On the cold long weekend of November 10-13, many hearts were warmed. The youth and the youth leadership of the international church of Brussels are very thankful to God for the Youth Congress 2016 ‘Be Courageous’, that took place in Mechelen with the support of the Conference. The third edition of the youth congress was a tremendous blessing for both the organizers and the attendees, who had prepared this congress with prayers and fasting.
A total of 260 registered participants coming from 9 different countries were encouraged by the messages from the main speaker Janet Page and five workshop speakers, Philippe Leduc, Leandro Fonseca, Stefan Hartmann, Ricardo Pereira and Johan Vanbrabant.
Inspired by the theme taken from Deuteronomy 31:6, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” (NIV), the six speakers spoke on different topics relevant to our lives. They encouraged us to claim God’s promises, to live a prayerful life, to ask God to give us a passion to study His word daily, to live the life God asks us to, and finally to dare to understand and discover the eternal power of God.
Despite the cold weather, many youth groups from Belgium went out in the city centre of Mechelen for different outreach activities: singing in the choir, sharing hot drinks and books, presenting workshops on health adn physical exercise, exchanging cigarettes for apples, praying with people, hugging those in need of encouragement and inviting everyone for the creation movie. As a result of all this, we were all touched, leading to an emotional and encouraging commitment service on Sunday where many young people made important decisions to recommit their lives to Jesus, getting involved in God’s work, and daring to stand for Him.
We surely believe you have been encouraged as we have, if you were part of this congress ‘Be Courageous’. We hope to see you and many other youth next year in Destelheide, Dworp on November 24-26 2017!
