For Ellerslie Alumni
cultivate devotional excellence and ministry readiness
Register for our new advanced program
A season to cultivate practical spiritual strength
Experience our new powerful 5-week training that is uniquely designed to cultivate practical spiritual strength in the daily life of the believer. Combining devotional excellence and ministry readiness, Ellerslie’s Advanced Training focuses on living out the triumph of the Gospel in our everyday lives.
DEVOTIONAL EXCELLENCE
- Gain the practical tools of Christian devotion
- Discover how intimacy with God is cultivated, fostered, strengthened, and maintained throughout a lifetime
- Be equipped with a practical understanding of how the triumphant Christian life works, thrives, and changes others
Ministry Readiness
- Discover the five aspects of Christianity that must be bulletproof in order for a man or woman of God to stand up in a generation and bear witness of the glory of Jesus Christ
- Gain practical readiness required for carrying spiritual weights and responsibilities
- Learn how to lead others — whether that be in the church, Christian ministry, marriage, parenting, business, or the civil sphere
Pre-requisite: to attend the Advanced Training, you need to have completed Ellerslie’s 5-Week Classic Training or Weeklong Intensive.
The Curriculum
Morning Sessions: Devotional Excellence
Week One:
Understanding the Arts of intimacy
In this first week of the training, we will be digging into the nuts and bolts of practical intimacy. Like earthly marriage, a believer’s relationship with God needs to be cultivated and fostered to grow strong. In this week we will unpack what the Bible teaches about the intimate walk with Christ, of living in His presence, of prayer, study, communion, Scriptural meditation, worship, praise, and thanksgiving and how these essential functions of the Christian’s life are meant to work themselves out in an ever-increasing fashion.
Week Two:
The art of Rightly Handling the Bible
In week two we will explore the magnificent architecture of the Scriptures and supply the age-old tools for rightly dividing it and rightly handling it, and not just for doctrinal correctness, but for intimate connectedness with the Living God. The Bible is like a map to buried treasure. When we learn to heed it and trust it implicitly, it leads us to the treasury of His very Presence.
Week three:
The art of Biblical Prayer and Spiritual Revival
In week three we will delve into the theme of prayer in a deep and intimate manner — discussing not just the mechanics of it, the why’s, and the how’s, but the power of persevering, intentional, fervent praying upon the history of men and nations. Prayer is both a means by which the believer fosters deeper intimacy with the Lord, but also functions as a flow through channel of blessing to this world.
Week Four:
The art of Biblical communication
In week four we will explore the significant theme of communications. God built us as delivery vehicles — we are entrusted with a treasure and then told to pass that treasure along. For many in the current generation, godly communications has become a lost art — and the winsome luster of Heaven is no longer seen in and through the Church of Jesus Christ as it has been witnessed in times past. It is our desire in this week to inspire in you the lifelong pursuit of growing up into a masterful communicator that showcases the power, love, and authority of Christ Jesus.
Week Five:
The art of spiritual longevity
In week five, we dig into the theme of going the distance in the faith. Too many Christians nowadays fade down the stretch. Life becomes difficult and their once vibrant faith grows dim. However, God designed the Christian man and woman to endure through winds and rains — to persevere no matter the difficulty and no matter the trial. This is the week that we will unpack the tools necessary for the Christian to traverse this sin-riddled earth without growing weary in their well-doing.
Afternoon Sessions: Ministry Readiness
Week One:
The arts of honor
In week one we will lay out all the tools of the leadership trade on the table and get to know them intimately. We call these the arts of honor — for all influence in the Kingdom of Heaven is accomplished in and through the expression of Christ’s life and love in and through us. We will explore authority, what it is, how it works, how it is abused, and how it is intended by God to be used. We will explore the power of the tongue and how that makes or breaks the leader. We will delve into the etiquette of God’s Kingdom and touch on work ethic, cross-cultural respect, affirmation, encouragement, and even the significance of bodily health and hygiene.
Week Two:
The art of Suffering
In week two we will focus on the topic of how the Christian relates to difficulty. Many Christians lose their footing because they are not prepared to handle trials — they are not prepared to suffer well. But God has supplied everything needed for a Christian to not just survive challenges, but to thrive in and through them. Suffering is not supposed to be a bad word to a Christian. But as long as it remains so, the Christian will not be prepared to change the world in and amidst the Devil’s stalwart resistance.
Week three:
The art of Shepherding
In week three we will direct our focus to the idea of shepherding. There are many models for leadership that have been hatched throughout the ages of men and nations, but none better parallels God’s pattern than that of a shepherd. In fact, the pattern of the shepherd is God’s preferred picture throughout Scripture that He returns to over and over again. The curious fact that the job position of the shepherd has, throughout antiquity and in almost all cultures, been considered the lowest and most despised job description, reveals the mystery that God has chosen weak things through which to accomplish His grand ends. He builds shepherds, and He builds them well.
Week four:
The art of Crossing Cultures
In week four we will tackle the concept of missions. Historic missionary work has involved crossing a threshold of cultural familiarity into a new territory far less familiar. How does the Christian handle “the different”? How are we supposed to engage with the “strange and unusual”? Every Christian should be prepared to effectively share the Truth and the Love of Christ with those that are not like them. But, what are the tools needed for this? How does this crossing of cultures work? What are the common mistakes made? What are the things God teaches us in His Word about reaching those that are foreign to us? How can we cross this cultural threshold with excellence and effectiveness?
