‘Borders Expanding’ for Dare to Be a Daniel

On the surface, 2011 may possibly be the most impactful year ever for Dare to Be a Daniel. The sixth year of ministry for tweens and young teens at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association witnessed 6,982 students trained as Daniels equipped to spread the Gospel to their peers.

A big chunk of those (4,416) came from 19 camps throughout the country using the 5-session resource.

Without hesitation, Chad Miller, director for Dare to Be a Daniel, calls 2011, “the biggest year,” in the ministry’s relative infancy. “For the first time we felt like we were impacting these kids’ homes and communities.”

But there’s one thing that will likely keep 2011 from being a true watershed year.

The year 2012.

Dare to Be a Daniel materials will be deployed in four different countries in four different languages in the coming year.

Australia, Haiti, the United Kingdom and Canada are all 2012 targets for some form of Dare to Be a Daniel to be implemented, using English, Creole, French and a Spanish version geared for Spanish-speaking churches in the United States.

“We’re seeing the borders expand,” said Miller, who reported the current number of Daniel graduates to date at more than 24,000. “I’m very much excited and humbled by the doors that are opening.”

And for Miller, this year’s camp response has fueled the ministry as he starts to see his vision of “getting the Gospel beyond the campfire,” become a reality thanks to conversations on daretobeadaniel.com as well as the Facebook page.

The 5-week Dare to Be a Daniel session has penetrated the hearts of many campers this summer. “Camps really want to see real discipleship happen but they only have them for five days,” Miller said. “This is a way for camps to be a training ground, equipping them to do the work of the ministry. Just like Paul said to Timothy.”

Tweens and young teens are also finding training and community resources online resource at daretobeadaniel.com, which currently has more than 21,000 users.

The end result is a movement that is starting to take place in middle and high schools around the country where students are sharing Christ with their peers.

“We know from studies and research that the best way to reach young teens and tweens is through their friends,” said Miller, who is passionate about the possibility of reaching students through camp ministry.

“We know that things happen at camps that don’t happen anywhere else,” he said. “Kids come to Christ at camps. What if it didn’t have to end there?”