(NORTH AMERICA) 2026 North American Young Adult Conference: "Who Is Jesus?"
- by ubf media
- Jun 11, 2026
- 33 reads
By Susan Yun
Our first North American Young Adult Conference (NAYAC) took place on May 29 - June 1, 2026 at The Ohio State University. We thank God for our 372 attendees that came from 65 different chapters in the US, Canada and Central America. As a conference for young adults by young adults, the purpose of NAYAC was to encourage spiritual growth amongst North American young adults and to create stronger community ties. The theme of the conference was “Who is Jesus?” - encouraging young adults to reflect on how they viewed Jesus personally, study the scripture, and understand what it means for Jesus to be their personal Lord and Saviour.
Friday evening started with a message by Joseph L (New Jersey) on Matthew 16:13-17 titled “Who do you say I am?” Jesus’ question, “Who do you say I am? Joseph preached on the most important question every person must answer and must confess that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Joseph shared how he moved from merely knowing about Jesus through church life to personally experiencing His forgiveness, love, and freedom, leading him to surrender his life to Christ. The message was followed by a life testimony by Emmanuel O (Ottawa) who shared about Jesus who transformed his heart with saving grace and called him to a purposeful life of doing good works as a Bible teacher.
On Saturday morning, Ernest C (Montreal) shared a message on Luke 19:1-10 titled “He is here to seek and save the lost.” Through Zaccheaus’ story, Ernest preached that Jesus intentionally seeks those who are lost, broken, and searching, offering them His personal love and salvation before they even realize their need. Encountering Jesus’ grace leads to genuine repentance and a transformed identity, as seen in both Zacchaeus’ life and Ernest’s testimony of finding purpose, healing, and direction in Christ. The message was followed by a life testimony by Joey F (Downey - LA) who shared Jesus who continuously sought after him even after many years of wondering and now lives for Christ.
On Saturday evening, attendees had the choice to attend one of three seminar topics: 1) Marriage, 2) Serving, 3) Prayer. The marriage seminar was led by two couples, Aug & Sarah P (Washington) and Daniel and Liza K (Vancouver 3). Both couples shared their personal testimonies and discussed what the bible says about marriage, what one can do to prepare while being single, and what one should look for in a spouse. The serving seminar was led by Fredrick N (Washington), Andrew F (New York), and Sam & Emerald M (St. George). They talked about what it means to live for Jesus and serve those around us and how God uniquely calls each and every person to be a part of His work. The prayer seminar was led by Abraham and Liz L (Boston). They used the story of Mary at the wedding in Cana to uncover principles that turn simple prayers into moments of surrender, trust, and worship.
On Sunday morning, Sarah W (Chicago) shared a message on Acts 2:22-41 titled “He is my risen lord.” Peter’s Pentecost sermon declares that Jesus, who was crucified for our sins, was raised from the dead and is now both Lord and Messiah, reigning with authority over all things. Because the risen Christ offers forgiveness and the gift of the Holy Spirit, believers are called not only to trust Him as Savior but also to surrender control of their lives and follow Him as Lord. The message was followed by a life testimony by Hannah A (Chicago) who shared Jesus who healed her deep relational wounds and transformed her into a new creation who lives victoriously by the power of the Holy Spirit.
On Sunday evening, Steve S (Toledo) shared a message on Philippians 3:7-11 titled “He is Worthy” which highlighted the incomparable value of knowing Christ by examining Apostle Paul’s radical transformation from a persecutor to a devoted follower. He also shared his own personal testimony of leaving an engineering career for full-time ministry to illustrate that surrendering worldly ambitions to follow Jesus is a lifelong and rewarding journey. The message was followed by an altar call with 2 waves. The first was for those who were declaring or redeclaring their faith to God and accepting Jesus as their savior. The second was for those who know Christ, but did not have clear direction or are ready to receive direction. Many young adults came up to the front to get prayed over. It was a very beautiful moment of seeing the work of the Holy Spirit.
On Monday Morning, Joshua J (Austin) shared a message on John 15:5-17 titled “He is Choosing Us to Bear Fruit That Lasts.” It encouraged young adult believers to remain deeply connected to His love through obedience and active participation in the Christian community. He emphasized that abiding in Christ empowers believers to bear lasting spiritual fruit across all areas of everyday life, including both the workplace and the home.
Outside of the main sessions, there were 2 ice breaker sessions, 2 group bible studies, 3 post-message reflection discussions within small groups, volleyball tournament & other sports fellowship, arts & crafts, professional headshots, board games, ice cream social, and ramen fellowship.
The planning for this conference started in August 2024. While we gathered often to pray for the conference, we left OSU blown away by what God had done - for He had exceeded all of our expectations. As the conference has come to a close, we continually pray for our young adults to grow and bring what they learned from the conference back home with them.
