PATHWAY

DIVERGENT GLOBAL

School of Mission & Ministry

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One year to follow Jesus deeply, discover your calling and live on mission.

 

An invitation to a different kind of year

 

The Divergent Year is a one-year, full-time formation experience for people who want to follow Jesus deeply, discover their calling and live on mission.

 

It is designed to bring together:

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• Study
  
  Australian Students: CERT IV in Ministry and Theology (Austudy approved)
  Internationally Students: Global University.
   

• All students: ACCI's Intercultural Missions Competency Course 
   

• Formation — personal and spiritual growth

• Discipleship — intentional relationship and accountability

• Community — life and learning with others

• Mission — reaching our neighbours and going to the nations

• Practice — ministry, leadership and real-world experience

 

At its heart, The Divergent Year asks:

 

What could happen if you gave one year to being

intentionally formed as a disciple of Jesus?

 

This is not simply a year of Bible College. It is not simply a qualification. And it is not simply an internship.

 

It is a year of formation.

 

Students study theology, develop spiritual rhythms, build meaningful relationships, serve the local Church, participate in mission and gain practical ministry experience. They are challenged to take what they learn and put it into practice.

 

The aim is not simply to produce people who know more about Christianity, but people who are increasingly able to follow Jesus, live in community and participate in his mission.

 

Not a Year Off . A Year On

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A year fully given to the mission of God.

 

Students are encouraged to use the year intentionally to grow in Christ, develop their calling, serve the Church, reach their neighbours and prepare for a lifetime of Kingdom participation.

 

This does not mean students cannot work.

 

Students can and should work part-time where appropriate to support themselves financially and develop healthy rhythms of work,

study, ministry and life.

 

However, part-time employment does not replace the requirements of The Divergent Year.

 

All requirements are mandatory.

 

Students are committing to the full programme, not selecting the parts that suit them.

 

Academic study, formation, discipleship, community participation, ministry, mission, Church involvement, the required 8-week cross-cultural mission experience and other programme requirements are all part of the commitment.

Students are expected to organise employment and other personal commitments around these requirements.

 

Work can fit around The Divergent Year. The Divergent Year cannot simply fit around work.

 

The question is not:

 

“How much of my year can I give to this?”

 

It is:

 

“How will I give this year to God?”

 

For Church Leaders

 

The Divergent Year is an expression of the wider mission of Divergent Global and its Neighbours to Nations mandate.

 

The program is designed to help the Church form disciples who are not merely consumers of Christian teaching, but people who are equipped to contribute, serve, lead and participate in God's mission.

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The existing Divergent internship has always sought to combine biblical grounding, discipleship, ministry, personal growth and practical experience rather than treating theological education as an end in itself.

 

The new framework makes that philosophy explicit.

 

Students are formed through six interconnected dimensions:

 

Study • Formation • Discipleship • Community • Mission • Practice

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These dimensions are not separate subjects. Together they create a way of life.

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For Prospective Participants

 

If you are considering The Divergent Year, you are not simply applying to study.

 

You are choosing to give a year of your life to intentional formation.

 

You will study theology. You will be challenged spiritually. You will be known by others. You will serve. You will make mistakes and learn. You will participate in Church life. You will engage your city. You will be sent beyond your own cultural context.

 

You will be invited to ask:

 

Who is Jesus forming me to become, and where is he sending me?

 

You can work part-time. You can continue developing practical life skills. You can earn an income.

 

But you are committing to being fully present to the mission and formation of the year.

 

The Six Dimensions

 

1. STUDY

 

Know what you believe.

 

The Divergent Year includes a Certificate IV in Ministry & Theology.

Students develop a biblical and theological foundation for Christian life and ministry through Scripture, theology, doctrine, ministry, biblical interpretation, theological reflection, reading, discussion and assessment.

 

The academic component provides recognised vocational study while the wider programme places that learning within a much broader formation experience.