Week five:
The art of pouring Out
In week five we will zero in on one of the most known but unexercised truths in the Bible — that of being doers of the Word and not just merely hearers. We are called to be hoses and not sponges. Both a sponge and a hose receive water with joy, but one soaks up and holds on to it, the other receives it and then gives it all away. God has built us as Christians to actually “do” the work of the Kingdom and not just “know” the truth in our minds. We are not supposed to hold on to all this good stuff — we are meant to give it away … radically and extravagantly. We will touch on matters ranging from world evangelism to neighborhood evangelism; from orphan work to rescuing child slaves; from helping single mothers to visiting the imprisoned; from praying in a closet to standing on a street corner and preaching. There is something that must be done, and we are the ones uniquely positioned to do something about it.
Take your discipleship to another depth
- Spend 5 life-changing weeks at the Ellerslie Campus in Colorado
- Gain a fresh spiritual fire in your pursuit of Jesus Christ
- Grow deeper in your understanding of Scripture and Gospel-Centered living
- Be trained for real-world Christian living
- Don’t just learn but practice the devotional arts of intimacy with Christ
- Experience real-world ministry and learn how to share the Gospel throughout Northern Colorado
Student Testimonies:
We're giving away 3 full ride scholarships!
If you are interested in attending Advanced and potentially win a full-ride scholarship, please fill out the scholarship giveaway form BY DECEMBER 15th. We will announce winners by December 20th.
Pricing Overview:
-
ON Campus Advanced Student $2895
Stay in the newly renovated Ellerslie dorms. See photos below. Reserve your spot with a $150 deposit.
-
OFF Campus Advanced Student $1895
Stay off-campus in your own arranged accomodations. Reserve your spot with a $150 deposit.
-
Additional Family Members $1750*
* For each additional family member attending the same semester (either on or off campus).
Payment Plans & Scholarships are available.
Begin the application process to view details or visit our application FAQ page here.
The Daily Schedule:
Each day at Ellerslie is unique, but here is a taste of what an average day looks like during the 5-Week Advanced Training. Most days include sessions, personal study time, various work duties (for on-campus students), and evening activities designed to strengthen your walk with the Lord. Saturdays are typically focused on going out into the community for real-world ministry training (serving, sharing the Gospel, etc.). Sundays are a day of worship and rest, with a special activity or student life event in the evening.
Note: This schedule is subject to change.
7:00 AM: Breakfast
8:15 AM: Daily Thunder
9:30 AM: Morning Session
11:30 AM: Stillness + Study
12:00 PM: Lunch + Personal Free Time
3:00 PM: Afternoon Session
5:00 PM: Stillness + Study
5:30 PM: Dinner
7:00 PM: Evening Activity
Watch a live zoom call with Eric & Nathan answering questions about the Advanced Program:
Advanced Program FAQ
Yes … and no.
Our last Advanced Training was in early 2020—focused on devotional excellence. In that season, we also had a Practicum program focused on ministry readiness. Due to Covid, we pushed pause on those program and are now relaunching the Advanced for the first time in four years!
In short, we’ve combined the best of our previous Advanced and Practicum programs to create an entirely new and powerful 5-week training that is uniquely designed to cultivate practical spiritual strength in the daily life of the believer. Our new Advanced Training combines a focus on both the devotional excellence and ministry readiness that is desperately needed in our world today.
Ellerslie’s Advanced Training picks up where our Classic and Weeklong programs end and goes even deeper into cultivating a practical and passionate devotional life with God and gives practical training in real-world ministry.
The D1.5 Program gives students opportunities to go back through our Classic Training a second time while volunteering and serving throughout the semester. This is a great opportunity for those who want to deepen their understanding of the foundations of discipleship and learn how to take that material and disciple others.
In short, if you want a refresher course on the Classic Training and have an opportunity to volunteer at Ellerslie, the D1.5 is for you. If you want to go even deeper and have an entirely new set of classes and training, the Advanced is what you’re looking for. Or register for both and have two incredible seasons at Ellerslie!
Yes! If you are interested in joining the Advanced Training and have financial difficulties, we want to help. While we don’t have unlimited scholarship funds available, we will do everything we can to help. In the application, there is a spot where you can apply for a scholarship based on your need. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected].
Yes! We want to make the financial side of attending as easy as possible. Like our other programs, you are welcome to select the payment plan option in the application and choose between 2-10 payments (months). Please know that there is a 3.5% payment plan fee applied for those who choose that option.
For those who choose to pay-in-full, payments are due eight weeks prior to the start of the semester.
Throughout the Advanced Training, we are focusing on deepening our devotional intimacy with Christ and preparing for real-world ministry.
Morning sessions will be focused on “Devotional Excellence” and afternoon sessions on “Ministry Readiness.”
For specific curriculum details and the focus of each week, please see the Curriculum section above.
We hope so! We are relaunching the Advanced in April 2024, and depending on the interest and its effectiveness, we hope to continue offering the program in the future … but there is no guarantee, so if you are interested, we encourage you to consider joining us in this next training season.
If you have any other questions not addressed above, please reach out to us at [email protected] and one of our team will be happy to respond to you within 48 hours.
We recorded this zoom call from our Q&A about the Advanced on Tuesday Jan 16. The first few minutes is a general update on Ellerslie and then Eric and Nathan talk about the Advanced Program and answer questions.