Ashland Church Pastoral Intern Program
Ashland Church is committed to reproducing pastors and church leaders who are sent to serve the local church around the world. Our pastoral intern program seeks to equip men who will serve the local church as pastors, church planters, and missionaries.
This objective is best accomplished within the context of the local church. God has designed the local church to be where we cultivate our skills and gifts for ministry. In and through the local church, we discern our calling to pastoral ministry. The local church is God’s instrument in the world, responsible for acknowledging and affirming future pastors. It’s the local church that sends planters, missionaries, and leaders for the sake of the mission around the world.
Our prayer is that through Ashland Church’s pastoral intern program, many men will be sent out to pastor, plant, and serve among the unreached. This program also serves as a tool to develop leaders who are called to stay and faithfully serve Ashland Church in Richmond, Kentucky.
Discerning the Call
Interns are encouraged to reevaluate their progress at all times. At the beginning of each year, they will meet with the pastor(s), staff, and other recommended leaders before deciding to move forward in the program. A primary goal of the program is to help men discern their call to ministry. By design, not everyone who starts the program will move to completion. We not only celebrate God’s will that men are called to pastoral ministry, but as it unfolds through this process, we also celebrate God’s wisdom in calling men to witness the gospel in a myriad of other ways.
Three-Year Process
The intern program is a three-year process. Interns will move from examining the call to ministry in year one, to formally serving the church in year two, to being sent by Ashland in year three.
Three-Year Limit
The program is designed for the intern to keep moving forward through each phase over three years. Ideally, the intern will move from the program to serve the local church. Our prayer is that once completed, the intern will be sent AT Ashland or sent FROM Ashland. Year three in the program is meant to help lead the intern into a pursuit of their calling and role in the local church. This pursuit could take one year or many years. While the pastor(s), staff, and leadership will help guide the intern in this pursuit, they will not remain in the program beyond year three. The intern program is not to be seen as a constant or continual ministry position at Ashland.
1st Year – Called?
During the first year, the intern will work through what it means to be called to pastoral ministry. As they become acquainted with pastoral ministry in the church, each intern will receive guidance from the pastor(s), staff, and church body to help answer the question, “Am I called?” The intern will need to come to terms with their own desire for pastoral ministry. They will ask the question, “Do I have the desire to develop the pastoral skill, discipline, and grit it takes to love the church well? Along the way, the intern will have to come to terms with not only the way they perceive the church, but also the way the local church perceives them.
2nd Year – Serve?
In year two, the intern will investigate their desires, skillset, gifts, and the grit needed for ministry. Interns will be given strategic oversight within a significant ministry of the church. They will work alongside church leaders to be responsible for such things as planning, scheduling, vision casting, volunteer recruitment, communication, mobilization, and execution of weekly ministry. Depending on ministry needs in the church and the intern’s skill set, certain ministry positions could be paid a part-time salary. All paid positions at Ashland are determined and approved by the pastor(s) and personnel team.
3rd Year – “Sent?”
If qualified, the intern will spend this year applying for ordination at Ashland. The pastor(s) and other church leaders will be strategically involved in encouraging the intern to pursue ordination. The intern will consider the need for more training and theological education. We will assist the intern in answering the questions:
- “Do I need additional seminary education?”
- “Should I seek training through a mission organization like Radius International?”
- “Am I called to serve another church or in another city?”
- “Should I pursue opportunities with the International Mission Board, the North American Mission Board, or another mission agency?”
In exploring these options, the intern will also be answering the question, “Am I called to stay and serve Ashland Church in whatever way possible?”
Each year of the program the intern will have the same core ministry requirements. The core requirements integrate the intern into the mission and ministry of Ashland Church.
Monthly Interns Meetings
The heart of the core requirements is the monthly intern meeting. During this time, we preach sermons, critique sermons, and review books together. Interns are assigned and helped with ministry tasks. We challenge, encourage, and pray for one another. Supplemental material is often presented during the month to generate additional conversation during our meetings. Interns should not miss more than two meetings in a year. After 2 absences, the intern would have missed a significant portion of the year’s training.