 

Government-approved study

 

The Certificate IV is government-approved for Austudy, providing an important practical pathway for eligible students undertaking the full-time programme.

 

The qualification is therefore not the whole of The Divergent Year but it is an important part of it.

You don't study theology instead of being formed. You study theology as part of being formed.

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2. FORMATION

 

Become who God is forming you to be.

 

Christian maturity is more than knowing the right answers.

 

Formation concerns the whole person.

 

Throughout the year students are encouraged to develop:

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• prayer

• Scripture rhythms

• spiritual disciplines

• character

• self-awareness

• relational maturity

• personal responsibility

• reflection

• intimacy with Jesus

 

The goal is not simply information.

 

Study should change the person studying.

 

3. DISCIPLESHIP

 

Learn the way of Jesus with others.

 

The Christian life was never intended to be lived alone.

 

Every participant is intentionally connected with people who can walk with them through the year.

 

This includes:

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• mentoring

• intentional discipleship

• regular conversations

• prayer

• accountability

• honest reflection

• feedback

• encouragement

• learning to receive correction

• learning to disciple others

 

You will not simply be taught. You will be known.

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4. COMMUNITY

 

Learn to belong, contribute and live with others.

 

The Divergent Year is intentionally communal.

 

Participants become part of a cohort and participate in the wider life of the Church.

 

Community provides an environment where people learn to:

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• know and be known

• build healthy friendships

• listen to others

• contribute

• encourage

• serve

• practise hospitality

• navigate differences

• resolve conflict

• carry responsibility together

 

Community is not simply something that happens around the program. Community is the very life blood of the journey.

 

5. MISSION

 

Neighbours to Nations

 

Mission is at the heart of The Divergent Year.

 

But mission has two movements.

 

NEIGHBOUR

 

Reach where you are.

Mission begins close to home.

 

Participants are encouraged to recognise God's mission in their own city and learn to participate in it.

 

This means:

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• building relationships

• serving others

• sharing Jesus

• engaging people outside the Church

• participating in local mission

• serving the local Church

• learning to see their city through God's eyes

 

We want participants to learn that mission isn't something Christians occasionally do.

 

Mission is part of following Jesus.

 

NATIONS

 

Go beyond where you are.

 

The Divergent Year includes an 8-week cross-cultural mission experience as a core component of the programme.

Participants are sent beyond their normal cultural context to serve alongside churches and ministry partners, engage another culture and participate in God's mission among the nations.

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The experience is designed to help participants:

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• serve

• listen

• learn

• adapt

• communicate across cultures

• share the gospel

• work with the local Church

• understand the global Church

• discover more about their own calling

 

We reach our neighbour, serve our city and go to the nations.

 

6. PRACTICE

 

Put what you are learning into action.

 

The Divergent Year is not designed to produce spectators.

 

Participants serve. They lead. They teach. They practise. They learn through doing.

 

Depending on their ministry context, practical experience may include:

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• Church ministry

• youth ministry

• children's ministry

• university ministry

• worship and creative ministry

• outreach

• evangelism

• teaching

• leadership

• practical service

• ministry projects

 

What you learn becomes something you practise.

 

The Formation Cycle

 

The six dimensions are not a sequence that you complete.

 

They form a continuous loop.

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STUDY – FORMATION – DISCIPLESHIP – COMMUNITY – MISSION - PRACTICE

 

Practice sends us back to learning.

Mission raises new questions.

Relationships reveal areas where we need to grow.

Service exposes our strengths and weaknesses.

Experience deepens our understanding of Scripture.

So we return to study, formation and discipleship.

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The cycle continues. It is not a ladder. It is not a checklist. It is a loop.

 

And at the centre of the entire cycle is Jesus.

 

Jesus is not one stage of the formation process. Jesus is the centre around which the whole process turns.

 

The Shape of the Year

 

Although the Formation Cycle continues throughout the year, there is a natural movement through the experience.

