About Us
A bit about our vision, leadership, and history.
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YWAM Grimerud equips missional young people and raises them up to live whole heartedly for God. Our passion is to reach the least reached nations as well as the post-Christian west. We want to cross borders into foreign cultures and into all spheres of society.
God has spoken to us: “What you hope for in the nations, let it happen here!”
Our passion is also to be a part of a national movement in Norway, calling this nation back to God.
Our heart beats for revival that brings reformation, a new wave of missions to the nations, and for the unity of the body of Christ. We believe we are a community that is a catalyst to champion new teams and ministries to Norway and to the world.
Since 1975 when the first young families moved in, the lakeside farm called Grimerud has been a missions training centre. From the beginning this place has been instrumental in an awakening movement in the Norwegian church, calling young people to committed discipleship, and a missional lifestyle.
Now, over 45 years later. YWAM Grimerud is still buzzing with life, housing more ministries and UofN schools than ever. We are a community of all ages, with lots of young people and families serving together in the great commission.
Youth With A Mission is a global movement of Christians from many cultures, age groups, and Christian traditions, dedicated to serving Jesus throughout the world. Also known as YWAM (pronounced “WHY-wham”), we unite in a common purpose to know God and to make Him known.
Back when we began in 1960, our main focus was to get youth involved in missions. Today, we still focus on youth, and we also involve people aged 9 to 90+. We currently work in more than 1,100 locations in over 180 countries, with a staff of over 18,000.
YWAM’s University of the Nations (U of N) operates in 650 locations in 160 countries, providing programs in approximately 100 languages around the world.
The U of N is committed to teach and develop men and women spiritually, culturally, intellectually and professionally.
The U of N aims to equip students to serve in all spheres of society and in all nations. The goal of the U of N is to teach students how to apply biblical truth practically and to fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).
The U of N offers Associate’s degrees, Bachelor’s degrees, and Master’s degrees from its seven colleges. The seven colleges have been designed to bring God’s truth and hope to the seven most influential areas of society.
These colleges are:
College of the Arts and Sports
College of Christian Ministries
College of Communication
College of Counseling and Health Care
College of Education
College of Humanities and International Studies
College of Science and Technology
There are also six interdisciplinary centers:
Community Development Centre
The Centre for Discipleship Training Schools
The Family Resource Centre
The Student Mobilization Centre
The GENESIS Centre
The Centre for European Studies
Here are some answers to the questions we receive the most about our services.
If we missed anything, please do not hesitate to contact us. We’ll be happy to help.
YWAM stands for “Youth With A Mission” and was started by an American, Loren Cunningham in 1960 out of Lausanne, Switzerland. It is a missions movement of young people to know God and make God known. We focus on both short term schools to disciple people and reach the nations, and long term projects to serve our communities with the love of Jesus.
YWAM is not affiliated with any one denomination. Instead, it’s made up of Christians from many denominations, dedicated to serving Jesus throughout the world. We do believe in the authority of the Bible, practicing hearing God’s voice, and being obedient to God.
To join YWAM as staff anywhere in the world, you need to have your own financial support. Many YWAM locations help people put together a prayer and financial support team (e.g., friends, home groups, churches, relatives, etc.) before they join as staff, though this isn’t offered at every location.
In order to work long-term with YWAM, you have to successfully complete a DTS. Once you’ve got that under your belt, we recommend the School of Missions, which prepares you to succeed long-term on the mission field. Our experienced staff will walk with you throughout your time with us and make sure you get equipped and planted in the nations where God is leading you.
Nope! YWAM has no headquarters; it is decentralized (which means that each base or location has its own leadership). These campuses are accountable to an overseeing group of elders. Each base is part of the larger YWAM family, committed to the same values and principles. For more information about YWAM’s structure please go to our international website at www.ywam.org.
YWAM Grimerud is the national office for all of YWAM Norway, so there are a lot of people and connections here!
YWAM offers programs for all ages! While much of YWAM’s outreach and training focus on young people, many second-career missionaries join YWAM as well. You can find people from age 8 to 80 in YWAM and in our training schools! YWAM Grimerud is very family friendly, we believe in empowering the whole family into missions which means we have many families who live here on base and work with us.
Everyone in YWAM must have first successfully completed a Discipleship Training School (DTS). Once you have completed the DTS, you can apply to join our staff team.