Our Generation Training Center

The Our Generation Training Center was born out of the heart of a local church to train missionaries and Christians workers who desired to reach the world with the gospel in our generation.

Vision Baptist Church of Alpharetta, Georgia, was started in 2006 with the purpose of reaching the lost for Christ and training men and women to serve the Lord. As a ministry of Vision Baptist Church, the Training Center has been blessed by the Lord to equip many young people to serve in churches and mission fields around the world.

In October 2021, the Training Center came under the training arm of Vision Baptist Missions, Inc. VBM also started as a ministry of Vision Baptist Church in 2008 and eventually became its own 501(c)(3) organization in 2017. As a department of VBM, the Training Center is able to train missionaries and Christian workers to be passionate about evangelizing the world in our generation, purposed in church-planting and leader-training, and prepared with humble confidence through life-on-life missions training.

Because the Training Center and VBM are dedicated to partnering with local churches to train and send missionaries worldwide, the Training Center has close links with Vision Baptist Church and other area churches of like faith so that students have the benefit of gaining experience in a local church context and are taught the vital importance of the local church.

In February 2022, God opened the door for VBM to purchase a 16+ acre piece of property in Dawsonville, Georgia, that is home to the daily operations of the Training Center and VBM.

In December 2022, a new independent Board of Directors was appointed to govern VBM and the Training Center. The purpose of this Board is to provide independent oversight and governance for VBM, to ensure that the leadership pursues the mission of the organization in accordance with its policies and procedures, financial guidelines, and doctrinal statement.

Serving the Lord is one of the greatest privileges in the world. We rejoice that God has called you to serve Him in the area of world evangelism!

Remember that with a call to serve comes a call to prepare. The moment you decided to serve the Lord, you made a bold proclamation against the devil. Because the devil will use anything he can to deter you from God’s calling on your life, it is even more crucial that you be properly prepared.

We ask you to consider enrolling in the Our Generation Training Center to be well prepared for the mission God has for you, whether on the mission field or in a church in America. Our graduates have a track record of being well-prepared for ministry.

I hope that this website will give you insight into the Our Generation Training Center, the training arm of Vision Baptist Missions. If I can answer any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. Thank you and God bless!

Jeff Bush
VBM President

Ty and Rebecca Pepperdine left a successful life and career to become missionaries to China in 2017. After God closed the door for them to go, the Pepperdines accepted the position of Asia Representatives and Deputation Director for Vision Baptist Missions. Ty serves as the OGTC Dean of Students. Ty has an associate’s degree from Butte Community College and a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Chico. Rebecca has a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Chico.

ADJUCT FACULTY

Missionary Mark Coffey – B.B.S., Bible, Seminario Bautista Macedonia; M.Min., Missions, Baptist College for World Evangelism

Pastor Kyle Coker – B.Th., Bible, North Georgia Baptist College,

Missionary Jason Holt – B.B.S., Missions, The Crown College; M.A., Theological Studies, Liberty University

Missionary Miguel Sanabria – C.B.S., Missions, Our Generation Training Center

Missionary Kevin White – A.A., Engineering, Patrick & Henry Community College; B.B.S., Missions, The Crown College

Missionary Sam Wilson – B.A., English Education, Liberty Baptist College

Creative Access Missionary – B.B.S., Missions, Baptist College for World Evangelism

Students in the OGTC will be taught the Scriptures. The Bible is our source for growth in spiritual matters. Students will learn and observe doctrine. Teaching in the OGTC is not just head knowledge; it works out in practice. Students will learn how to live cross-culturally, which is vital for missionaries. Below is a list of courses that students will take at the Our Generation Training Center:

Old Testament Studies (7 credit hours) – Four courses teaching the major themes of the Pentatauch, the Historical Books, the Poetic Books, and the Prophetic Books. Attention will be given to world evangelism in the Old Testament as well as a perspective of how to interpret and teach the Old Testament.

Missions Studies (11 credit hours) – Eight courses teaching Introduction, History of Missions, Missionary Methods, Church Planting, Missionary Life for Ladies, World Religions & Cults, and Deputation. These courses aim to provide a Biblical worldview of mission work and establish a foundation for the overseas internship.

