If We Are Made for More, We’d Better Know Very Well What That More Is

Made for More.

It took just a few seconds for main speaker Ivana Mendez to erase all traces of novelty from the theme selected for the 2026 European Adventist Youth Congress in Valencia, Spain, August 5.

Made for More? Hardly an original phrase, she said, as a fast search on the internet leads us to companies and ads that zero in on precisely that idea. You, whoever and wherever you are, were made for something more, something you’re lacking now (but that you could presumably acquire if you do this or that or purchase this or that product).

Volunteer Maryaan Boko, who lives in England, takes a selfie with Busi Khumalo, Youth Ministries director of the General Conference, at the registration booth on August 4. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

“You didn’t need to come to Valencia to listen to the message that you were made for more,” Mendez said. The question, however, is “What is that ‘more’?” she asked. That’s the key of the matter.

In the following half hour and based on the biblical story of God’s call to Abraham, Mendez sought out to explain what that “more” is and why it is important for everyone—especially young people—never to settle for less.

Participants walk to the Valencia Fair venue on the opening night of the 2026 European Adventist Youth Congress in Valencia, Spain, August 4. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Belonging to God, No Matter What

The 2026 European Adventist Youth Congress gathered almost 3,500 participants from about 50 countries for five days of spiritual reflections, active discussions, and social, art, and sports activities in and around Valencia. Participants sang, prayed, and studied the Bible together, as they got to know other young people with similar interests, dreams, and goals.

The opening night program on August 4 welcomed participants to Valencia and Spain with a cultural program, congregational singing, and moments of reflection and prayer. Evening main speaker Damian Chandler, a pastor and marriage and family therapist serving in the United States, led participants to accept that God is inviting them to the table because every one of His children “is still His” regardless of life circumstances.

Almost 3,500 participants from close to 50 countries are represented at the 2026 European Adventist Youth Congress in Valencia, Spain, organizers said. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Based on Jesus’ parable of the lost sheep and Chandler’s experience as a husband and father of three, he emphasized that God does not forget His sheep, because “we are His no matter what.” He explained, “A shepherd didn’t just visit His sheep—He lived with them. . . . It was a relationship. . . . He was willing to risk His life for His sheep.” And a good shepherd knew when one of His sheep was missing.

In the same way, “God knows us individually,” Chandler said. “And He knows when one of His sheep is missing.” So, he added, “I pray, in the power of the Holy Spirit, that when He calls your name, you will come running.”

An international worship team led the congregational singing moments during the major gathering of Seventh-day Adventist youth in Europe. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Personal and Collective Growth

During the event, participants were able to choose from dozens of workshops on topics related to theology, faith and science, relationships, and witnessing. They could also attend other workshops connected with creativity as a way to express faith, using technology for growth and mission, and discipleship.

Participants sing on the opening night of the 2026 Adventist Youth Congress on August 4. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

For the 2026 gathering, organizers also added a masterclass category, in which, according to them, “some of Europe’s best theology teachers” taught “their very best class.” These classes were “an opportunity to explore Scripture in greater depth,” organizers said, “and discover what studying theology is really like.”

Together, the plenary sessions, workshops, and activities underscored the message that each person was made for more, especially in light of God’s plan for our individual lives, and is called to faithfully follow His will.

Damian Chandler was one of the two main speakers during the international event in Valencia, Spain. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Made for More, According to God

On August 5 Mendez reminded thousands of participants that as God showed Abraham after calling the patriarch, He is a faithful God who fulfills what He promises. “What God offered to Abraham and is offering to us is unique—a covenantal relationship with Him, of which He alone is the guarantor. . . . No other god that is out there is offering anything like this.”

A group of friends from Serbia pose for a photo on the opening night of the 2026 Adventist Youth Congress in Valencia, Spain. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Mendez explained that “God is offering Abraham a long-term plan instead of immediate satisfaction.” But “you will never understand it unless you go through the whole Bible.”

It is something that implies understanding God’s plan of redemption, which includes the Creation story, the Fall, and the solution to the broken relationship. “God sent His Son so He could achieve the most significant victory,” she reminded young people. It also includes God’s church, “a group of followers who are to proclaim that the blessings are for all nations.” Then there’s judgment, during which God will proclaim what is right and what is wrong. Finally, the new creation, because “as it was good at the beginning, so it shall be at the very end,” Mendez said. “This is what you must know from your Bible. . . . This is our story.”

Participant Kreeta Helminen reads from the Bible in Finnish before the morning devotional on August 5. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

In that sense, Mendez called every participant to remember that given “the abundance of offerings of more, please choose wisely. Choose well.” This is the “more” that God is offering each one of us, she said. “Never settle for anything less than this.”

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Adventist scholar and professor Ivana Mendez led the morning devotionals at the 2026 European Adventist Youth Congress in Valencia, Spain. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Small group leader Veronika Ickova shows a sign to find her group members before leading them to moments of reflection and discussion. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

One of more than 300 small groups participates in a discussion on God’s call to Abraham as depicted in Genesis and Hebrews. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Adventist scientist and professor Noemi Duran leads a workshop entitled “How to Survive as a Christian Science Student in the Twenty-first Century.” [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Participants walk between halls at the Valencia Fair venue on August 5. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Adventist therapist and professor Mary Jo Vollmer discusses “Sex and Relationships Off the Rails” during the afternoon workshop session on August 5. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]