“What are you doing here, Elijah?”

G. Alexander Bryant, North American Division (NAD) president, opened the first general session of the 2026 Adventist Ministries Convention with a familiar story. In 1 Kings 19, God calls out to Elijah, who is hiding in a cave after his victory over 450 prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel prompts a death threat from Queen Jezebel.

Bryant then spoke directly to the ministry leaders who had braved a major snowstorm to attend the NAD’s division-wide professional development gathering, held in Louisville, Kentucky, from Jan. 25 to 27. Acknowledging participants’ own “cave moments,” he continued, “God is asking us tonight, what are you doing here?”

His message introduced the convention’s theme, “Replenished: Deeply Rooted,” inviting leaders to step away from daily demands and be replenished in Jesus. Through general sessions, ministry exhibits, and seminars, they were reminded of the restoration found in Christ.

Bryant emphasized that “a high point in ministry is almost always accompanied by a special attack from the enemy.” However, he said, “God specializes in restoring depleted leaders,” concluding, “God says, ‘You don’t have to come out of the cave to be restored. I’ll come to you. I’ll restore you. I’ll replenish you. I’ll build you back up where you are.’”

The three-day gathering began with an evening reception and general session and was preceded by the NAD Children’s Ministries Retreat (Jan. 20-24), Adventist Radio Convention, and Young Adult LIFE Experience (both Jan. 23-25). General sessions featured keynote presentations; two song service sets by a praise team from the Crosswalk Seventh-day Adventist Church in Redlands, California; leadership segments with Seth Yelorda, a pastor and leadership coach; and the presentation of lifetime achievement and excellence in ministry awards.

Individuals recognized for their ministry achievements included Donald Clarke Thoms and Morgan Vice, lay members active in Disabilities Ministries; Sonia Canó, Children’s Ministries and Sabbath School director for the Southwestern Union Conference; Charlotte Henderson, a philanthropy professional honored by the NAD’s Philanthropic Service for Institutions; Rosa Taylor-Banks, retired associate secretary of both the NAD and General Conference and the NAD’s first chairperson of Disabilities Ministries; Edwin and Mary Mendoza, former Family Ministries directors for the Pacific Union Conference; Lynn Ortel, Women’s Ministries director, Arizona Conference; and Sue Carlson, ministerial spouse sponsor and director for Women’s, Children’s, and Family Ministries for the Kansas-Nebraska Conference. Luis Biazotto, Adventist Community Services (ACS) director for the Georgia-Cumberland Conference, will be honored at the upcoming “Wellspring” ACS Convention.

The leadership reflections presented each general session by Yelorda were another highlight.

On opening night, he defined leadership as “deploying the highest version of yourself into circumstances to create outcomes that matter.” He further reminded attendees that their relationship with Christ “was the essence and heart of leading.”

Across five segments, Yelorda challenged leaders to 1) be with Christ, 2) respond to challenges out of faith, hope, and love rather than fear or guilt, 3) lead with clarity nurtured through solitude and prayer, 4) expand the limits of what feels possible, and 5) view themselves as co-creators with God.

He concluded with an affirmation for attendees: “I am a co-creator rooted in Christ. I am being formed into the image of Christ. I will deploy the highest version of myself with clarity, courage, and humility, creating outcomes that matter for people, for the kingdom, and for God’s glory.”

Keynote speakers included Bryant; Gail McKenzie, Women’s Ministries director, Kentucky-Tennessee Conference; Sam Leonor, chief mission officer, Adventist Health; Craig Carr, ministerial and evangelism director, Mid-America Union Conference; Meshach Soli, executive secretary and ministerial director, Hawaii Conference; Debleaire Snell, senior pastor, Oakwood University Church, and speaker/director, Breath of Life Ministries; and Yami Bazan, president, Union Adventist University.

A recurring theme was God’s healing presence in trials. McKenzie named criticism, betrayal, and loneliness among the storms leaders face. “Many of us are broken, wounded, depleted, even afraid for the future,” she said. She offered hope through Mary Magdalene, an outcast who crashed a party to worship Jesus and received “sozo” — a Greek word signifying salvation, wholeness, and renewal.

Leonor tackled this theme from the example of Moses. “When God calls Moses to lead His people, He doesn’t say, ‘It’s going to be awesome, Moses. You’re going to be loved, admired, respected.’ Instead, God says, ‘I will be with you.’” Both McKenzie and Leonor encouraged leaders to allow God to restore them so they can minister to others, even in spaces where they feel inadequate.

Other speakers highlighted habits that help leaders endure. Soli shared lessons on rest and surrender drawn from painful experiences, including his oldest son Marley’s mental health struggles. An engineering major suffering from burnout, Marley reached a breaking point and contemplated taking his own life. An emergency call to his mother prevented tragedy. He began pursuing healing through taking a year off of school, going to therapy, reconnecting with his church community, and serving as an academy basketball coach and camp counselor.

Soli then shared a smiling graduation photo of Marley. “The following spring he went back, and he didn’t finish strong. He finished well. He redefined what strength is,” Soli said.

He urged leaders to let go of the pressure to prove themselves and rest in the knowledge that the God who initiated the race will complete it. “You are running a fixed race. The race was already won,” he assured them.

As the convention’s final speaker, Bazan brought the messages full circle with another question: What makes us tired in ministry?

Bazan referenced Acts 8, which tells the story of two very different characters — Philip and Simon. Philip was experiencing such success preaching the gospel in Samaria that Peter and John came to pray for the new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. Yet when the Holy Spirit led him away to a deserted road, he followed without hesitation.

She noted that for Philip, presence with God was more valuable than momentum. A “quiet miracle,” she added, was that Philip’s obedience sustained him and enabled God’s power to flow through him.

Simon, a former sorcerer turned believer, had a different approach. Impressed by the apostles’ ability to impart the Holy Spirit on believers, he offered them money to obtain the same power. Peter rebuked him, saying, “Your heart is not in the right place.”

Bazan suggested that Simon’s problem was not ambition but misplaced trust. Burnout, she added, does not come from “too much ministry” but from “borrowed power.” We often replace faithfulness and trust in God with hurry, visibility, and control. “Borrowed power,” she said, “will always take life from us. The Holy Spirit always gives life.”

She challenged leaders to examine the root of their weariness and return to the Source of their strength. “Perhaps our exhaustion isn’t because we’re doing too much for God, but because we’ve had too little time with God.”

Bazan concluded, “If you’re feeling tired and exhausted, back up and enter into His love and His stillness. Let Him recenter you [so] He may send you forward.”