Ancient Paths DTS

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Ancient Paths DTS (Fall)

The Call

“This is what the Lord says: 
“Stand at the crossroads and look;
Ask for the ancient paths, 
Ask where the good way is, and walk in it, 
And you will find rest for your souls.”

“Spiritual formation cannot, in the nature of the case, be a ‘private’ thing, because it is a matter of whole life transformation. You need to seek out others in your community who are pursuing the renovation of the heart.” -Dallas Willard

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What to expect

A YWAM DTS is for people of all ages (17+) who are serious about taking their relationship with God to the next level. It is a five month program blending classroom learning, small group activities, personal reflection, practical service, and community living, with the goal of learning to give your all for Jesus as you discover your part in God’s mission for the world. Come join us as we pursue God and His purposes together!

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When

2026:
September 20 – March 13, 2027

Electives: Children @ Risk, Teachers for Transformation, Apologetics, Freedom’s Cry

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How much

Lecture Tuition – $3995 plus applicable conference fees. Tuition covers the cost of meals, lodging, guest speakers, and books. Conference fees charged separately and range from $250-$400 depending on conference location.
Outreach – Outreach fees vary from $3000 – $4500, depending on the location and cost of airfare.

About this DTS

Since the beginning, God has called His people to look different – to be set apart. When He called Abraham, He invited him to a life of adventure, of holiness, of close relationship with the Living God, that was distinct from any culture around him.  The nation of Israel was invited to walk the same paths. Jesus invited his followers, likewise, into this ancient yet brand new way of living, a way of communion with the Living God. 

This call to live differently has been bravely carried by the church since Christ! The early church was known for being different as they took care of the poor and needy and trusted in God under much cultural pressure. Ignatius of Loyola and the Jesuits lived lives of service to the people around them and to each other, while also carrying the Gospel all around the world. The Franciscans were radically dependent on God, while travelling the countryside making sure that the “all and every” had the opportunity to know of their invitation of life with Christ. St. Patrick and the Celtic Christians lived lives of prayer and radical mission, and shared the gospel throughout Europe. Throughout history, those who have followed the Living God have learned to walk His ancient paths, and discovered there the great joy of God’s love and the invitation to share that great love with a world in need. 

Today, we find ourselves in a new context with new challenges. The Western world is post-Christian, and more diverse than ever, while at the same time, there are still parts of the world who have never had a chance to hear the word of God in their own language. Yet still the words of the prophet Isaiah resound with the invitation to come and discover the Ancient Paths of the living God: a way of life that has power for our modern-day terrain. 

In this Ancient Paths DTS, you will learn from our brothers and sisters who have gone before us, who lived radical lives following God into places of darkness and brokenness, and yet able to bring his light. You will explore and experience the practices that have shaped these radical disciples, that helped them to know God more deeply. And from this set apart time of knowing God more intimately, you’ll have the opportunity to take that learned wisdom and share it with those around you, both here in Madison and in the nations! Will you seek His ancient paths and walk in them? Will you be brave enough to share that path with others?

Come explore the wonderful power of God’s ancient paths for this generation. 

The Ancient Paths theme is a feature of this Fall Discipleship Training School. DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the world.

Electives included

Each DTS follows the same core curriculum. However, you can choose an Elective that will provide supplementary teaching and training on a topic that you are uniquely passionate about. Not every Elective is available with every DTS, so whether you attend the Fall or Winter DTS could impact which Electives you have available to choose from.

Children At Risk

Throughout the world millions of children are orphaned through war, through AIDS, through extreme poverty. Every seven seconds a child dies from a preventable disease. Drug addiction runs rampant. Children are sold into prostitution or forced to become child soldiers.

They’re lost and they have no place to live. These children have no hope. And these are the ones that are on the heart of God.

More information on this elective

The Children at Risk Elective will focus on the needs of children around the world and the issues that put them at risk — sex trafficking, poverty, AIDS, abuse, child soldiers, and broken families. We will also focus on the heart of God who promises to be a “Father to the fatherless, who sets the lonely in families.” (Psalm 68:5,6)

For three months, we will examine strategies to help these kids and pursue ways to assist poor communities around the world. And then we will go, spending two months overseas. Past DTS outreaches have gone to India, Thailand, Myanmar, Uganda and Kenya, Tanzania, and more. On outreach, you may work with street kids, AIDS orphans, slum communities, sex slaves and refugees, as well as reach out to people of all ages through evangelism.

The Children at Risk Elective is a feature of our Fall and Winter Discipleship Training Schools (DTS). DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the nations.

Freedom’s Cry

A cry for freedom echoes around the world. It echoes behind dark curtains in Indian brothels. It echoes through African villages ravaged by drought. It echoes in the hill-tribes of Myanmar where young boys are kidnapped and forced to become soldiers. It echoes through the streets of Amsterdam where prostitution is the only way for women to feed their children. It echoes right under our noses on the American shores. As long as just one of us is bound, none of us is free.

More information on this elective

The Freedom’s Cry Elective will explore modern day slavery through a Biblical lens, learn from experts in the field, and provide opportunities to take action in the fight for freedom. You will learn about Biblical justice, God’s heart of compassion for the suffering, and His redemptive strategies for individuals and nations. Your journey begins with weekly classes that complement what you are learning in the other aspects of Discipleship Training School. Our DTS Lecture phase will train our hearts and minds to think as God thinks, and act as God acts.

