final day of the 2024 North American Division (NAD) Year-End Meeting was the treasurer’s report on the organization’s finances, [covered in detail here] the thematic focus was on NAD’s major evangelistic initiative for prayer and revival known as Pentecost 2025. And while NAD ministry departments and other church partners shared reports showing commitment to the initiative, a special presentation on Pentecost 2025 from division leaders also gave attendees a bird’s eye view of plans and recent developments.
On Nov., 4, 2024, during the Pentecost 2025 presentation, Amalia Goulbourne, an Andrews University seminary student, reminds NAD leadership that there is an "abundance of human resources at the seminary" ready to be part of evangelism opportunities in the NAD. Photo by Pieter Damsteegt
Significant Commitment
Pentecost 2025 represents a significant commitment to evangelism. “Participating conferences have collectively pledged more than $28 million for evangelism efforts in 2025, announced Philip Baptiste, secretary/treasurer of Adventist-laymen’s Services and Industries (ASI). NAD is dedicating at least $10 million and the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (GC), the highest organizational level of the church, is also contributing.
“I want to say how much I appreciate the General Conference coming [to these meetings] and hearing about Pentecost,” said NAD president G. Alexander Bryant. “They are appropriating a half a million dollars for Pentecost 2025 in NAD. We want to thank them for that partnership.”
Bryant presented a vision for Pentecost 2025 that particularly focuses on smaller congregations within the division’s network of churches. NAD has a total of 6,669 congregations and companies in North America. Of those, 3,000 have less than 100 members and 1,400 have 50 or less members.
Bryant challenged traditional assumptions about evangelism requirements. “I believe sometimes we have painted evangelism that you need a big entourage of people to do the Lord’s work. ... You need a big budget. You need a big evangelist coming down. You need a big meeting, a big venue,” Bryant said. He emphasized, however, that evangelism can happen “in your living room ... in the Sabbath School classroom ... in the basement of your home.”
Pentecost 2025 is designed to support this type of engagement. Bryant particularly underscored the importance of celebrating small-scale successes: “We celebrate the 1,000 baptisms. I would like for us to celebrate the one baptism in that five-member church.”
In conclusion, Bryant utilized a theme he had heard at the camp meeting of the Carolina Conference. “Let it rain,” Bryant called out, listing North American cities, from New York to Los Angeles, Toronto to Miami. “Let the Holy Spirit rain across North America! Let the Holy Spirit do the work He’s waiting to do through His members and through His pastors and through His workers,” he declared. “If we let it rain, then Jesus will soon come!” said Bryant. “That’s what Pentecost 2025 is all about.”
Delegates stood at the podium to voice their support and share ideas for the initiative. Andrews University seminary student Amalia Goulbourne reminded attendees of “the abundance of human resources we have at the seminary. Every seminarian … needs to go through field evangelism, and so that means you have seminarians searching and wanting to engage with your churches. Please make the opportunity open and available for women who are in seminary as well.”
Berit Von Pohle, vice president for education for the Pacific Union, encouraged leaders to also minister to the children attending Adventist schools and make sure they are also specifically invited to join the church through baptism.
NAD Director of Youth & Young Adult Ministries Tracy Wood made an impassioned plea for online churches saying, “we desperately need something that takes us into new ways besides [just utilizing] our legacy ministries,” He requested an option on the Pentecost 2025 application for non-traditional ministries. “We need a model for 10,000 digital disciples in our division. We need a model for Pentecost 2025, that goes viral online and viral for our young professionals who are digital natives,” concluded Wood.
