The Pilgrimage DTS | The Forum
Axiom contains an operating location of Youth With A Mission.
We are foremost a group of committed friends within a global community that includes YWAM and various other ministries in which we enjoy fruitful partnerships. Youth With a Mission will have continued involvement in various aspects of our ministry, such as training schools and global initiatives for children-at-risk.
The Pilgrimage DTS
Dates:
2012 Fall School – Lecture Phase: Sept. 21st – Dec. 20th. Outreach Phase: Jan. 3rd – Feb 21st.
Cost: Lecture Phase Cost: $3,950.00 – Outreach Phase Cost: TBA (For information on prices for couples or single parents please contact us)
Seeking the face of Jesus through contemplation, community and compassionate action.
“Contemplation is the pure loving gaze that finds God everywhere.” Brother Lawrence
Contemplation: ” . . . an intimate, experiential knowledge of something which involves your whole person. A certain intimacy that involves a radical face-to-face encounter.”
“Blessed are those whose strength is in you; who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.” Ps. 84:5
If you read Ps. 84 and your heart is touched through the words, then please consider joining us for the first Pilgrimage DTS in the history of Youth With A Mission. This pilgrimage is a five month journey of discovering a life-altering intimacy with Jesus by exploring what seemed to be most important to Him; His profound relationship with His Father (His prayer life) , His Bride (community), and the orphaned, poor and broken of the world. This pilgrimage will start where the great spiritual awakening began, here in the Yale University town of New Haven, CT., and may potentially lead us to spiritually significant parts of Europe and/or to our dear orphan children in India.
Encountering Christ
“How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord God Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh cry out for the living God.” Ps. 84: 1,2
The first three months of this pilgrimage will concentrate fully on developing a dynamic, contagious love relationship with the Person of Jesus, through in-depth teachings on various topics, such as “The Father Heart of God,” “Passion for Jesus,” ”Christ in Community,” and “Mercy and Justice,” as well as awesome times of prayer, small groups, and fun times together.
Engaging Culture
During the first three months, we will enjoy times of worship and intercession, as well as working together in a soup kitchen and other places of need in the city of New Haven.
Emancipating the Oppressed
“Pure and undefiled religion is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27
The last two months of our journey will be spent taking the two-handed gospel, which is meeting both the spiritual and physical needs of people, to India. In India we will be caring for our orphaned children in Pune to continue to see their lives transformed.
DTS Contact person; Olivia Apple
Email: oapple@christouraxiom.com
The Forum: A Biblical Worldview School
Dates: Possible future dates will be announced.
Costs: $3,950.00 (For information on prices for couples or single parents please contact us)
“When we are talking about the Gospel we are talking about a factual statement. Namely, that at a certain point in history, the history of this world, God who is the Author, the Sustainer, the goal of all that exists, of all being, and all meaning, and all truth, has become present in our human history as the man Jesus, whom we can know, and whom we can love, and whom we can serve; and that by His incarnation, His ministry, His death and resurrection, He has finally broken the powers that oppress us and has created a space and time in which we who are unholy can nevertheless live in fellowship with God who is holy.”
- Lesslie Newbigin
In the Forum, our goal is to become apprentices of Jesus in how we live our hours and our days. We long to see His kingdom come and His will be done here in New Haven and throughout the world. To achieve this we have three areas of emphasis: Spiritual Formation, Christian Foundations, and Community Interaction.
Spiritual Formation:
The essence of Spiritual Formation is the desire to be transformed to the image and likeness of Christ. We believe that a person conforms to the image of Christ as they spend time in His presence. This portion of the course contains times of reading and meditating Scripture, keeping a journal of your times with the Lord, and times of group discussion, processing, and prayer.
Christian Foundations:
In the cultural and intellectual climate of today’s world, Christians are constantly challenged to defend their beliefs. Our emphasis during this portion of the course is to study core ideas such as The Nature and Character of God, The Life of Jesus, The Purpose of the Church in the World, God’s Strategy in Human History, The Fabric of Theology, and the Engagement of Christ with Culture. Through lectures, assigned readings, and group interaction we will wrestle through Scripture to locate our beliefs in a solid Biblical framework.
Community Interaction:
A faith that is spoken but not lived is inadequate to the demands of our day. Our beliefs, passions, and convictions must move beyond our personal lives to the culture and society in which we live. Here in New Haven, we are involved in a number of ministries and organizations which with students and interns will participate. The Kingdom of God is formed as His people engage with the work of Christ in the world.
