YWAM DTS vs. Bible School – 4 Key Differences
December 31, 2030 - March 14, 2040
YWAM DTS vs. Bible School – 4 Key Differences
YWAM DTS vs. Bible School – 4 Key Differences
If you’re a Christian and you’re weighing up your post-secondary options for how you can grow in your faith, there are likely two options (among many) that have risen to the surface for you: Bible School/College and a YWAM DTS (a cross-cultural Discipleship/Missions experience). Maybe you’ve heard about YWAM from a friend or relative who completed a DTS and returned completely different than when they left. Maybe you’ve visited a local Bible College campus and gotten intrigued by the resources and training they have to offer. Regardless, chances are, if you’re considering both options, you’ve probably wondered how they are similar and how they’re different. We’re here to help.
Below you’ll find a testimony from one of our staff who has completed both a YWAM DTS and has taken graduate level Bible School courses at a seminary in the United States*. The lessons she’s learned are invaluable, and they changed her life. You’ll find that both YWAM DTS and Bible school are valuable, but they serve very different purposes in the life of a believer. Keep reading to find 4 key differences between a YWAM DTS and Bible school and learn more about what your next step may look like.
1) Finding Your Tribe
“I did DTS about 25 years ago in the tiny Central American nation of Belize. I had no idea what I was getting into really, but I knew very soon that I had found my tribe. I think that’s probably the biggest difference between my experience of seminary (I did graduate classes through Trinity Evangelical School a long time after I did DTS). I learned a lot of things in both, but in DTS, I found my people.
2) Styles of Learning – Informational vs. Transformational
I loved my seminary classes. I’m a total Bible nerd and learning more about the Bible always brings me joy. What struck me when I did seminary though, was how good the quality of my Bible training was within YWAM. It wasn’t always as scholarly (although I was taught by true scholars a few times as well), but it was always focused on application. Seminary gave me a ton of information, but no professor ever thought to tell me how it ought to be affecting my life. And no professor ever prayed for me, ever personally challenged me, ever ministered to me, at least not to my heart – only to my mind.
I was challenged over and over again in DTS to think about the kind of person I was becoming. I was constantly pointed back to obedience to Jesus and walking with Him. My relationship with Him was pointed out to me over and over again as the single most important focus of my life. And it wasn’t just taught from the front. It was what everyone around me was trying to do. Sometimes we failed in that goal spectacularly, but then we had the opportunity to repent and get it right the next time. And we did.
3) Learning Environment – Institutional vs. Live/Learn
I lived 24/7 with my DTS classmates. There was no getting away from them in fact, even when I really wanted to. Seminary was sitting in rows listening to a smart guy talk. I chatted with my fellow students during breaks, but I didn’t form an actual relationship with a single person. That wasn’t the purpose. In DTS, I sat in classes with my fellow students, I mopped floors with them, I ate meals with them. All of the women students slept in the same one-room eight-sided hut on stilts. We worshiped, prayed, fought, laughed, played endless games, even got sick together. All of it together. We challenged each other to be everything God wanted us to be. We were passionate about Jesus and about reaching people. We suffered together on outreach. We ate weird things together. We counted mosquito bites together. We saw Jesus show up in amazing ways that we did not expect in amazing places like Cuba. We saw revival break out in a high school in rural Belize. We failed utterly in Orange Walk Town when we didn’t have our relationships right when we went out to minister. You don’t forget experiences like that. They mark you. They change you.
4) Cross Cultural Experiences
I guess the final difference I see between YWAM DTS and seminary was that I experienced first hand that other people live differently from me. Not only were half of my DTS classmates NOT North Americans (like me), but all of our outreach was among people who had lives nothing like mine. I learned so much from them. I was so impressed by the complete joyful abandon with which the Cuban Christians worshiped Jesus out of their complete poverty and oppression. And everything we learned in the classroom was for the blessing of the nations. No one in seminary ever thought of applying what we learned in the nations. It just wasn’t really discussed.
Conclusion
I’d say both YWAM DTS and Bible school have their place. Sure, go to Bible school. But do a DTS first. It gets into your DNA, and you can’t ever think the same way again. At least I couldn’t.”
