Global Training Institute
# a church of many nations
Internship and Residency Program
At Union we believe it is the responsibility and calling of the local church to train and equip leaders for the future. Our goal is to be a place where emerging leaders can discover their gifting, deepen their faith, develop their sense of calling, and be sent out to the places God has called them. For this, we have designed two avenues for aspiring leaders to be sharpened and trained for the future.
Overview
The Internship Program of Union Church is a leadership development opportunity focused on discipleship, leadership development and practical ministry experience. The goal of the internship is to provide a place for emerging leaders to gain leadership skills in a ministry context, discover their gifts, and discern their calling. The length of the internship will be 9 months, beginning in March and ending in December of each year.
The internship emphasizes five core values:
GOSPEL CLARITY
The Gospel is not just what saves us. It is the heart and core Christianity and the Christian life. It is the source of our salvation and the motive and means by which we grow in Christ and serve as Jesus’ hands and feet in the world. The Church needs leaders who are clear not only what the Gospel is, but also what it does; displayed foremost and most profoundly in the life of the leader. We want to be clear on what the Gospel is, and motivated and empowered by its power.
EVANGELISM & MISSION
In a post-everything world evangelism comes with unprecedented challenges. The impact of globalization further adds to the complexity of this task. While it is true that all churches tend to experience growth through church transfer in one way or another, we want to be intentional in reaching people who do not know Jesus. Christ came to seek and to save the lost, and as such we want to join Him in seeing the seed of the Kingdom spread, sown and watered to the ends of the earth.
LIFE-ON-LIFE MISSIONAL DISCIPLESHIP
Discipleship is not a class, and it is not a curriculum. Discipleship is a direction, where we pattern our lives after King Jesus and apprentice under Him. Christian education, teaching and training are vital, and certainly have their place in the body of Christ, but they are not the primary means by which we know and experience the power of the Gospel in our lives. At the heart of Jesus’ ministry was a deeply personal, intimate involvement in the lives of his disciples. As such, we need a spiritual development pathway that is relational and focuses on small group discipleship and one on one mentoring.
EMOTIONAL HEALTH
There is a direct correlation between our emotional health and our spiritual life. This is also true for our leadership. We give to people what we are, and therefore reflect and impart to others the emotional and spiritual state we are in. Jesus taught that it profits us nothing to gain the world and lose our souls. Christ’s call, then, is to lead out of an abiding relationship with Him. Our aim is to be leaders who have done the hard work of examining and cultivating our interior world.
PRAYER
Prayer is our first response, not our last resort. We want to know Jesus and learn to abide in Him. We want to see the Kingdom of God come and the glory of God fill the earth like the water covers the sea. None of this can happen apart from prayer. Prayer is not a ministry of the church, it is the ministry of the church, and yet for many of us it does not always come naturally. We want to be disciples and leaders who are shaped and marked by a life of prayer.
The Internship takes leaders and places them in areas of ministry to gain exposure to work in the local church and to gain practical ministry experience. The goal of the internship is to align interns with areas that they have interest in, and passion for. In doing so, our desire is to see leaders emerge from this experience having discovered their gifts and possessing a clearer sense of God’s leading in their lives for the future.
Internship Program Outcomes
GOSPEL CLARITY
Gospel identity centered on the gospel of grace and the work of Jesus.
NEW DEPTH OF FAITH
New depth of faith through discipleship, periodic classes, and assigned readings.
DISCOVERED GIFTING
Discovered gifting through a gifts assessment, personality assessment and through serving in a church ministry area.
DEEP SENSE OF CALLING
Deepened sense of calling through discipleship, mentorship, prayer and serving.
GAINED PROFICIENCY
Gained proficiency working at a church in a ministry where they already have experience or a passion for serving, building teams, caring for others.
PREPARATION FOR LFIE
Preparation for life with training in Bible literacy, vocational ministry, practical life/work skills, team building, and leadership development.
Overview
The Residency Program of Union Church is a one to two-year leadership laboratory experience focused on discipleship, leadership development and practical ministry training. The length of the residency will be dependent on the individual needs and calling of the leader. At the end of year one, the Lead Pastor will assess, in collaboration with the Resident, if it is appropriate for them to continue for a second year.
