About Joshua

In an era where information has become more readily available to us than ever before, mankind has come to value knowledge above all else. Universities and colleges around the world provide seekers with facts and figures in incredible detail about every imaginable subject. But for many, this accumulation of knowledge will fall far short of what is truly needed to live an effective life in the kingdom of God, as information allows one to know without always affecting what one does or more importantly who one is.

What is desperately needed then is not more knowledge based training, but rather a wisdom based curriculum that focuses less on the assimilation of facts, and more on the practical outworking of what it means to be a Disciple of Jesus Christ. A program designed for those who know they want to serve the Lord but lack the discernment, focus, spiritual and personal discipline, or life experience to exercise real wisdom in everyday situations. It is with this great need recognized then, that Hume Lake Christian Camp and Conference Center is pleased to provide the Joshua Wilderness Institute.

Mission Statement

Our mission statement at Joshua, “Transforming the Life Effectiveness of God’s People” is simple. But the process by which this mission is realized is anything but. Utilizing a combination of theology, Bible study skills, philosophy and worldview training, evangelism, character development, personal life skills, and monthly mission trips, we endeavor to expose students to life, guide them to discern God’s will, and cultivate a spiritual passion and calling. Ultimately though, it is not our programming or passion that transforms these students. It is God Himself responding to the individual cry of each one who has purposefully set this time aside to be transformed. We do not offer college credit, there are no grades, no one passes and no one fails. The sole motivation for attendance should be life effectiveness, through an increase in wisdom. When students come with that singular goal in mind, each one takes home a measure of transformation proportional to his or her individual drive and desire to be more like Christ.

Cruce, Libro, et Atro

This Benedictine motto from the 9th century also serves as the philosophical foundation of our training at the Joshua Wilderness Institute. Cruce, Libro, et Atro literally means “the cross, the book, and the plow.” It emphasizes the necessity of personal balance in faith, knowledge, and work ethic for the disciple. Faith “without deeds” is dead as it says in James, while faith without knowledge is unsustainable. Similarly, Christian activity motivated by anything other than faith and God’s glory is wasted, and work ethic alone, separated from knowledge is not only dangerous, but directionless. It is only when one learns to synchronize Biblical faith, the acquisition of knowledge, and the service of God and others that life effectiveness truly becomes attainable. The institute provides the necessary tools and means for attaining just such a balance.

Core Values

The Joshua Wilderness Institute is founded upon 15 core values which direct all of our curriculum development, disciplinary action, instructor choices, and student/faculty coaching.

  1. Instilling an urgency for discovering one’s calling and central purpose for life. (Ephesians 4:1)
  2. Creating a hunger to know and understand God. (Jeremiah 9:23,24)
  3. Prompting the student to identify and evaluate their personal philosophy of life and assist them in developing a Godly worldview. (Philippians 4:8; Titus 1:9)
  4. Developing a passion for God’s guidance and instruction and seeking to recognize the lessons and truths hidden in all of life. (Proverbs 25:2; Psalms 19)
  5. Challenging the student to develop convictions, which result in a person of moral and ethical character. (Numbers 13:30; Daniel 1:8)
  6. Teaching the life skills necessary for effective practical living. Covering stewardship, financial, environmental, and time management, relationships, conflict resolution, etc. (Ecclesiastes 10:10)
  7. Insisting that the student live a disciplined life, in thought, word, deed, and attitude; which includes making of beds, rising early, devotions, staying in shape, extra curricular reading, orderliness, denying self, and seeing others as more important than yourself. (1 Timothy 4:7-8)
  8. Cultivating a desire to live a life of holiness. Striving for Honesty, Purity, and Integrity in every area of life. (Psalms 15; Leviticus 11:44)
  9. Building critical thinking skills, and equipping their hearts and minds for living in a relativistic age, able to decipher truth and communicate clearly and compellingly to others. (I Peter 3:15)
  10. Urging the student to live a life of contentment, finding the pleasures in all of life and being peaceful in it. (Philippians 4:11-13)
  11. Leading the student to live a life of humility, seeing themselves as God sees them. This humble spirit allows one to be teachable in all of life’s circumstances. (Psalm 25:9)
  12. Assisting the student to discover their talents and giftedness, to be used with confidence in accordance with the purpose God has set before them. (I Corinthians 10:31)
  13. Establishing a solid foundation of Biblical truth, teaching scripture as the ultimate authority, with an emphasis on the Old Testament and the study of Theology. (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
  14. Awakening the student to God’s abiding presence and their need to abide with Him. (John 14, 15:4-10; Psalms 15:1)
  15. Challenging students to live incarnational lives among the nations. Loving others and reproducing disciples through lives that not only evangelize in word and tongue, but in action and in truth. (I John 3:18; I Peter 2:12)

Mandatory Book List

Each month Joshua students have the opportunity to read one of the following books, and then interact with the material during weekly group discussions. Attendees are required to buy the books at cost from the Joshua Book Store, guaranteeing uniformity of edition, page number, etc… Not only do these book assignments develop students reading ability, create the foundations of a discipleship library, and introduce them to a variety of classic and contemporary Christian authors, but the discussions encourage critical thought, idea formulation, and communication skills.