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As you can see, a YWAM DTS and a Bible school both aim to equip believers with the tools they need to follow Jesus authentically and whole-heartedly. However, they go about accomplishing that goal very differently.
If you’re at the stage in your walk where you’re confidently doing life with Jesus, surrendered to His will, and joyfully pursuing your calling, then maybe Bible college is better suited for the stage of life you’re in. However, if you’re ready to establish your relationship with God on firm ground, learn how to surrender to Jesus and put those nagging sin issues behind you (for good!), and have an incredible cross-cultural experience while you’re at it, then a YWAM DTS is definitely for you.
*Disclaimer: We acknowledge that this is one person’s experience, and that no two experiences are completely alike. There are many people who’ve had transformational experiences in Bible College/Seminary contexts, and even some people who’ve had very difficult experiences in a YWAM context. Our goal is not to criticize, but simply to highlight the general differences we’ve noticed in the approaches taken by these two common post-secondary opportunities for young Christians, and to help you discern which path is generally going to be a better fit for you in your current season of life.
“Before I did the Go Pacific DTS, I was expecting the Lord to do a lot of amazing things through me; and He did. However, I never expected Him to do so much work in my own heart. I drew a lot closer to God, experienced freedom, and I learned to believe in the ‘Jonas’ that He says I am. My relationship with God has become deeper and more serious, but at the same time it has become more fun and casual.”
Jonas Sørensen, 21, Denmark
“The Medical Compassion DTS gave me a glimpse into the medical side or missions. The compassion part was what caught me. I saw that when we see with Jesus’ eyes of genuine compassion, we must get our hands dirty.”
Brady Picking, 21, Pennsylvania, USA
“Being a part of the Justice Movement Stream has really challenged the way I see and define justice. It has made me more passionate and aware of the help this broken world needs, and what I can do to bring a stop to the injustice. I can now confidently say that I am able to take on the world, seeking justice and mercy for people in need.”
Chelsea Logan, 19, Newcastle, Australia
“Reading the whole Bible was a real challenge for me, but it was so rewarding. My eyes were opened to the fact that Jesus had existed from the very beginning and that God’s gracious heart always was and is the same! I learned that the Bible isn’t just a story about God, but rather a story about imperfect, raw, real people. I know now that I am one of them, and that I can see God work in my life just like He did it with them!”
Jenny Fritz, 19, Germany
“Before I attended my DTS, I believed that justice was an act of revenge. I had hate toward the perpetrators and love toward the victims. Being apart of the Justice Movement Stream has shown me the Father’s heart of justice, which actually demonstrates the endless love of the Father for both the victim and the perpetrator. Through this I learned that we should also carry that same love and forgiveness in our hearts.”
Savannah Mantel,18, California, USA
“SPHC was a transformational turning point in my faith walk where I learned to focus on others, serve, and honour others with my skills. Everything I learned in the course I put into practice to serve in the mission work that we were doing in Vanuatu. In changing me the Lord has changed my future and I walk with him and others in everything that I do.”
Paul Kerpel, 23, Alberta, Canada
“The GoPac Stream challenged me to broaden my view for the people around me, to step out of my comfort zone, and to expand the love that God has put inside of my heart, to love Him and others more.”
Alex Ronsdorf, 24, Germany
“Being part of the Go Pacific Stream really opened my eyes to experiencing and living in other cultures, particularly that of the Māori and South Pacific. Being able to be so relational with others, a key part of their culture, meant that we could witness God move in peoples’ lives on such a personal level, which has impacted me ever since. It also helped me discover my heart for evangelism, encouraged me to step out in faith, and stirred a passion to share the life-changing love of God I came to know during this time.”
Emma Sear, 19, England
“This is the craziest stream ever, not just doing fun activities, but the people I was with; they are wild as! Throughout the school, I’ve learned so much from the Bible that doing life with God and living my life on the edge is so much more interesting.”
Mun Hei, 21, Malaysia
“The Justice Movement Stream taught me to truly fall in love with and respect other cultures and people groups, and how to see them as God sees them.”
Kasandra Adler, 19, Missouri, USA