Mission Accomplished!
When the “Macedonian call” came from YWAM in Dunham, Quebec requesting help to pioneer a new School of Biblical Studies (SBS) in French and English, we knew God was in it. It was an impossible mountain to move in our own strength, but with God all things are possible.
We moved from Hawaii to Quebec, Canada. We entered a new culture, a new language, a new YWAM community, and a new climate (
). It was an adventure for us as a family with challenges and with fresh hopes and dreams.
We began planning, recruiting, and praying a lot through the process. This was God’s dream and we were just partnering with Him. He provided all the wisdom, the resources, the staff and the students. Together with God we walked through this first SBS. And it was a joy to go through the Bible with this group.
We’ve guided the students through studying all 66 books of the Bible using the Inductive Bible study. Our goal of finding God through the study of his word has been successful!
Graduation!
On June 30th of this year, we successfully graduated all 5 of our SBS students:
It was so exciting to lead this school and journey with the students and staff as we all discovered God more and more. There were incredible revelations and deep transformations happening in all of our hearts. God joyfully made Himself known through His word and we rejoiced in Him regularly throughout the school.
Here are some things from the students:
Komla
“Studying the whole Bible in 9 months is a good thing, especially the Inductive method which helps to understand the Bible in context. SBS helps one grow in character with God by putting timeless truths into practice. It’s a school that everyone needs to do because the Bible is our working tool as Christians.
“For me, I enjoyed the application the most. You can’t study the Bible without putting it into practice.”
Seth
“My faith has been so increased and I feel confident in my ability to accurately teach and understand the Bible. “There you are!” Discoveries (one of the assignments for each book) and the personal application impacted me a lot. The “There you are!” Discoveries are such a clear way to see and understand God and then personally applying directly from [who] God [is] was always leading to great building of faith. It’s possible [to do the whole Bible in 9 months]. If you want to know God more and see him in scripture, you’re in the right place (the SBS)”
Isabel
“I most enjoyed observing the structure of the book because understanding the main idea and reason for the book completely clarified and informed its interpretation. Reading the book in one sitting completely changed how I understood and interpreted the stories and teachings because it taught me to see the books as a whole and as part of a big picture, rather than as isolated. And interpreting was really what led to the most revelation in my life.
“I’d be disappointed if the SBS changed the “There You Are!” assignment; I think it’s a defining feature of this SBS and should be done in all SBS’s.
“You must make a decision… to make your primary goal and motivation to know God more and to be transformed by his word,… And allow yourself JOY in studying the Bible and discovering God; don’t be ashamed to share with others about it or to be completely in awe of what you are learning! It really is fun!”
Maxime
“It’s possible to study the whole Bible in 9 months. I learned so much through each book. I feel victorious, incredible and full of knowledge. Anyone can study the Bible for themselves!”
Lauren
“The first read-through impacted me the most because we always sat and discussed afterward, and usually the first time through we identified the passages that bothered us before even going in depth. That being said the verticals were impactful for their enlightening nature and the application was always like a breath at the end of the work to really process everything.
“The psalm assignments were the best because of the creative aspect and I would be sad if the SBS lost that incorporation of creativity.”
STAFF:
The staff team was a great team to be a part of. The four of us worked so well together. We couldn’t have done this school without our partners: Walter & Anne.
The students also complimented each staff person before leaving:
Anne:
- “Anne is someone that works so hard yet champions rest and compassion. She cares for the spiritual, physical and emotional well-being of her students and it goes a long way.”
- “Anne’s patience stood out over and over and in the role of leadership, obviously everyone was super ready to help us learn, but Anne’s patience and kindness made it so that even if I really really wasn’t understanding I was not scared to communicate that because there was no judgment. Also, Anne’s hospitality even while working just as hard as us was really beautiful. In teaching, Anne put emphasis on the emotional side of the scriptures that we had the tendency to overlook in our own work time.”
- “Her wisdom, empathy and attentiveness. I loved how she took the time to understand our questions/struggles with the Bible and never judged us for them. Her hard work on her teaching was always so evident and her very presence in the classroom brought peace. She made me feel safe to be known and ask questions.”
Walter:
- “Walter is a man of detail. His teachings are very detailed and he explains complicated concepts clearly. He loves to be around others and always brings fun wherever he is.”
- “Walter’s teachings always were so in-depth and it was so clear his passion for the books he taught that were impactful because it made me want to join in on that excitement. Walter is a leader-friend meaning he joined in on so much with us and was above us technically but acted with the humility even in discussions when he was clearly right.”
- “How he cared so much about connecting with us as friends and how encouraging he was in the classroom. He is intrigued and curious about the Bible and it shone through in his teaching. Doing the SBS would’ve been so much harder without him in the classroom working alongside us.”
Cy:
- “Cy is incredibly down to earth and real. She speaks from the heart but also with great detail and intelligence. She’s one of the smartest people I know.”
- “Cy’s teachings always struck me because she said she loved observations but truly when she taught the things she observed and the connections she made through those were insane. Her leadership was all in and wholehearted which I really appreciated. Cy also in her teaching brought them back to her own testimonies and those personal testimonies made it so much easier to see the consistency of God in our world today with what has always been true about him. She also knew when to say she didn’t know and just guide me to ask God which is so valuable in leadership.”
- “Her unapologetic passion for and love of the Bible and the testimonies she shared that supported her teaching. She is so rooted and grounded in the knowledge of God and his work in her life that she is unshakable in her convictions.”
Rob:
- “Rob is excellent at creating clear and precise answers to complicated questions. He also is seeking God in the midst of places that may be hard to see him (a genealogy of Chronicles!). His passion for God is contagious.”
- “Rob is insane because of the work he has done to analyze everything possible to analyze and that would impact anyone but also the fact that he just takes action and doesn’t wait around for things but gets it done out of a total commitment to God. In teaching, Rob dwelt on things for a long time to make sure we got what he wanted us to but even in that there was never a moment where I thought that I wished he would move to something new because in that type of teaching, it was still super interesting.”
- “I never once doubted Rob’s leadership capability and felt so honoured to have been discipled by him during this school. His way of studying the Bible and sharing his discoveries really transformed my own study but he also led with such clarity and purpose. He’s truly a person of integrity; what he says matches what he does.”
Thank you
…for praying and partnering with us to see this school become a reality. The Macedonian call has been answered and God has begun a new work in this place.
Our next SBS runs March-December 2024: sbs@jemdunham.com
Pray
We’ll continue to work toward establishing a permanent Bible school here, especially for the French speakers of our nation and beyond. This is a major part of Ending Bible Poverty in our generation. Please pray for this purpose to be fulfilled.
Pray for more staff, especially French-speaking staff, that can help to grow this school and multiply leaders so that it can reach and serve more people.
Pray for the right students to come to the next school as well.