“When are you going to become a sponsor?” (Sponsors are adults who serve our junior high, high school, and college ministries faithfully every Friday, often taking an active discipleship role in the lives of our youth.) Different people have asked me this question more than once. Maybe it is because people assume that is where young adults serve when they return from college. Maybe it is because people see that I am passionate about discipleship. Maybe it is even because people recognize some kind of gifting from God in this area. 

Well, this article is about how I instead pursued a ministry internship at CGBC and have in turn, learned a few valuable lessons. That is not to say that I am not involved in the lives of the youth or that I do not care for the youth. Growing up at CGBC and going through the youth ministries was instrumental for my faith to mature. My relationships with my sponsors were an integral part of helping me develop. I treasure my time spent with those younger than me in the faith.recognize some kind of gifting from God in this area.

However, I wanted to continue to grow and be stretched as I continue to make the awkward transition from full-time student to full-time work, with the strong possibility of full-time ministry looming in the future. This is why I decided to ask Pastor Tim at the end of 2013 whether it was possible to do a ministry internship at church. I wanted to expand my ministry capacity. I wanted my understanding of the church to be deepened. I was familiar with youth ministry. I had recently graduated from college, immersed in campus ministry. I wanted to start learning about how adults serve and minister to one another and how to cultivate the same shepherd heart that our Chief Shepherd has for the church. I was thrilled that he obliged and granted my request.

Sometimes people ask me what I am doing with my internship. The day-to-day and even week-to-week activities are frankly, quite vague and uneventful. Because I still work for the State full-time, it makes interacting with the pastors more difficult. But the internship has provided a couple of great opportunities to expand my horizons, push me out of my comfort zone, and challenge my framework for ministry. Three experiences in particular have stood out to me:

First, I attended my first Executive Board meeting in the summer of 2014. I understand if you are confused. Most people would rather do something more exhilarating than spend five hours on a Saturday morning in a meeting. I loved it. I was familiar with a number of different models of how to do ministry among my peer groups, whether it was in TIGS, CYF, or campus ministry. I was familiar with targeting, serving, and reaching out to a specific age group in a para-church context. However, I was not familiar with how leaders shepherd the church. To conceive of ministry as caring for the cradle to the grave expanded the borders formed in my youth. I was encouraged to see the intentionality, the unity, and the care our leaders displayed for the church. From budgets to discipline, they were careful not to push their own agenda, but to consider the congregation. I hope to attend many more meetings.

Secondly, I was asked to do a visitation with Michael Chen to visit Wynshum Luke, the son of Betty Luke in the Cantonese congregation. Now a little about myself – I am someone who likes to be prepared. I remember back in high school when a friend began asking me about my faith. I was stumped. I could not believe that I could articulate so little after spending so much time in the church. This is one of the many reasons why I picked up reading and made it a habit. I never wanted to be without an answer and to be able to articulate the reason for the hope within us in Christ. Nothing however, could prepare me to engage a previously physically active non-Christian who is now paralyzed from the neck-down. This is not a scenario that you read about in a book and go, “Ah, now I understand how to handle this kind of situation.” The mental anguish that he faces is palpable. The needs of his soul are obvious. I knew that there would always be occasions when breadth of knowledge would not be sufficient for many of life’s situation, but this was a stern wake-up call. Sometimes the best tools we have are our ears to listen and our actions to demonstrate God’s love. Our conversation was good and I hope it to be the first of many. It was a good reminder that church leaders and pastors cannot live with their heads in the clouds thinking of heavenly things while preparing sermons. Being a shepherd means to live life with the sheep. I hope to learn how to be gentle in spirit and firm in the truth and meeting with Wynshum reminded me how hard it can be to maintain that balance. Ministry can throw all sorts of difficult surprises at you that put you into the very hearts of people’s lives. My first visitation was a stark reminded of that truth.

Thirdly, the designation of ministry intern has, in part, provided the opportunity to fill the pulpit in other places. I preached at First Chinese Baptist Church on September 28, 2014, a community that has some ties to our own and I have also taken a growing involvement with CGBC’s church plant, Abundant Grace in Folsom. I currently teach and preach at Abundant Grace at least twice a month. It is always challenging to open up God’s Word and to encourage the faith of people you have never met in a place you have never been. These experiences have taught me to be prayerful and have shown me that I need to be dependent on His strength and Spirit. I continue to have a great time preparing for messages and fellowshipping with Christians from other churches after I share with them.

These three experiences along with my conversations with the pastoral staff have all been helpful for me to discern my own call into ministry. It is clear to me that ministry to the church, not just to my friends and peers, requires a lot of time and patience. I know God has used this internship for my good, to conform me into the image of His Son, and I hope to one day be a useful tool in His house to help shepherd the flock. Soli Deo Gloria!