Current Booklist:
Monthly

Other Required Titles:

In addition, all students will need one complete Bible concordance or equivalent software.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
Or, Zondervan NIV Exhaustive Concordance
Or, Zondervan NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Schedule

Someone once said, “Blessed are the flexible for they shall be bent, but never broken.” Recognizing that patience and adaptability are quickly being overrun by irritation and rigidity as our lives become almost entirely agenda driven, the Joshua Wilderness Institute’s schedules are not only adjustable, but purposefully tentative. While we do have relatively firm daily and yearly calendars, there are many occasions where plans are rearranged, report times are modified, or whole weeks are shifted in an effort to promote flexibility, diligence, and initiative. As a result, students must discipline themselves to exercise Biblical time management, effective communication skills, and discernment in order to meet deadlines and stay focused on the task at hand. This fluidity in schedule also allows the Institute to intuitively develop curriculum and programming that is based on individual and group needs, as opposed to operating on a predetermined timeline that may or may not fit from year to year. This way our program becomes student driven instead of curriculum driven.

Typical Daily Schedule

Monday Tuesday Wednesday
7:00 Breakfast 7:00 Breakfast 7:00 Breakfast
7:30 Devotions 7:30 Devotions 7:30 Devotions
8:30 Prep Time 8:30 Prep Time 8:30 Prep Time
9:00 Old Testament 9:00 Consequences of Ideas 9:00 Old Testament
10:30 Inductive Bible Study 10:30 The Grill 10:30 Theology
12:00 Lunch 12:00 Lunch 12:00 Lunch
1:00 D.T.G’s 1:00 Solo Initiatives/Grunting 1:00 Book Discussion
3:00 Study Time 4:00 Study Time 3:00 Study Time
5:00 Dinner 5:00 Dinner 5:00 Dinner
6:30 Evening Discussion 6:30 Evening Discussion 6:30 Evening Discussion
9:00 Study Time 9:00 Study Time 9:00 Study Time
11:00 Lights Out 11:00 Lights Out 11:00 Lights Out
Thursday Friday
7:00 Breakfast 7:00 Breakfast
7:30 Devotions 7:30 Devotions
8:30 Prep Time 8:30 Prep Time
9:00 Morning Discussion 9:00 Inductive Bible Study
10:30 Flex Time 10:30 Corporate Life Skills
12:00 Lunch 12:00 Lunch
1:00 Grunting/Solo Initiatives 1:00 Flex Time
4:00 Study Time 3:00 Study Time
5:00 Dinner 5:00 Dinner
6:30 Pause Groups 6:30 Work Assignments
9:00 Study Time 11:00 Lights Out
11:00 Lights Out    

Two weekends a month students work in various positions for Hume Lake, one weekend per month students are on a group service trip, and the remaining weekend students have off. In addition to their one weekend off per month, students also have Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter Holiday breaks. Typically Joshua begins the second full week of September and runs through the end of the second full week of May.

Teachers

Utilizing Hume Lake’s incredibly diverse and experienced staff as Joshua’s anchor course instructors brings Biblical insight, practical ministry experience, demonstrated life effectiveness, and most importantly wisdom to the classroom. In classes such as Old Testament, Consequences of Ideas, and Theology, these men and women deftly weave classic informational content with the down to earth application points so unique to the Joshua Wilderness Institute. Meet the teachers.

Each week of the year a different guest speaker is brought in from around the country to teach during four interactive discussion sessions. As opposed to being assigned topical subject matter by the institute, these speakers are invited to teach out of the overflow of their personal passions and struggles. This method provides for a diverse and ever changing array of thought provoking instruction, dialogue, and reflection on the part of the students. In addition to daily discussions, students are also afforded valuable one-on-one time with these leaders and their families across the dinner table and during free times. Meet the guest speakers.

Catalyst Couples

Our catalyst program is a wonderful opportunity for students to get involved in the lives of older people in a unique way. Each week a catalyst couple or individual will be living in the lodge day in and day out to share their life experience and to offer a listening ear, words of encouragement, and advice.

Trips

While classroom instruction offers many obvious benefits, most of the fundamental aspects of practical wisdom cannot be as effectively taught, as they can be caught. With this truth in mind, the Joshua Wilderness Institute embarks on monthly application trips where students catch an active passion for simple service, hard work, compassion, evangelism, and sacrifice from experts in the field who embody these techniques. Whether building houses with Habitat for Humanity, sharing the gospel with strangers on the streets of Hollywood, or working with deaf children in Mexico each trip provides an opportunity for students to put into practice that true Biblical discipleship which for many believers never moves beyond the concept stage. These trips extend the mission of Joshua beyond the creation of more people who can only theorize effectively about the Christian life, to the creation of more people who will actually live it. New to Joshua is a trip in April to Israel. Above and beyond the cost of the JWI program, students raise support for this trip and experience the Bible first hand.

Leadership Training
In September our first trip is designed to stretch and grow the students and prepare them for the year ahead. We leave Joshua for a week in order to focus on discipleship, leadership, spiritual disciplines, and a team unity for the year.