 

FORMATION

 

Learn + Belong + Grow

 

The beginning of the year establishes rhythms of:

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• study

• prayer

• discipleship

• community

• Church

• ministry

• local mission

 

SENDING

 

Go + Serve + Learn

 

Participants undertake the 8-week cross-cultural mission experience.

 

This is not simply a trip.

 

It is an intensification of the Formation Cycle.

 

Participants encounter another culture, serve alongside others, learn through experience and discover new dimensions of God's mission.

 

INTEGRATION

 

Return + Reflect + Practise + Continue

 

Participants process what they have experienced and consider how it shapes:

• character

• theology

• calling

• ministry

• leadership

• future vocation

• mission

 

The mission experience doesn't finish the formation journey.​

 

NEIGHBOUR

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Where has God placed me?

Learn to love the people around you.

 

CITY

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What is God doing where I live?

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Learn to participate in God's mission locally.

 

NATIONS

 

Where is God sending me?

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Go beyond your own cultural context and participate in God's mission among the nations.

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We reach our neighbour, serve our city and go to the nations.

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What We Ask of Participants

 

The Divergent Year requires commitment.

 

This is not a passive program, and it is not a program from which students can choose individual components.

 

Participants commit themselves to the whole journey.

 

Study

Engage seriously with academic work and complete the required study.

Formation

Pursue spiritual and personal growth.

Discipleship

Allow yourself to be known, challenged, encouraged and held accountable.

Community

Contribute to the life of the cohort and Church.

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Mission

 

Reach your neighbour and participate in the required movement from local mission to the nations, including the 8-week cross-cultural mission experience.

 

Practice

Serve, lead and put what you learn into action.

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Whole-Year Commitment

 

Students may work part-time and are encouraged to develop healthy rhythms of work and study where appropriate.

 

However, all requirements of The Divergent Year are mandatory.

 

Employment, personal commitments or other activities do not exempt a student from required:

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• academic study

• formation activities

• discipleship

• community participation

• Church involvement

• ministry commitments

• mission

• the 8-week cross-cultural mission experience

• scheduled training and other programme requirements

 

This is not a year off. It is a year on — fully given to God and his mission.

 

Who is The Divergent Year for?

 

The Divergent Year is for people who are asking questions such as:

 

What is God calling me to?

How do I grow deeper in my relationship with Jesus?

How do I understand the Bible and Christian faith more deeply?

How do I discover my gifts and calling?

How do I serve the Church effectively?

How do I live missionally in my city?

What would it look like to experience another culture and serve among the nations?

Could I give one year to intentionally becoming the person God is calling me to be?

 

You do not need to have your whole future figured out before you begin.

 

The purpose of the year is partly to help you discover, develop and discern.

 

For Church Leaders: What Are We Trying to Form?

 

The desired outcome is not simply:

a student with a qualification.

 

Nor simply:

a volunteer with ministry experience.

 

We want to see people becoming:

• disciples who follow Jesus

• people grounded in Scripture

• spiritually mature Christians

• healthy members of Christian community

• servants of the local Church

• people capable of receiving and giving discipleship

• people who recognise God's mission around them

• people willing to cross cultural boundaries

• emerging leaders

• people who can discern their calling

• people prepared to contribute to God's Kingdom wherever he sends them

 

We want to form disciples who are ALL IN — devoted to Jesus and his Kingdom, from neighbours to nations.

 

The Proposition

 

DIVERGENT GLOBAL // School of Mission & Ministry

 

One year to follow Jesus deeply, discover your calling and live on mission.

 

Government-approved Certificate IV in Ministry & Theology

+ Formation + Discipleship + Community + Mission + Practice

 

Neighbour → City → Nations

 

Study → Formation → Discipleship → Community → Mission → Practice → Study

 

A continual cycle of becoming and doing, centred on Jesus.

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Not a year off. A year on.

 

Give one year. Be formed as a disciple. Discover your calling. Live on mission.