Streamlined Sonfest event will focus on connections
Layton, UT – In a world of instant communication, you might think it is easy for teens to connect with one another. And to a certain extent, you would be right. Between Instagram, Facebook, texting, iMessage, Facetime, Snapchat, WhatsApp, and any number of the hundreds of apps that are designed to keep us connected, we wonder how we ever connected to the outside world and those closest to us without them. Phones give us instant communication at our fingertips.
But, as with anything, teens have statistically taken their phone use to the point of addiction. And in some extreme cases would rather go a day without food rather than a day without their phone. Connection should not be a problem, but it is. Teens are lonely. A recent global youth culture survey found the number one problem facing teens today is loneliness. In the three months prior to the the study, they asked teens if they experienced feelings of loneliness. An overwhelming 75% said yes.
So why is it that, in a world where we are constantly connected, do we feel so disconnected? Teens today are craving connection. We need to help them make those connections in the right places and with the right methods. God designed us for relationship. It was the reason he created us in the beginning. He desired a relationship with us, so we were created. And when we messed that up, he provided a way to redeem the relationship through the sacrifice of His son. He went to extreme measures to have a relationship with us. Shouldn’t we do all we can to help teens have a relationship with Him?
On August 2-3, students in Utah and Idaho are invited to participate in Sonfest 2024 with the theme “Crave Connection”. Evangelist Jay Barbier will help students see and discover that God has a purpose for each one of them in the way they relate to each other and to Himself. Romans 12:5 says “In the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another.” God made us to be in relationship with one another, and this is more than just a digital connection. He wants us to do life together in community and it is in community we will find healthy relationships that will help us disciple one another.
We are adding a Saturday afternoon session IN LAGOON PARK encouraging students to invite people they meet at Lagoon to join them for a special brief evangelistic message at 4 PM in one of the park pavilions. There will be a clear gospel presentation and opportunities for students to pray for the salvation of their friends in Lagoon Amusement park.
For more information or to sign your youth group up to join us for Sonfest 2024, go to www.uisbc.org/youth
Layton, UT – In an era when everything targeting teens focuses on making themselves look good, it is nice to see the next generation giving glory to God and seeking after the interests of others. The theme for Sonfest 2023 was “Selfless in a Selfie World” and was based on Philippians 2:3 where Paul encourages believers to “do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves”
Mountain View Baptist Church was host for this event, August 3-5, 2023. The hope was that by returning to a local church, we could lower costs and have the ability to host smaller breakout opportunities over the weekend that we were not able to do in previous venues. Guest speaker Algernon Tennyson shared a series of messages from Philippians 2 and 3 over the three main sessions while Sons of Asaph worship team facilitated relevant worship experiences that gave students an opportunity to sing praises together with peers form seven different churches across the two state convention. While the numbers were down, that did not dissuade the students present to connect with one another and respond to the challenges by Big Al.
Lunch was provided to students after the morning of breakout sessions, followed by group games and recreation in the field around the host church, followed by church group time. Friday concluded with dinner, then the second main session of worship and preaching. The event concluded with a final Saturday morning worship session followed by many of the youth going to Lagoon Amusement park in Farmington, UT. 
Sonfest 2024 will plan to be more of a hybrid of the new format, but will have those breakouts on Saturday morning before session two which will motivate students going to Lagoon to use the lessons learned the previous two sessions to seek out gospel conversations in the park. The hope is that by moving it back to a Friday to Sunday will allow more churches to participate by removing the burden of adult sponsors from having to take an extra day off of work like they did this year.