Pastoral Residency and Internship
Trinity Baptist Church is committed to training the next generation of pastors and leaders. A critical part of this training involves pastoral mentorship, combined with hands-on experience.
We offer two programs (details below)
- The summer internship is a 10-week program for undergraduate men
- The pastoral residency is a 2-year program for post-graduate men and above. It culminates in an ordination examination that seeks to discern and affirm participants’ fitness for pastoral ministry.
Summer Pastoral Internship
The Summer Pastoral Internship is designed to give undergraduate men hands-on experience and in-person mentorship in a multi-faceted, gospel-centered ministry in the center of New England (Concord, NH).
Interns can expect to teach and preach throughout the summer, read books that will enhance their understanding of pastoral ministry, and participate in pastoral staff meetings, deacons meetings, and other church services.
Interns will receive housing and a summer stipend. To ask about an interview, please email Jonathan Threlfall at jthrelfall@tbcnh.org.
Pastoral Residency
Overview
The Pastoral Residency is a two-year on-site course of reading, mentorship, and practical experience that prepares postgraduate for pastoral ministry. Specific duties and requirements for their employment are laid out in their job descriptions and the employee handbook. The program culminates in an ordination examination and efforts to place the ordinee in a staff position in a church. Pastoral Residents are salaried and receive on-campus housing.
Objectives
In keeping with the descriptions of pastoral ministry in Acts 20, 1 Timothy 3, and Titus 1, and 1 Peter 5, as well as other passages in the New Testament, the Pastoral Residency Program is for men who “aspire to the office of overseer,” and whose character is “above reproach” (1 Timothy 3:1-2). Accordingly, the program focuses on (1) cultivating pastoral character, (2) instilling pastoral convictions, and (3) equipping with pastoral competencies.
Areas of Focus
Pastoral Character: Who You Are
Pastors must be “above reproach.” This means that their behavior commends, rather than contradicts, their ministry. Moreover, this behavior is not mere rigid conformity, but heartfelt, Spirit-guided obedience to God. The Pastoral Training Program aims to cultivate good pastoral character.
Pastoral Convictions: What You Know
Pastors must “be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke [refute] those who contradict it,” (Titus 1:9). This requires an in-depth understanding of Biblical theology, systematic theology, and pastoral theology.
Pastoral Competencies: What You Do
Pastors give themselves to “prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). This means that they must be trained in the practice of personal and public prayer. They must also have the skill set for communicating Scripture in both formal (preaching) and informal (“counseling”) contexts. In addition, pastors must have competence as leaders and managers; for, as Scripture says, “if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?” (1 Timothy 3:5).
We have openings for Fall of 2025 to Spring of 2027. To ask about an interview for the pastoral residency, please email Jonathan Threlfall at jthrelfall@tbcnh.org.