Habitat for Humanity
During the month of October we take a service trip to the San Francisco area to help build homes for low income families.

Mexico
In November we will drive to Guadalupe, Mexico to work at Rancho Sordo Mudo, which is a school for the deaf and hard of hearing. We will assist in work projects, hang out with students, and learn about the Mexican culture.

Pine Valley
During the month of January we will spend a week at Pine Valley Christian Camp in San Diego County. We will assist in work projects and help their staff in areas of need.

Los Angeles
While in Los Angeles we will participate in a week of urban ministry which will include working at homeless shelters, ministering to children in the inner city and learning more about various ethnic cultures in the surrounding area.

Las Vegas
Our one week trip to Las Vegas is primarily an evangelism trip where students will have the opportunity to share about their faith to a variety of people on the Las Vegas strip.

Israel
In the month of April we make our way to Israel for two weeks to walk in the footsteps of Christ. We spend the year studying the Bible and finish the Joshua year being able to experience it firsthand with this once in a lifetime trip. Find out more details about the Israel trip.

Cost

In recognition of the fact that most young adults who find themselves in the wilderness of their lives also find themselves disappointingly short on cash, the total cost of the Joshua Wilderness Institute for a year is only $8,720. In order to encourage students to take personal responsibility for the payment of these funds, approximately one third of this cost is deferred (as shown below) by students’ mandatory weekend employment at Hume Lake Christian Camps, their faithful attention to rotational daily tasks, and intermittent work projects assigned as part of the Joshua curriculum. The remaining two thirds is paid in four payments throughout the year, one of which is a non-refundable $4,500 attendance guarantee due each August before the program begins. While our goal is simply to keep the tuition approximate to what it would cost an average student to live at home for a year, most families find that this arrangement actually saves them money.

Payment Due: Aug 10 $4,500*
  Nov 10 $600
  Feb 10 $600
  Apr 10 $570
 
Total out-of-pocket expense $6270
Weekend employment $1000
Work-deferred credit $1450
 
Total Cost: $8720

*Attendance guarantee is non-refundable

Location

Nestled in the heart of the Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Monument, Hume Lake Christian Camp is an ideal location for solitude, reflection, and refreshment. Just as city lights diminish our ability to perceive the stars in the sky, so the routine expectations of daily life can cloud students’ ability to clearly see the calling God has placed on their lives. The Biblical precedent of removing oneself for a season in order to more clearly focus on the voice of God is obvious, and the Joshua Wilderness Institute provides just such a retreat. Plus, with almost immediate access to numerous backpacking trails, fishing streams, and Hume’s vast array of recreational options, students are seldom at a loss for things to do.

The Joshua Lodge itself provides students with elegant accommodations while at the same time retaining the warm touch and feel of home. Combining 28 deluxe student rooms (with two full size beds, desks, cedar dressers, closets, and individual bathrooms), a full discipleship library, state of the art kitchen and dining room, classroom, three fireplaces, two laundry rooms, an inspirational Great room, and the best view at Hume Lake, the Lodge becomes the center of daily life and activity for our 56 students throughout the year. Our philosophy is that by presenting world class teaching, spectacular food, and comfortable housing in a beautiful mountain lodge surrounded by God’s breathtaking creation, students will be able to commune with their Creator in a way normally made impossible by the distraction of mediocrity.

The Commitment

In order to develop and demonstrate the priority of personal discipline, deny access to practices which might prove a distraction from hearing the voice of God clearly, and make a distinct and determined separation from the world and it’s influences, students are required to commit themselves to the following for the complete duration of the nine month course, including all breaks, days off, and holidays:

  1. To abstain from any and all movies, including theatrical releases, videos, DVDs, or Internet features, with absolutely no exception made for content, company, or occasion.
  2. To abstain from any and all television programming, whether live or prerecorded, and with absolutely no exception made for content, company, or occasion.
  3. To abstain from any and all video games, in any format, or on any platform with absolutely no exception made for content, company, or occasion.
  4. To abstain from any and all music, except live worship music, whether prerecorded in any format or live with absolutely no other exception made for content, company, or occasion.
  5. To abstain from any and all dating, whether alone or in groups, and including phone, post, or email interactions for the purpose of developing future dating activities, except for those with existing relationships as established at the outset of the program, and with absolutely no other exception made for incident, company, or occasion.

As the result of demonstrable experience and our firm belief in the effectiveness of this temporary fast from the world and its distractions, students who fail or refuse to maintain this commitment are permanently dismissed.

Involvement at Hume

The one distinct advantage that the Joshua Wilderness Institute will always have over other programs of this kind is it’s location within the finest Christian Camp and Conference Center in the world. Whether through students’ open access to full time staff members in weekly Pause Groups and mentoring relationships, practical experience gained through weekend work and midweek internships, or regular exposure to the outworking of cutting edge ministry philosophy, there are multiple aspects of the institute’s appeal that simply could not be replicated in any other environment. Some have argued that the view of Hume Lake itself is worth the price of tuition, the training is just frosting on top.