After training, you will spend two months overseas. Outreach will take you to the darkest corners of the earth where the cry for freedom echoes the loudest. Past outreach teams have gone to India, Thailand, Cambodia, Uganda, Moldova, Albania, Mexico and Brazil. Past outreach teams have worked with street kids, refugees, slum communities, and victims of human trafficking, as well as sharing God’s love with people of all ages through evangelism.

The Freedom’s Cry Elective is a feature of our Fall Discipleship Training School (DTS). DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the nations.

Teachers for Transformation

“As you go, disciple all nations,” Jesus told His disciples. “Teach them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mat. 28:19-20). The fulfillment of the Great Commission is inseparably connected to education. And this world has never needed Godly teachers more than it does right now!

More information on this elective

The Teachers for Transformation Elective will equip you with a foundation for education so that you can disciple others effectively. You will discover God’s heart for children and the unique window we have to infuse His truths into their lives. Over 85% of Christians give their lives to God between the ages of 4 and 14. There is a desperate need to reach people during these formative ages. Many are lost and broken because they do not learn God’s ways as a child and as a result, do not know how to process life’s challenges.

The great American abolitionist and former slave Frederick Douglass once said, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” We believe that God wants to raise an army of young men and women able to bring truth and love to this hurting world. This DTS is for anyone who has a heart for children and education regardless of their background or training. Would you be willing to answer the call in order to make an eternal impact in the life of children?

On outreach you will have the opportunity to apply what you’ve learned during the lecture phase. The knowledge and skills acquired will be put to the test in the nations as you work with children in a cross-cultural setting.

The Teachers for Transformation elective is a feature of our Fall and Winter Discipleship Training Schools (DTS). DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the nations.

Apologetics

Tragically, today in the U.S., for every 1 convert to Christianity, there are 4 deconverts from Christianity that now identify as non-religious. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, we learn that, as believers, we are to “demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” How can we offer people the answers they’re looking for, and do our duty as believers to demolish the arguments that would seek to steal their knowledge of God?

More information on this elective

Is God even real? Did Jesus really raise from the dead? Does evolution disprove creation? How do we respond both lovingly and truthfully to LGBTQ issues? The apologetics elective will tackle tough questions like these, and equip you to hope to have life changing conversations with those struggling with their faith.

Apologetics means “to offer a defense”, specifically, a defense of Christian beliefs. It is useful both for strengthening the faith of existing believers, and for removing barriers that people may have to belief in Jesus. In this elective, we will spend time on strengthening one another’s faith, and on evangelizing on the university campus using the skills we’re learning in class. If you have friends or family who wrestle with serious doubts about Christianity, or if you yourself have difficult questions that you’ve struggled to find answers to, then the Apologetics Elective is for you!

The Apologetics Elective is a feature of our Fall and Winter Discipleship Training Schools (DTS). DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the nations.

Science

Are you interested in computing, science fiction or the environment? Do you enjoy STEM subjects, but also want to connect with God and explore ways to make a difference in the world? Do you connect with God best when you’re in nature? If so, then the Science Elective is for you!

More information on this elective

A DTS elective is an opportunity to grow in your relationship with God along with people who share similar interests and hopes to you. In our Science Elective, you will get a chance to do just that.

Each week we will spend time chatting about how the Bible and missions can connect with science, with technology, with issues about the environment – and we’ll connect with some of the work going on around the world in YWAM in these areas. As you spend time exploring and growing in your faith in the DTS, you can also spend time with people who share similar passions to you and explore what could be possible.

Johannes Kepler (a 16th century Christian astronomer, inventor, physicist, and philosopher) said that science is the process of “thinking God’s thoughts after Him.” As we learn about what God created and how He made it to work, we learn more about who He is and who we are in relation to Him. What could be more fulfilling and empowering than that?

The Science Elective is a feature of our Winter Discipleship Training Schools (DTS). DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the nations.

Teachers for Transformation

“As you go, disciple all nations,” Jesus told His disciples. “Teach them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mat. 28:19-20). The fulfillment of the Great Commission is inseparably connected to education. And this world has never needed Godly teachers more than it does right now!

More information on this elective

The Teachers for Transformation Elective will equip you with a foundation for education so that you can disciple others effectively. You will discover God’s heart for children and the unique window we have to infuse His truths into their lives. Over 85% of Christians give their lives to God between the ages of 4 and 14. There is a desperate need to reach people during these formative ages. Many are lost and broken because they do not learn God’s ways as a child and as a result, do not know how to process life’s challenges.

The great American abolitionist and former slave Frederick Douglass once said, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” We believe that God wants to raise an army of young men and women able to bring truth and love to this hurting world. This DTS is for anyone who has a heart for children and education regardless of their background or training. Would you be willing to answer the call in order to make an eternal impact in the life of children?

On outreach you will have the opportunity to apply what you’ve learned during the lecture phase. The knowledge and skills acquired will be put to the test in the nations as you work with children in a cross-cultural setting.

The Teachers for Transformation elective is a feature of our Fall and Winter Discipleship Training Schools (DTS). DTS is a 24/7 discipleship community designed to grow your relationship with God and your ability to share His message with the nations.

YWAM Madison
Part of the YWAM global family of ministries