Our Story
It Started with Two Ordained Ministers
Freedom Trainings was born out of the frustration of two ordained ministers in February of 1999. Were these two men burned out and wounded? No. It was just the opposite. They had experienced much success in ministry, but they had a conviction that ministry success was not a Biblical goal. When they closely examined the Biblical model of disciple making they had a wake-up call. The ministry that Jesus modeled was all about: Intimate Relationships.
A Focus on the Jesus Model of Making Disciples
The two close friends decided to focus on the Jesus model of making disciples. They knew that the way Jesus did ministry worked powerfully 2,000 years ago. So why would it not work today? They grabbed a small handful of men and began to make disciples in a more Biblical new way.
Many of their efforts failed , but they kept moving forward. The two brave pioneers would not give up easily. In 2008, they invited a small group of men to a ranch outside of Lindale, Texas. It was there that Men’s Bootcamp was born, and men’s lives were transformed in amazing ways.
A men’s spiritual renewal was underway in East Texas. Men from churches of all denominations began to participate in this masculine revival. Pastors were excited to see the men in their pews come alive. The question was asked, “What exactly are you doing to disciple these men in such a powerful way?” It was a good question. It was then that we discovered that the primary ministry activity was: destroying isolation in the lives of men. It was that simple. The men’s movement was, in essence, giving men the spiritual brothers they needed to be spiritually healthy.
Since then, many exciting things have happened. The women’s side of the ministry began to take off in 2013 with the addition of Soft Warrior -- our weekend God encounter for women. We have added several other God encounters that serve as tools for any local church that is committed to the Jesus method of making disciples: relationally, experientially, and one person at a time.
Many of their efforts failed , but they kept moving forward. The two brave pioneers would not give up easily. In 2008, they invited a small group of men to a ranch outside of Lindale, Texas. It was there that Men’s Bootcamp was born, and men’s lives were transformed in amazing ways.
A men’s spiritual renewal was underway in East Texas. Men from churches of all denominations began to participate in this masculine revival. Pastors were excited to see the men in their pews come alive. The question was asked, “What exactly are you doing to disciple these men in such a powerful way?” It was a good question. It was then that we discovered that the primary ministry activity was: destroying isolation in the lives of men. It was that simple. The men’s movement was, in essence, giving men the spiritual brothers they needed to be spiritually healthy.
Since then, many exciting things have happened. The women’s side of the ministry began to take off in 2013 with the addition of Soft Warrior -- our weekend God encounter for women. We have added several other God encounters that serve as tools for any local church that is committed to the Jesus method of making disciples: relationally, experientially, and one person at a time.