Axiom Global Monastic Community
The Forum program is run in conjunction with the ministries of the Axiom Global Monastic Community, which is dedicated to an active expression of Christ within the community. Our students are not only engaged in the classroom, but also in the practical application of ministering within a larger context both locally and globally.
Forum Contact person; Jeremy Harke
Email: jharke@christouraxiom.com
Forum Application
About YWAM
Youth With A Mission is an international movement of Christians from many denominations dedicated to serving Jesus throughout the world. Also known as YWAM (pronounced “WYE-wam”), our calling is to know God and to make Him known. Back when we began in 1960, our main focus was to get youth into short-term mission work and to give them opportunities to reach out in Jesus’ name. Today we still focus on youth, but we also involve people of almost every age – even many people who choose to spend their “retirement” in active service. Our many ministries fit into three main categories: evangelism, training and mercy ministry. We are currently operating in more than 1000 locations in over 149 countries, with a staff of nearly 16,000.
“YWAM stands for Youth With A Mission. When I’m in conversation with people who are unfamiliar with YWAM, I like to actually use the whole name, ‘Youth With A Mission,’ because I love to see their reaction to those words used together. I think most people find those words just a little dangerous or perhaps exciting. Maybe they think it’s not such a good thing for youth to have ‘A Mission.’ And maybe it would be better if it were ‘People’ with a mission as ‘Youth’ are impulsive and hard to control. If they get a ‘Mission,’ why, they might just change everything! Exactly.”
- Tre Sheppard, YWAM staff in Harpenden, England
Statement of Faith
Youth With A Mission (YWAM) is an international movement of Christians from many denominations dedicated to presenting Jesus personally to this generation, to mobilizing as many as possible to help in this task, and to the training and equipping of believers for their part in fulfilling the Great Commission. As citizens of God’s kingdom, we are called to love, worship, and obey our Lord, to love and serve His Body, the Church, and to present the whole gospel for the whole person throughout the whole world.
We of Youth With A Mission believe that the Bible is God’s inspired and authoritative word, revealing that Jesus Christ is God’s son; that people are created in God’s image; that He created us to have eternal life through Jesus Christ; that although all people have sinned and come short of God’s glory, God has made salvation possible through the death on the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ; that repentance, faith, love and obedience are fitting responses to God’s initiative of grace towards us; that God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth; and that the Holy Spirit’s power is demonstrated in and through us for the accomplishment of Christ’s last commandment, “…Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”
Youth With A Mission’s Foundational Values
Youth With A Mission (YWAM) affirms the Bible as the authoritative word of God and, with the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, the absolute reference point for every aspect of life and ministry. Based upon God’s word, who He is, and His initiative of salvation, the following responses are strongly emphasized in YWAM:
Worship: We are called to praise and worship God alone
Holiness: We are called to lead holy and righteous lives that exemplify the nature and character of God
Witness: We are called to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with those who do not know Him
Prayer: We are called to engage in intercessory prayer for the people and causes on God’s heart, including standing against evil in every form
Fellowship: We are called to commit to the Church in both its local nurturing expression and its mobile multiplying expression
The Foundational Values of Youth With A Mission are the expression of our basic beliefs coupled with specific directives given by God since YWAM’s beginning in 1960. They are recorded here in order to pass on to successive generations that which God has emphasized to us. These shared beliefs and values are the guiding principles for both the past and future growth of our mission. Some are common to all Christians everywhere; others are distinctive to Youth With A Mission. The combination of these beliefs and values make up the unique family characteristics of YWAM–our “DNA.” They are values we hold in high regard which determine who we are, how we live and how we make decisions.
1. KNOW GOD
YWAM is committed to know God, His nature, His character and His ways. We seek to reflect who He is in every aspect of our lives and ministry. The automatic overflow of knowing and enjoying fellowship with God is a desire to share Him with others.
2. MAKE GOD KNOWN
YWAM is called to make God known throughout the whole world, and into every arena of society through evangelism, training and mercy ministries. We believe that salvation of souls should result in transformation of societies, thus obeying Jesus’ command to make disciples of all nations.
3. HEAR GOD’S VOICE
YWAM is committed to creating with God through listening to Him, praying His prayers and obeying His commands in matters great and small. We are dependent upon hearing His voice as individuals, together in team contexts and in larger corporate gatherings. This is an integral part of our process for decision making.
