The Lakelight Fellowship Program: Keller
Exploring the collision between Christianity and the Modern World.
Date
4 Sep
-
2025
Location
Online
Start time
7:00 pm
Cost
Standard:
$
Early Bird:
$
Student:
$
Speakers
Nancy Ortberg
Overview
Program Description
Program Description
The Lakelight Fellowship program is a two-semester learning community dedicated to understanding how the historic Christian gospel collides with the contemporary western world.
This year, we will dive into the works of Tim Keller who devoted his life to communicating the Christian message to late-modern, western people. We will mine the riches of Keller’s work, so we can eloquently answer the culture’s questions with the gospel’s answers.
The Fellowship will be divided into 3 questions:
1) Is the gospel good – does it offer fulfillment for our longings and solutions to our problems?
2) Is the gospel true – can it hold up against rational scrutiny and good-faith objections?
3) Does the gospel work – can it transform our relationships, our work and our entire lives?
The Keller Fellowship is a two semester online program. You may apply for one semester or both semesters. Applications are open today and they close June 30th.
You can learn more about the program at one of our information nights. Register here!
First Semester: Is The Gospel Good?
During the first semester, we will explore how the gospel fulfills the longings of our hearts and answers the questions of our minds. Through interacting with Tim Keller's book Making Sense of God alongside other relevant readings, we will gain clarity on secularism's offerings for meaning, satisfaction, and hope among other basic human needs. Then, we will expose how secularism's resources for addressing those perennial human questions are not rationally consistent nor existentially satisfying. After that, we will shine the gospel's light unto those areas and see for ourselves how Christianity can solve contemporary problems, offering unparalleled resources for western people to flourish in this life and the next.
Second Semester: Is The Gospel True & Can it transform our lives?
If the first semester is dedicated to discovering how the gospel can be good for modern people, the second semester is dedicated to investigating if it is true and if it works in our every day lives. Can Christianity's claims hold up against historical investigation and rational scrutiny? Can it answer the most profound objections that modern people bring, such as the doctrine of hell, the history of the Church's injustice and the questions of science? Following along Tim Keller's book The Reason For God, we will consider whether his answers to those questions suffice. In the final part of the semester, we will apply the gospel to a single area of life: our marriage, our work or our suffering. Each fellow will complete a project designed for deepening their connection to God through applying His wisdom to one of those areas.
Elements
Elements
- Our fellowship will involve 8 group sessions over 16 weeks. Sessions will take place on Thursdays 6:30-8pm on zoom.
- Semester 1 will begin September 4th and end December 11th.
- Semester 2 will begin January 8th and end April 16th.
- Sessions will be 90 minutes long consisting of instruction and discussion of the week’s reading.
- Participants will complete 1-2 hours of weekly readings paired with discussion questions.
- Fellows will complete 3 extended assignments to maximize their understanding and application of the reading.
- Each fellow will receive access to Lakelight-exclusive resources and content.
What are the key dates?
Key Dates:
Information Meeting 1: May 7th (via zoom) (Register here)
Informational Meeting 2: June 8th. (Register here)
Application Deadline: June 30th
Acceptance Letters: August 1
Opening Session Semester 1: Thursday, September 4th
Weekly Cohorts: Thursday Evenings 6:30-8pm
Closing Session Semester 1: Thursday, December 11th
Opening Session Semester 2: Thursday, January 8th
Weekly Cohorts: Thursday Evenings 6:30-8pm
Closing Session Semester 2: Thursday, April 16th
Tuition
Tuition (per person):
$300 per semester
This number covers books, licensing fees, technology fees and other operating costs.
FAQs
FAQS
What is your ideal candidate for the Fellows program?
We look for fellows who are enthusiastic about theological exploration, formative spiritual practices, and engaging with the works of Tim Keller to better understand Christianity and the Modern World. This person is eager to learn, eager to grow, and willing to prioritize the program. The ideal candidate is not seeking pastoral ministry (i.e. seminary credit), but deeper discipleship in their current life calling.
What are the attendance requirements?
The Fellowship is an intensive discipleship experience. Because of this, we expect each fellow to be at all scheduled evenings throughout the program. We recommend prayerfully considering the extent of this commitment. Please let us know if you have known scheduling conflicts.
What does an average Thursday evening look like?
Expect some variety week-to-week. In general however, a mixture of presentation and group discussion will last for about 75 minutes. We will end the time with 15 minutes reflecting on the key learnings of the day and introducing the following week’s reading and assignments.
What is your tuition and what does it cover?
The total tuition is 300 per semester. The tuition covers all licensing fees, books and operation costs to run the program. Payments are due at the beginning of the semester.
What if I am unable to pay the tuition?
As much as possible, we do not want financial costs to eliminate an otherwise suitable candidate. To that end, we have some scholarships available. For more information, you may email gwishnew@christchurchil.org
When is the application due?
June 30th, 2024
Can someone outside of Christ Church do this?
Yes, we are happy for anyone in the area to apply for the program. Please invite your friends. Selections will be made on fit for the program, not on any specific church affiliation.
What is the workload for an LLI Fellow?
A baseline estimate is 4-5 hours a week with 2 devoted to the weekly meetings and 2-3 devoted to course work. It is about equivalent to a graduate level class.
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