My grandfather pastored a church for 31 years before he retired. He pastored this congregation through a building campaign — where the church meets today — and grew the congregation to more than 500 additional members. There were many struggles along the way, and some were nearly insurmountable. He retired early due to a heart attack brought on by stress — he couldn’t take it any longer. The brunt of the shepherding work was on him. Between Sundays, his schedule was full of counseling, hospital visits, and other ministry duties on top of preparing a sermon. While he was there, the church grew and thrived under his leadership. But when he retired, no one was prepared to continue the work he had begun. There weren’t many leaders to share the shepherding work. The weight of ministry rested almost entirely on his shoulders, and when he stepped away, the church was not ready to stand on its own.
But what if it had been different? What if his mission was to raise up men who could lead with the same heart? What if every pastor viewed his ministry not just as shepherding a flock or shaping a culture, but as preparing the future pastors in their pews? A practical step toward this mission is committing to pastoral internships.
Here are three reasons churches should commit to meaningful pastoral internships:
1. Pastors need to disciple, and aspiring pastors need their pastor to disciple them
Pastors have their work cut out with the congregation’s needs. While each instance of counsel or comfort can be understood as discipleship, the day-by-day crisis phone call inevitably leads to burnout. How beneficial would it be for the pastor if there were a few aspiring pastors who came into his office to talk about doctrine, a good book, and ask ignorant questions about ministry? Pastors need young men who will come to them for discipleship — young men whom they will come to love and confide in. Paul had Timothy, Moses had Joshua, and Jesus Himself had the disciples. Day after day, these mentors showed them the way and eventually launched them into similar roles. The pastoral internship is no different. Pastors have a wealth of ministry experiences to pass down to the next generation of aspiring pastors. In an article by Pastor Warner Aldridge, he stated that these experiences cannot be taught in the classroom. Young aspiring pastors need access to their pastors so they can ask difficult, practical questions. Where else could he learn patience during a frustrating discipline case? Where else could he walk through the next week’s sermon passage then with the one who will preach it? Who else is better equipped to teach him than his own pastor?
2. The church needs to invest spiritually in aspiring pastors
The worst outcome for a seminary student is for him to leave his church thinking, “None of these people know what they’re talking about,” or “I’ve just wasted my time here.” I understand this is an extreme response to a church experience, but the sentiment is common. In an article by David Beavis, he explained that purposeless internships ultimately fail. Often, churches begin their relationship with a young aspiring pastor with a lot of promise, but it ends in disappointment when the church fails to uphold their end. Many church members expect young men to emerge from seminary with the readiness of a seasoned clergyman without caring for their personal needs and spiritual growth first. The aspiring pastor is no exception to a church’s care. He needs encouragement, accountability, and opportunities to learn by doing the work of ministry. More importantly, he needs to learn sound doctrine from the “uneducated” member who has lived and endured through it. As the aspiring pastor walks alongside a church that is willing to do these things, he will be commissioned from it with gratitude. Further, the church will be strengthened as they discern what kind of men they would want to lead them in the future.
3. The church’s future depends on the reproduction of faithful leaders
On the Pastor Well podcast, Dr. Hershael York expressed that the most common failure in pastoral ministry is to retire without someone to take up the mantle. Churches must think beyond the present, keeping their aspiring pastors in mind. What will become of the church when the pastor retires or passes away? Who will lead the people? Surely not the young man in whom the church has hardly invested. This is why the church must invest in them now so they can lead in the future. Should these young men leave the church, the investment would not be in vain. They will go on to lead other congregations with the wisdom they’ve gained. When Joshua was Moses’s intern, the Israelites gave him ample opportunity to exercise patience. When Timothy was Paul’s intern, the people he encountered gave him several opportunities to defend the gospel. These two young men were discipled by an older man and, no doubt, gained a wealth of understanding for their ministries.
After my grandfather’s retirement, the church hired a new pastor with a new vision — to change the culture. Unfortunately, to accomplish this mission, he shunned older members and allegedly rewrote the bylaws to make it nearly impossible to fire him. The people were not prepared for this man. And it nearly destroyed the church.
Churches produce leaders by their willingness to invest in successors. When they intentionally train aspiring pastors, churches preserve theological conviction while ensuring their gospel faithfulness is not tied to any one man’s personality or giftings. The church and its pastors benefit from pastoral interns because of the mutual investment it creates. Pastors are refreshed by their questions. Churches are encouraged by their devotion. And the interns are equipped for their ministry.