4. PRACTICE WORSHIP AND INTERCESSORY PRAYER
YWAM is dedicated to worship Jesus and engage in intercessory prayer as integral aspects of daily life. We also recognize the intent of Satan to destroy the work of God and we call upon God’s power and the Holy Spirit to overcome his strategies in the lives of individuals and in the affairs of nations.
5. BE VISIONARY
YWAM is called to be visionary, continually receiving, nurturing and releasing fresh vision from God. We support the pioneering of new ministries and methods, always willing to be radical in order to be relevant to every generation, people group, and sphere of society. We believe that the apostolic call of YWAM requires the integration of spiritual eldership, freedom in the Spirit and relationship, centered on the Word of God.
6. CHAMPION YOUNG PEOPLE
YWAM is called to champion youth. We believe God has gifted and called young people to spearhead vision and ministry. We are committed to value them, trust them, train them, support them, make space for them and release them. They are not only the Church of the future; they are the Church of today. We commit to follow where they lead, in the will of God.
7. BE BROAD-STRUCTURED AND DECENTRALIZED
YWAM is broad-structured and diverse, yet integrated. We are a global family of ministries held together by shared purpose, vision, values and relationship. We believe that structures should serve the people and the purposes of God. Every ministry at every level has the privilege and responsibility of accountability to a circle of elders, with overall international accountability to the YWAM Global Leadership Team.
8. BE INTERNATIONAL AND INTERDENOMINATIONAL
YWAM is international and interdenominational in its global scope as well as its local constituency. We believe that ethnic, linguistic and denominational diversity, along with redeemed aspects of culture, are positive factors that contribute to the health and growth of the mission.
9. HAVE A BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW
YWAM is called to a Biblical worldview. We believe that the Bible makes a clear division between good and evil; right and wrong. The practical dimensions of life are no less spiritual than the ministry expressions. Everything done in obedience to God is spiritual. We seek to honor God with all that we do, equipping and mobilizing men and women of God to take roles of service and influence in every arena of society.
10. FUNCTION IN TEAMS
YWAM is called to function in teams in all aspects of ministry and leadership. We believe that a combination of complementary gifts, callings, perspectives, ministries and generations working together in unity at all levels of our mission provides wisdom and safety . Seeking God’s will and making decisions in a team context allows accountability and contributes to greater relationship, motivation, responsibility and ownership of the vision.
11. EXHIBIT SERVANT LEADERSHIP
YWAM is called to servant leadership as a lifestyle, rather than a leadership hierarchy. A servant leader is one who honors the gifts and callings of those under his/her care and guards their rights and privileges. Just as Jesus served His disciples, we stress the importance of those with leadership responsibilities serving those whom they lead.
12. DO FIRST, THEN TEACH
YWAM is committed to doing first, then teaching. We believe that firsthand experience gives authority to our words. Godly character and a call from God are more important than an individual’s gifts, abilities and expertise.
13. BE RELATIONSHIP-ORIENTED
YWAM is dedicated to being relationship-oriented in our living and working together. We desire to be united through lives of holiness, mutual support, transparency, humility, and open communication, rather than a dependence on structures or rules.
14. VALUE THE INDIVIDUAL
YWAM is called to value each individual. We believe in equal opportunity and justice for all. Created in the image of God, people of all nationalities, ages and functions have distinctive contributions and callings. We are committed to honoring God-given leadership and ministry gifts in both men and women.
15. VALUE FAMILIES
YWAM affirms the importance of families serving God together in missions, not just the father and/or mother. We encourage the development of strong and healthy family units, with each member sharing the call to missions and contributing their gifts in unique and complementary ways.
16. RELY ON RELATIONSHIP-BASED SUPPORT
YWAM is called to a relationship-based support system, depending upon God and His people for financial provision, both corporately and individually. We believe that relationship-based support promotes responsibility, accountability, communication, and mutual prayer. It involves the donor as a partner in ministry. As God and others have been generous toward us, so we desire to be generous. YWAMers give themselves, their time and talents to God through the mission with no expectation of remuneration.
17. PRACTICE HOSPITALITY
YWAM affirms the ministry of hospitality as an expression of God’s character and the value of people. We believe it is important to open our hearts, homes and campuses to serve and honor one another, our guests and the poor and needy, not as acts of social protocol, but as expressions of generosity.
(YWAM Foundational Values approved by the Global Leadership Team August 2003; released Feb. 2004.)