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“By our efforts, we have lit a fire in the minds of men. It warms those who feel its power, it burns those who fight its progress, and one day this untamed fire of freedom will reach the darkest corners of our world.”

This cry for freedom echoes around the world. It echoes behind dark curtains in Indian brothels. It echoes through African villages ravaged by drought. It echoes in the hilltribes of Myanmar where young boys are kidnapped and forced to become soldiers. So long as just one of us is bound, none of us is free.

Rescue & Restore DTS will answer the cry from every man, woman, boy and girl who long to be free. The journey to find them is long and fraught with peril. We must be strong. We must be bold. We must “endure hardship as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim. 2:3)

Our bodies must be fit, our minds sharp, and our spirits entwined with God if we are to encounter the darkness and overcome it with the light. We will begin with three months of training in Madison, WI. We will join the Children at Risk DTS for several hours of worship, teaching and small group to train our hearts and minds to think as God thinks, act as God acts. We will also break away from Madison for camping trips and wilderness survival training for a couple weeks.

After training, we will spend two months overseas. Outreach will take you to the darkest corners of the earth where the cry for freedom echoes the loudest. Past DTSes have gone to India, Thailand, Myanmar, Uganda, Moldova, Mexico and Kenya. On outreach, we will work with street kids, refugees, slum communities, and victims of human trafficking, as well as reach out to people of all ages through evangelism.

Rescue & Restore DTS is the first step in our plans to plant long term teams in at risk communities. The process of rescuing and restoring women and children at risk takes a lot of perseverance, relational networking and love. In order to prepare you, we have developed a three phase strategy:

PHASE ONE: Develop Christ-like DNA (DTS Lecture)

The three month lecture phase will train your heart and mind to think as God thinks, act as God acts. To the degree that our character looks like Jesus, we are able to engage in these heartbreaking communities. Our hearts must be filled with God’s love for both victims and offenders. We must see God for who He is and understand both His heart for justice, as well as His heart of compassion.

PHASE TWO: Immersion (DTS Outreach)

Your DTS outreach will take you to the poorest of the poor in the brothels, refugee camps and slums. You will see what their lives are really like first hand. You will understand what they actually need rescue and restoration from. And through love and acts of compassion, your heart will break with the things that break God’s heart.

Although some of our DTS teams have helped rescue children from the brothels on past outreaches, we do not expect this to be the norm. Usually it takes years of relationship building in a community before you are trusted to rescue those in need.

PHASE THREE: Plant Long Term Teams (Post DTS)

Through all you see and experience in the YWAM Rescue & Restore DTS, we hope that you will join our staff and form relationships with others who want to plant mission teams in the midst of at risk communities. Our dream is to have mission teams planted around the world helping the most vulnerable and bringing rescue and restoration to orphans, refugees, and victims of human trafficking.

Consider attending our Launchpad internship to develop your long term vision to bring freedom to a world in desperate need.

“Help him to defend the poor, to rescue the children of the needy, and to crush their oppressors. He will rescue the poor when they cry to him; he will help the oppressed, who have no one to defend them. He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their lives are precious to him.” (Ps. 72:4,12-14)

The Role of the Elective in DTS

The elective is an important part of DTS. We make special effort to customize the DTS so that you are receiving training related to your elective as you go through DTS. We also intentionally weave the elective into the type of ministry we do on outreach. But, the elective is not the primary point of DTS. The primary role of DTS is to disciple us to look like Jesus. DTS is designed to grow our understanding of God and His world, to deepen our walk with Him, and to share His love with the world through evangelism and mercy ministry. You should expect the DTS to stretch your comfort zones beyond your areas of gifting and the types of ministry you typically enjoy.

Please visit the YWAM DTS homepage to discover more about DTS. You can also contact us for additional information at dts@ywammadison.org.

Past Outreach Highlights:

Rescued from a Brothel Read the dramatic story of the rescue of two young children from an Indian Brothel.

Meeting Jesus Under the Mango Tree Read about a Ugandan refugee (forced from his home by the LRA) who crossed paths with our team and told us that we were the answer to his 25 year prayer for his clan.

Clean Water for KenyaRead about our team’s adventure deep in the bush of Kenya where water is the most valuable resource.

{Photo at top by Children At Risk Foundation – CARF (www.carfweb.net)}