Pilgrimage DTS
December 31, 2030 - March 14, 2040
Pilgrimage DTS
If you want to strip away the distractions of life to seek and discover God in His Word and Creation, then the Pilgrimage DTS is designed for you!
Put very simply, a pilgrimage is a journey with a purpose – to find God, to know Him, and experience His Presence. In ancient Biblical times, this meant a physical trek to the temple in Jerusalem. Today, it’s often an internal spiritual exploration.
In the Pilgrimage DTS, we combine both of these types of pilgrimage in our determination to seek God with our whole being – both physical and spiritual. So come with us on a journey into the beautiful New Zealand wilderness, and the deep places of your own heart. It’s an adventure that may stretch you to your limits. But, if you come looking for Him, you’ll find that our wild, creative, and loving God is with you every step of the way.
- Learning practical checklist
- Gear check
- Medical check
- Supplies check
- Safety check
- God’s call to leave behind what is certain, familiar, and comfortable to journey toward Him and our response of obedience and faith.
- Leave behind distractions from home and laying down expectations for the journey ahead.
- Discover the ways that God uses the wilderness to develop and transform his people in the Bible
- Israelites, David, Jesus, and others.
- Simplicity, dependence on God, solitude, silence, reflection, and meditating on God and his ways.
- Experience the wilderness together – we will go on our first backpacking trip!
- Learn to slow down the pace of your life in order to truly know and be known by others.
- Study the ways that Jesus connected with people and lived life walking from place to place.
- Experience the rugged and beautiful Kauaeranga Valley as we seek and learn about God together!
- The week’s lectures will happen both before and during our backpacking trip. The topic will be announced when you arrive for the DTS!
- The earth as it is now is not our home! How then do we live in a world whose values are often at odds with our own? How do we live as sojourners in a foreign land while looking toward our ultimate home?
- 1 Peter – a church integrated into the world by love, relationship, and engagement, but spiritually and morally counter cultural! – Jeremiah 29:4-14; Psalm 84; Hebrews 11:9-10, 13-16; John 17:14-19; Romans 12:2
- Together, we will tackle the Lake Waikaremoana Great Walk, hiking about 40 km (28 mi) and encountering God in his creation, in lectures, and in our fellowship!
- The week’s lectures will happen both before and during our backpacking trip. The topic will be announced when you arrive for the DTS!
- A continuation of week 6’s topics.
- The ultimate goal of our pilgrimage – to dwell with God and be at home in His presence.
- The meaning of “Zion” – Revelation 21-22: Our final destination
- A continuation of the previous week’s topics.
- Learn to recognize and live out of the presence of God within us!
“Being a part of the Pilgrimage Stream impacted my life for the better. Not only did it teach me how to function in a small community (as we shared the burden of climbing those mountains together), but also how to rely on one another, have fun and worship together, and, most importantly, how to be vulnerable with each other. The focus of our Stream taught me what it looks like to be on a pilgrimage for God. God calls us out of our homes to the wilderness, where we’ll see Him face-to-face, and are forced to fully depend on Him before we receive His inheritance.”
Harty Dumalagan, 21, B.C. Canada
“Last year I decided to seek after God wholeheartedly and applied for the Pilgrimage DTS. Going on this journey (physically and spiritually) has been life-changing! Instead of wandering on my own, I am now following the Almighty God. I have rediscovered a personal and intimate relationship with my Creator!”
Tim Stallard, 26, Switzerland
“Throughout my time on the Pilgrimage DTS, God has worked in me in countless ways. Whether it was learning to see His beauty and love for us in creation, or learning to trust when I was soaking wet, and knowing it’s all for a purpose, a part of the adventure! But also a great part was having lectures about how to walk in the authority of Christ, and learning how to hear the voice of God and grow in relationship with Him! I must say, it’s been the adventure of a lifetime, which won’t end because God isn’t just staying with us for a season, He’s in it with us for eternity!”
Blaise Brunson, 17, Turkey
“The Pilgrimage DTS allowed me to take the time I needed to get to know God more and grow closer to Him while spending lots of time in His beautiful creation. God also used the hikes to challenge and encourage me to rely on Him more.”
Colin Berkley, 24. B.C. Canada
Dates
23 Oct 2023
21 Oct 2024
Limited Spaces Available, So Apply Soon!
Costs
Lectures $6495NZD
Outreach $4995 NZD
Includes:
Lecture phase: Meals, Accommodation, Tuition, School Outings, Stream Activities
Outreach phase: Flights, Transport, Accommodation, Meals, Visas
Please check with us before booking air tickets.
Scholarships Available. Enquire Now!