Training will center around nine core values:
GOSPEL CLARITY
The Gospel is not just what saves us. It is the heart and core Christianity and the Christian life. It is the source of our salvation and the motive and means by which we grow in Christ and serve as Jesus’ hands and feet in the world. The Church needs leaders who are clear not only what the Gospel is, but also what it does; displayed foremost and most profoundly in the life of the leader. We want to be clear on what the Gospel is, and motivated and empowered by its power.
EVANGELISM
In a post-everything world evangelism comes with unprecedented challenges. The impact of globalization further adds to the complexity of this task. While it is true that all churches tend to experience growth through church transfer in one way or another, we want to be intentional in reaching people who do not know Jesus. Christ came to seek and to save the lost, and as such we want to join Him in seeing the seed of the Kingdom spread, sown and watered to the ends of the earth.
LIFE-ON-LIFE MISSIONAL DISCIPLESHIP
Discipleship is not a class, and it is not a curriculum. Discipleship is a direction, where we pattern our lives after King Jesus and apprentice under Him. Christian education, teaching and training are vital, and certainly have their place in the body of Christ, but they are not the primary means by which we know and experience the power of the Gospel in our lives. At the heart of Jesus’ ministry was a deeply personal, intimate involvement in the lives of his disciples. As such, we need a spiritual development pathway that is relational and focuses on small group discipleship and one on one mentoring.
LEAD EQUIPPER / TRAINER
The role of a pastor is to be a leader who is the chief equipper of his people. Ephesians 4 teaches that all the saints are gifted, given talents and skills, and have a calling to be engaged in the work of ministry. Scripture teaches that we are new creations in Christ indwelled with the Holy Spirit, ushered into a new community called the Church, and given a new calling for the sake of the Gospel. The pastor is to equip the people of God to do the good work He has prepared for them.
INTENTIONAL LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Leaders in churches do not appear magically. Through discipleship and equipping, the church’s primary leader¬ship has a calling of God to multiply leaders for the sake of the spread of the Gospel and the building up of the Body of Christ. Coupled with life-on-life discipleship, this is a long-term strategy for church health and growth. While its results are initially slow and tedious, over time they yield exponential fruit in strengthening, empowering and engaging leaders in Kingdom work.
MISIÓN INTEGRAL (INTEGRAL MISSION)
The Gospel is Good News for all people and is spread through not just what we say but also through what we do. Jesus came not to be served, but to serve, and has commissioned us to be instruments of mercy and grace as we seek to pursue the wholeness of our communities. Thus, the calling of Christ is for His people not just evangelism but also social transformation. Our aim is to train leaders to serve others, live and give generously, and give themselves away.
EMOTIONALLY HEALTHY LEADERSHIP
There is a direct correlation between our emotional health and our spiritual life. This is also true for our leadership. We give to people what we are, and therefore reflect and impart to others the emotional and spiritual state we are in. Jesus taught that it profits us nothing to gain the world and lose our souls. Christ’s call, then, is to lead out of an abiding relationship with Him. Our aim is to be leaders who have done the hard work of examining and cultivating our interior world.
PRAYER
Prayer is our first response, not our last resort. We want to know Jesus and learn to abide in Him. We want to see the Kingdom of God come and the glory of God fill the earth like the water covers the sea. None of this can happen apart from prayer. Prayer is not a ministry of the church, it is the ministry of the church, and yet for many of us it does not always come naturally. We want to be disciples and leaders who are shaped and marked by a life of prayer.
CROSS-CULTURAL COMPETENCY
We live in multicultural world that demands leaders who possess cross-cultural competency. Further, we have much to learn from the global church, and those outside of our own home culture. Our aim is to train leaders who can navigate the cultural complexity of our world and reflect the beauty of the global church in their leadership.
The Residency also offers flexibility for those who are discerning and preparing for a variety of ministry callings. While there is much in common between these callings, the residency is designed so that there is also space to customize the experience to the specific calling of the resident. This shaping will primarily take place through additional readings, one-to-one mentorship meetings and setting goals unique to the resident’s ministry emphasis.
Residency Program Outcomes
CHURCH PLANTING
Church Planting for those who feel called to plant a church somewhere in the world.
LOCAL CHURCH MINISTRY
General Church Ministry for those who feel called to serve in a variety of ministries within the local church context.
GLOBAL MISSIONS
Global Missions for those who feel called to lead cross-culturally outside their country of origin.
Av. Angamos Oeste 1155, Miraflores
Sundays at 10:30am
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