Rick Remmers, assistant to the president, talks about how Pentecost 2025 is first about "praying for the Holy Spirit," then "encouraging all of our churches, schools, and companies to be engaged in service and ministry in their communities," during the North American Division Year-End Meeting on Nov. 4, 2024. Photo by Pieter Damsteegt
Pentecost 2025 Supporting Resources
To date 3,705 churches and schools have signed up for Pentecost 2025. Some of these funds have been invested in the development and production of resources to support their efforts. These include:
Resource Kits for Pentecost 2025: The North American Division has begun distributing comprehensive resource kits to support its ambitious Pentecost 2025 evangelism initiative, with more than 1,100 kits already shipped to participating churches across the division, with about 2,000 more to go out in the next two weeks. “First, Pentecost 2025 is about praying for the Holy Spirit,” said Rick Remmers, NAD assistant to the president, reminding listeners of the scope of the initiative. “[Second] is that we are encouraging all of our churches, schools, and companies to be engaged in service and ministry in their communities. Thirdly, and this is what gets most of the attention, we want to have proclamation events where we share the Good News of the Gospel. And finally, we would disciple people who choose to come and be part of our congregations and integrate them as new members in our churches.”
The resource kits, which will eventually reach more than 3,000 congregations, features a collaborative church planner developed between the NAD and local conferences, designed to guide congregations through the evangelism cycle. It also includes the NAD Ministerial Association book on baptism. A notable innovation in the resource kit is the inclusion of training materials with AI-enhanced language translation on the videos in the personal trainer component. It will be available in several languages, including English, Spanish, and French.
Participating churches and schools can apply to receive up to $3,000 to help in their campaigns. They can access additional resources and information through the dedicated website at Pentecost2025.org, which includes prayer guides, registration materials, webinars, and brand assets for local promotion.
Comprehensive Training Program for Pentecost 2025 Initiative: NAD is also rolling out an extensive training program designed to support its Pentecost 2025 initiative, with resources aimed at engaging the division’s entire leadership network.
“We have 4,300 pastors across the North American Division, 3,700 of those are pastors who pastor locally,” José Cortes Jr. explained, adding that the division also includes “nearly 500 volunteer lay pastors” and what he termed “a sleeping giant”— the great force of about 22,000 elders. “We did not want Pentecost 2025 to be a pastor thing alone,” Cortes emphasized, highlighting the division’s commitment to engaging all levels of church membership in the initiative.
The training initiative emphasizes spiritual preparation alongside practical skills. “We’re not just talking about how to win souls, how to preach a sermon, how to give a Bible study. We begin with prayer and seeking the Holy Spirit, because we know that without the blessing of the Holy Spirit, it does not matter how hard we work, there will be no success,” Cortes stated.
The division has developed a multi-faceted approach to training delivery, including regular webinars and in-person events. “We have webinars that will be aired on Friday nights twice a month,” Cortes noted. Upcoming in-person training events include sessions in Colorado, California, Texas, and at Andrews University in Michigan, with Cortes explaining that these events are designed to ensure “everyone is able to participate.”
The training package is supported by the website, pentecost2025.org, and two newsletters, one specifically aimed at coordinators. “This is a one stop shop,” said NAD communication director Kimberly Luste Maran. “You will find all of these items there on the website.”
Philip Baptiste, secretary/treasurer for ASI, explains what digital evangelism resources are available at no additional cost for anyone who wants to coordinate a Pentecost 2025 proclamation initiative. Photo by Pieter Damsteegt
Digital Evangelism Resources for Pentecost 2025
A cornerstone of the initiative is the newly updated “New Beginnings” evangelistic series, featuring modernized graphics and content. “It’s designed to be evangelism in a box,” Baptiste explained, noting that the materials are available free of charge through the Pentecost 2025 website.
The series of prepared sermons, originally written by Pastor Mark Finley, has been adapted into three distinct versions to reach different audiences:
- A traditional edition featuring commissioned biblical artwork;
- A contemporary “youth edition” suited for urban and inner-city settings; and
- A children’s edition with separate versions for ages 4-7 and 8-12.
“All you have to do is read the script with passion, with power, with enthusiasm … and you’re preaching,” Baptiste said, emphasizing the resource’s accessibility for both pastors and lay members. The materials are fully editable, allowing presenters to customize content for their specific audiences.
The children’s version includes additional features such as “nature nuggets” and “health gems” to maintain young audiences’ attention while teaching core church doctrines. “While adults are learning and preaching the main doctrines of our church, the kids can be learning as well,” said Baptiste.