ABOUT THE
EQUIP MISSIONARY
TRAINING PROGRAM

The Equip program begins July 15; however, participants are encouraged to move to NYC by July 1. Large group trainings begin August 1. The program ends May 31.

The focus of the Equip training is organic, reproducible, church-planting. Each team will work to begin house churches during their time in NYC.

This is a cross-cultural program, so church-planting will happen with either internationals from various people groups or Muslim immigrants living in the city, with a focus on evangelism and discipleship.

See below for a sample daily schedule (subject to change):

SCHEDULE
9:00 am-12:00 pm: Training
12:00 pm-1:00 pm: Lunch
1:00pm-5:45 pm: Seed Sowing/Ministry

here are three major parts to Equip:

Practical Ministry Experience: Trainees receive heavy practical experience in evangelism, leading Discovery Bible Studies, church-planting, and discipleship. Each trainee is mentored by experienced church-planters.

Spiritual Development (Character): There is a strong focus on the gospel—the reality of the gospel in the life of the trainee as well as how it shapes everything we do in life and ministry.

Theology: The program gives a basic theological understanding of scripture, ministry, and church-planting. The program gives exposure and instruction in areas such as Old and New Testament Survey, Hermeneutics, Systematic Theology, Ecclesiology, and Missiology. The theological training should be sufficient to meet the biblical coursework requirements of most mission organizations.

In Equip, you will develop a philosophy of evangelism, discipleship, and church-planting that is organic and highly reproducible. You will leave with the DNA (organic values) and skills of church-planting that lead to church-planting movements. Equip helps you view life and ministry from a gospel perspective.

Equip is for anyone who seeks to reach the lost, disciple new believers to reproduce, and learn how to start biblical communities of believers. This training is very valuable for those involved in international ministry in the U.S. who want international believers to have reproducible ministries in their home countries.

This training is also highly recommended for anyone who wants to plant churches overseas. Since many missionaries come from traditional churches, they do not understanding the DNA for organic church-planting and struggle in many mission contexts. This training provides the philosophy and experience of church-planting prior to arriving to the field.

The minimum age Equip is 21.

An outside job will be considered on a case-by-case basis. It is possible (though not recommended) for those who have already met the theological requirement to get a part-time job. For those in the theological training, it is unlikely for you to have the time.

It is not required. As a part of Equip, however, we offer four theological classes for participants: Old Testament, New Testament, Systematic Theology, and Hermeneutics. These courses will be offered as two week intensive courses prior to the start of the training in August, and immediately after the end of the program in June.

• You will be trained to understand, start, and lead a Discovery Bible Study. It is likely that you will lead 2-5 Discovery Bible Studies for unbelievers each week.
• Expected to engage at least 3-5 new individuals each week for personal evangelism.
• You will be involved in an existing house church, which will help you identify and use your spiritual gifts.
• You will seek to start a house church and disciple people.
• You will be trained in discipleship making reproducing disciples.
• You will receive the “Filling the Earth” seminar, which provides the theological underpinnings and practical applications of house churches and church-planting movements.
• You and your team will process these principles in ministry and read 4-5 books together.
• You will be trained in healthy elements of effective teams.
• If applicable, you will be given academic/theological requirements that will allow you to meet the 30-hour bible requirements of most missions (optional for those who have already met these requirements).
• You will be mentored and coached by a church-planter in the context of ministry.
• You will be trained in contextualized church-planting.
• You will be saturated in the gospel and its application for life and ministry.

For a single person, the cost of the program (including all housing, living, and ministry expenses) is approximately $2,000/month. For couples and families, the cost will be roughly $4,000/month. For more information, please contact us.

This may be possible in special circumstances. However, some major expenses like rent are expensive in NYC and can’t easily be lowered. Please talk to us regarding your concerns.

There is a one-time fee of $1,000 for singles & $1,500 for couples, which covers the cost of trainers, some training materials, training room rentals, and other expenses (all full-time Equip staff are volunteers). The fee is due in the fall.

If you have special circumstances that will not allow you to stay for the entire program, please talk to us about your concerns. Keep in mind, the training happens throughout the entire program and builds upon itself. You will only receive the full benefit of the training and ministry by staying for the entire time.

The ideal person is highly teachable, passionately desires to reach and disciple lost people, and is willing to challenge their own fears and paradigms in ministry methods.

There really is no “typical” day. Our ministry is relationally-based and self-initiated, so no one follows the same daily schedule . We will not set anyone’s schedule for them or tell them who or when to meet. People will need to be self-motivated and initiate and maintain their own schedule. However, we do have expectations for numbers of groups and  internationals our attendees interact with each week.

The first 4-6 weeks (August 1 to mid-September) are spent predominantly in training and cultural excursions. Monday is the day off, reserved for relaxation and catching up on personal chores. Tuesdays are for group training. This includes team meetings, prayer, training sessions, academic classes (if applicable), and discussions on assigned reading material. Because of the scheduling required and to respect the time of the trainers, it is mandatory that Tuesdays not be missed.

For the remainder of the week, each person will facilitate 2-3 English conversation groups on a campus (probably NYU or Columbia University). Each group will have 6-8 international students and meet weekly for 90 minutes. Each person will plan at least two activities for their entire group each semester.

From these groups, they will meet with each student individually for a gospel-centered talk (over coffee, walk in the park, lunch, etc.). They will form Discovery Bible Studies with international students and their interested friends or family. These Discovery Bible Studies meet weekly for 1-2 hours.

Teams will develop strategic plans for reaching a specific unreached people group community. They will spend lots of time in particular neighborhoods and implement a plan to reach these people.

Trainees will also be part of a house church network. This is where they will worship and fellowship for the entirety of the program. These house churches meet at various times throughout the week, not just on Sunday. Trainees will also be mentored while here and will meet with their mentor once every two weeks to discuss their growth and adjustment to the team/field and philosophy of ministry.

Members of Equip meet with their teams weekly and have team interactions within their house churches and throughout the week as they initiate and develop relationships within the community.