Doctrinal Studies (12 credit hours) – Special emphasis will be given to major Bible doctrines in four in-depth courses covering the Bible, God, Christ, Holy Spirit, the Church, Angels, Man, Sin, and Salvation. Other Doctrines courses include Baptist Distinctives, Contemporary Theological Issues, and Eschatology which also covers the books of Daniel and Revelation.

Ministry Studies (11 credit hours) – Each year students will have one course of teaching on Spiritual Warfare and Personal Evangelism. These will be taught separately to men and to women with a different professor each year to give different perspectives on these very important aspects of ministry. Other ministry courses include Discipleship, Biblical Counseling, Church Administration (Men), and Home Administration (Women).

Our goal is to give our students something more than theory. We provide hands-on practice. Before graduating, we expect our students to preach or teach, to see the lost saved, to make disciples, and to be used by God in the ministry. Below are some ways that students get involved in practical training:

Local Church Involvement

The most important part of OGTC training is serving in a local church. Students who are members of a church that is not local to the OGTC are required to get involved in a local church in the area that is in agreement with the doctrinal beliefs of the Our Generation Training Center and with whom the OGTC has a training partnership. Recommendations for and introductions to local churches will be made by the Administration. At the beginning of each semester, students should inform the Administration about what church they will be attending and how they will be serving in that church.

Upon request, the Administration may offer suggestions to pastors of churches where students are members or who desire to establish a training partnership regarding how they can partner with the OGTC in training students for ministry. These suggestions may include:

1. Introducing students to every area of the church’s ministry.
2. Allowing students to participate in things like mission conference planning, business meetings, Sunday school administration, children and teen ministries, bus ministry, evangelism, discipleship, summer camp, music, etc.
3. Allowing male students to administer (or assist with) the Lord’s Supper, to baptize, to preach, and to teach. Allowing female students to teach children or ladies.

Training Expectations

During their time in the Our Generation Training Center, students are expected to aim to do the following so that they are better prepared for the ministry God has for them:

1. Preach or teach at least 100 times publicly.
2. Be faithfully involved in local church ministries.
3. Be faithful to do outreach each week.
4. Develop a habit of arriving at least 15 minutes early to all services.
5. Finish 90 credit hours of class work with a satisfactory grade average before going on your internship.
6. Present the gospel on a regular basis and, with God’s help, lead people to Christ.
7. Be involved in discipling several adults.
8. Read 50 books from the OGTC reading list and seek to discuss them with a member of the OGTC Administration or Faculty.
9. Male Students: Baptize a new convert.
10. Male Students: Lead the Lord’s Supper.
11. Complete a six-month internship on the foreign field.

At the Our Generation Training Center, we have a philosophy of mentoring that we call “life-on-life discipleship.” We believe this method of training is very effective and a biblical pattern seen in the life of Jesus and the Apostle Paul. In his book Mentoring for Mission, Günter Krallman calls it “with-ness,” and we expect each student to seek out time with leaders and members of their local church, OGTC Administration and Faculty, and other Godly Christians to learn, ask questions, and be mentored.

To graduate, OGTC students must complete a six-month internship overseas. The goal is that they train for the field while on the field. We believe that this practical experience overseas gives all of our students, whether they go on to be missionaries, a great perspective on and heart for world evangelism.

Each internship will take place under the personal supervision of a VBM missionary or another missionary/church/ministry approved by the OGTC Administration. A student’s internship will take place at the end of their time in the Training Center and will conclude with a Debrief Meeting with OGTC Faculty at the OGTC Campus.

Students will be given instruction in how to raise support. Their support will be handled through Vision Baptist Missions Home Office. Once they arrive back from their internship, the VBM Home Office will only handle student support for 30 days, unless they are accepted as a VBM missionary before the 30 days is completed.

Students who have completed their internship and plan to become missionaries with Vision Baptist Missions may request to attend the annual VBM Orientation to learn more about the work of Vision Baptist Missions.

Tuition

The Administration strives to keep tuition at a minimum so that education is affordable for each student. 

