School of Daniel participants worship before going on an outreach to “activate” the principles they’ve been learning. Photo by Kevin Bourne/AMOVEO Media

School of Daniel helps Christians put biblical principles into practice

“One of the biggest areas of lack is in practical spiritual training”

By Craig Macartney and ChristianWeek Senior Correspondent | June 14, 2015

OTTAWA, ON—Kingdom Culture Church is hosting the School of Daniel, a three-week mini-school aimed at equipping Christians to live as Kingdom-minded leaders in their daily lives.

“Ninety-eight per cent of the Body of Christ is in the marketplace, so the whole premise of the School of Daniel is to train and equip the Body of Christ, not just within the four walls of the Church, but also outside,” explains the Ottawa school’s founder, Shawn Gabie. “It helps [students] realize there is more to their workplace than a time-clock and doing their duty. We look at how to bring the Kingdom and how to make faith real in that area.”

The school is broken up into three one-week-long modules held throughout the year. The most recent module, which ran from June 22 to 26, focused on understanding business and finance through a Kingdom lens.

“If God wants to give you wealth, He wants to give it to you with a vision and a purpose. Daniel [in the Bible] was a man who served in the royal service for 60 years. He had great influence in a system that was opposed to the Kingdom, yet he influenced Babylon in an incredible way. The school is about helping people discover what that looks like in their lives, that it’s possible, and to give them the necessary tools to get there. It’s like a small version of spiritual university.”

In addition to hearing messages from international speakers, School of Daniel participants are taken onto the streets, to practice or “activate” the spiritual principles they are learning. By partnering with mentors and learning in a structured environment that facilitates “activation,” Gabie believes participants will be more confident applying the lessons in their daily lives.

“One of the biggest areas of lack is in practical spiritual training when it comes to leading in your specific area,” he states. “People these days are looking for less theory. Study is the entry point, but the greatest learning is the application of how to take study and make it palatable in every day life.”

Kristen Cucan says she has been totally transformed by the outreaches.

“It wasn’t complicated. It was just sharing with people, looking for sick people and paying attention to what God might be speaking to you for someone. I was blown away by seeing the reality of my faith being applied and seeing people’s lives touched.”

Cucan, who has attended for several years, says the outreach last year was “a marking moment” in her life. She and a fellow participant prayed with several people they met and saw God perform miraculous healings. On her way home, she ran into an acquaintance and noticed he was limping.

“My first reaction was to tell him, ‘I know someone who can heal you,’” she says. “He had a problem with a nerve in his back that had caused him to limp for several years. I prayed for him and he was completely healed. It was an amazing opportunity to share the gospel with him.”

Cucan says she had never seen God work that way before the outreach.

“That was a fruit of the training and the outreach and I haven’t been the same since. I’ve seen God do that through me and I know if He can do it once, He will do it again if I am willing to step out.”