During the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference Camp Meeting at Highland Academy on Sabbath, June 2, 2018, Nelson Silva, D.Min., was ordained to the Gospel ministry. Steve Haley, D.Min., president of the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference, welcomed Orlando Vazquez, who gave the ordination devotional message. Vazquez, born in Cuba, fled to the United States in the 1980s after being imprisoned for his faith.
Vazquez spoke of meeting Silva soon after his arrival to Indianapolis, Ind., saying that he could tell from the very beginning that Silva had both talent and commitment to serve the youth. He further noted that Silva and his wife, April, have always demonstrated a partnership in serving God and His Church. In concluding his remarks, Vazquez charged the Silvas to continue to pray daily, inviting Jesus to be the center of their home as He has been throughout their 15-year marriage.
Silva felt called to pastoral ministry early in his life, when chosen by his graduating class to be the senior class pastor at Ricardo Greenidge Adventist Academy in Caracas, Venezuela. In 1999, after coming to the United States, he decided to focus on youth ministry at Andrews University.
After graduating from Andrews in 2003, he became a bilingual home and school advisor for the public school system in Indianapolis, and also served as a volunteer youth pastor, eventually becoming a salaried pastor in the Hispanic Brownsburg and Chapel West churches.
After completing a master of divinity equivalency at Andrews, Silva enrolled in Fuller Theological Seminary, earning his doctor of ministry in youth leadership in 2013.
In July of 2016, Haley shared with Silva his unique vision for public campus, education, and Hispanic ministries in the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference. On August 1 of that same year, Silva joined the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference as associate youth director.
Kentucky-Tennessee | August 2018
Comments are closed.