Cost per credit: $93.33

Cost per Semester: $1,400 (15 credits)

Estimated Cost of Books & Materials per Semester: $100 – $200

Payment Plans:

1. Pay monthly ($350/month)
   Spring semester tuition due: Feb 1st, Mar 1st, April 1st, May 1st
   Fall semester tuition due: Sep 1st, Oct 1st, Nov 1st, Dec 1st
2. Pay for the entire semester in advance and get 10% off (non-refundable)
3. Pay for the entire year (two semesters) in advance and get 20% off (non-refundable)

Housing

Housing for single students living in OGTC accommodation will cost $300 per month or more depending on the type of accommodation. These prices include all utilities except the Internet.

Meals

Students living in OGTC accommodation will have the necessary amenities to prepare their own meals at their own cost.

Foreign Trips

Students are encouraged to take mission trips to gain greater experience in missions, but all trips must be approved and must take place during a break. 

Students are required to take an internship at the end of the program in order to graduate. Each trip will be based on current airfares and cost of living in each country. Students will be encouraged and trained on how to raise offerings and monthly support for each trip, but VBM does not accept any financial responsibility for mission trips.

Payment Schedule

All payments are due by the seventh of the month. Full monthly payments are due even in months with holidays, missions trips, or when classes are not in session the entire month. Checks should be made payable to: “Vision Baptist Missions” and turned in to the wall-mounted lock box in the finance office or mailed to: PO Box 647, Dawsonville, GA 30534. Payment may also be made by card via the link in each invoice or by cash.

Late Payments

Payments not received by the applicable due date (the 7th of the month) will accrue a late fee of $15 per week late. Late fees will begin accruing on the 8th of each month. Students will not be allowed to take missions trips, graduate, or receive transcripts if they have outstanding balances. While it is not the desire of the OGTC to dismiss students for financial reasons, if the administration determines that the student is not making sufficient effort to fulfill obligations, dismissal will result.

Student Debt

Students with an outstanding tuition and/or housing bill of $1000 or more will be asked to drop out of classes until the bill is brought below $1000 and a debt reduction plan is presented and approved. Students may request work assistance to work off any outstanding student debt. Students whose tuition bill is not fully paid up will not be allowed to graduate.

Work

The weekly class schedule is such that it will allow students ample time to work and earn money to offset the expense of their education. All students needing financial help are encouraged to find employment. Work schedules must be agreed upon with the employer prior to accepting employment that will not hinder the student from attending any regularly scheduled church service. Students are not allowed to work at any establishment requiring them to serve alcohol.

General Requirements

Students must meet the following requirements:

1. Be eighteen years of age. (Applicants may be younger than eighteen, but must turn eighteen by the time their first semester begins and before they move into any OGTC accommodation.)
2. Have had a personal experience of salvation through the person and work of Jesus Christ and have been baptized by immersion after salvation in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3. Be a member in good standing of a Baptist church that is in agreement with the doctrinal beliefs of the Our Generation Training Center.
4. Have graduated from high school or received a GED.
5. Provide official transcripts for all (higher education) schools previously attended and be in good standing with those schools, academically, financially, and behaviorally. (Transfer credit will be considered and evaluated by the Administration on a case-by-case basis.)
6. Exhibit the ability to accomplish the requirements for students attending the OGTC.
7. Agree to abide by the doctrinal beliefs, core values, code of conduct, policies, and procedures of the Our Generation Training Center.
8. Have the financial ability to pay for housing, tuition, and fees associated with being a student in the Our Generation Training Center.

Application Process

Below is the process a prospective student must follow to become a student with the Our Generation Training Center:

1. Complete the OGTC Application.
2. Get both a criminal and financial (credit) background check and submit before arriving.
3. Provide proof of financial ability to pay your school bill.
4. Provide the name and contact information of your pastor for reference.
5. Complete an interview with at least one member of the Administration.
6. Satisfy any additional interviews, exams or requirements the Administration may deem necessary.
7. Be approved by the Administration (via an Acceptance Letter).

The OGTC does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, or national origin. The OGTC does reserve the right to refuse admission to any student who fails to meet the requirements for admission and/or who the administration believes is unable to succeed based upon their academic, spiritual, and/or moral background.

For more information and to apply, click the button below.