Assigned Reading
At each meeting, we assign a reading for the next. Every intern will be required to review a book not previously read or reviewed. One intern will be selected to lead a review and discussion for each book assigned. The review should be turned in to each of the pastors.
All book reviews are to be 3 pages, double-spaced with 12 pt Times New Roman font and 1-inch margins. The review should include a brief summary, critical analysis, and benefit for ministry. Reviews are to be turned in to the pastors at the end of each meeting.
Monthly Meetings with a Pastor
A unique benefit of the interns program is personal one-on-one meetings with the pastors. Each intern is required to meet once a month with one of the pastors on a rotating basis. Interns are responsible for contacting and coordinating these meetings with the pastors. Interns should come to each meeting prepared to ask good questions and get feedback about ministry.
Interns should always communicate when they are going to miss any services, meetings, or events.
Worship Gatherings
Interns should not miss more than four Sundays in a year and must always communicate with the pastors when they will miss. Opportunities at other churches and mission trips do not count against this requirement.
BFG
Interns must maintain weekly involvement in a Bible Fellowship Group. By year 3, we expect each intern to be leading a BFG.
Service
Interns must serve in whatever way needed, but also be engaged in at least one area of ministry where they are moving toward leadership responsibilities by year two of the program. The pastors and staff will guide you through the process and may move you around in the overall church ministry. Make sure to plug in and serve in ministries where you could see yourself having a substantial leadership role.
Events
Interns must serve at all ministry events at Ashland. Show up early. Have a ministry presence during the event. Stay to help take down and clean up.
Ashland VBS
Interns should make every effort to serve at VBS. Each year in the program leadership responsibility should increase. VBS is the second week in July and is essential to understanding what our local church community is all about. It’s more than an outreach event. It’s an opportunity to experience biblical fellowship serving alongside each and every member of our church.
Congregational Meetings
We typically have a congregational meeting on the first Sunday of each year. But interns must also seek to be present at any specially-called congregational meetings throughout the year.
Miscellaneous Opportunities
There will be other opportunities for education, observation, spiritual and ministry growth, as well as encouragement throughout the year (i.e., CrossCon, Pillar Conference, etc). Interns will be encouraged but not required to attend such events.
Work
Interns must be available to help with weekly tasks around the building. This may involve cleaning, preparing the baptistry, moving chairs, setting up and breaking down from ministry events, etc.
Care
Interns must make hospital/shut-in visits as well as counseling situations in which they may be equipped to help.
Evangelism
Interns must participate in personal evangelism. We will periodically ask to hear about your evangelism encounters as we take prayer requests each month.
Preaching
Interns will preach during meetings as assigned by the pastors. You must also seek to find preaching and teaching opportunities. Opportunities may include preaching at nursing homes, local missions, campus ministry, or churches. Sermons should be recorded and sent to the interns so that we can critique them at our meetings.
Discipleship
Interns must disciple at least two other men consistently for 9 months.
Family
If married, lead your wife and kids in active service at Ashland. There is no requirement for your wife to lead any ministry. However, she must joyfully serve this church and have a ministry presence.
Over three years, the intern should participate at least once in each of the following opportunities or events and present an observational report for each. In general, the report should follow the same guidelines as the book reviews.
- One Mission Trip to NOLA, Peru, or other Ashland-led international mission location.
- One worship service and one staff meeting at Ashland Avenue Baptist Church.
- One worship service and one staff meeting at Ashland Community Church.
- One worship service and one staff meeting at Ashland Danville.
Coordinate with the pastors and staff of each church / campus to make sure it’s a convenient time to attend. Write a three-page paper that details specific ways you see the Ashland vision and philosophy being uniquely implemented in a different context.
Attend either an annual Southern Baptists Convention or Kentucky Baptist Convention and write a 3-page response concerning the importance and efficiency of partnering with the conventions for the sake of the Great Commission.