Put simply: There are fewer prepared church leaders than the MWD churches need.

The “typical” path to pastoring a church is to go to college, then seminary, and then find that match between calling and church setting. This is a valuable artery for staffing churches with trained qualified leaders. Across the country and in our own district, churches need leaders, but leaders are getting harder to find.

However, this artery is struggling of late to supply enough to meet the demand. We need to augment the typical path.

Therefore, the Midwest District intends to provide a secondary pathway to identify those who have potential but may lack formal training and experience. This can be the 18-year-old who shows leadership, the associate pastor or staff member who still lacks some key training, someone making a mid-life career shift, and so on.

We need “on-the-job” training opportunities for future church leaders to gain experience, study relevant teachings, and help churches accomplish their mission.

The MWD is building a network of churches and leaders that provide a variety of “entry points” for gaining ministry experience, curriculum to build knowledge, and coaches to shepherd the Ministry Apprentices through the process.

Ministry areas include: Youth, Worship, Teaching / Preaching, Counseling / Care, Mission / Outreach / All Peoples, Elder / Lay Leader, 2nd Chair Pastor, and Women in ministry.

There are three primary tracks for Ministry Apprentices:

• Level 1: general ministry internship with a core curriculum (50 weeks)
• Level 2: Level 1 plus a ministry emphasis (48 weeks plus a short-term mission trip)
• Level 3: like Level 2, but a more engaged program (72 weeks plus a short-term mission trip)

Everything starts with people. The primary roles are:

• Ministry Apprentice: The participant training in the program. Apprentices go out, try out, and work out.
• Coach: A “mentor” to the Ministry Apprentice to help them progress through the program and the curriculum. Coaches instruct, inspire, inquire, and entrust.
• Network Church: A church providing supervised ministry opportunities. Network Churches direct, deploy, and discern.
• Organizer: A representative from the MWD to oversee all the moving parts and connect directly with the Ministry Apprentices. Organizers communicate, coordinate, collaborate, and champion.

These roles and activities are described further in a separate document.

The process has a certain form with prescribed rhythms and goals, but is also intended to be flexible to meet the needs of both Ministry Apprentices and Network Churches.

Included in the training is a curriculum that relates to the specific areas of ministry (Network Churches can substitute their own preferred materials if approved by the Organizer). TEDS certificates will be utilized for more advanced training.

• We desire that Ministry Apprentices will discern God’s calling on them and enrich the Church through fully-qualified ministry, via an atypical path. If appropriate, we desire an EFCA license for the apprentice who completes the program.
• We desire that Coaches will multiply their influence by entrusting the Gospel ministry to faithful men and women who will be competent to teach others also.
• We desire that Network Churches will benefit from the ministry of apprentices and then also benefit other churches by preparing and launching these new leaders.
• We desire that Organizers will serve the churches for them to develop and be led by faithful leaders

Our plans will take a few years to fully implement, so we are choosing a single program to begin with. We propose a “Gap Year” program designed primarily for a recent high school graduate to explore vocational ministry before entering college (although we can flex). By the end of the program, we expect the Ministry Apprentice:

1. To have acquired useful experience and capacities to build up the church and make disciples, either vocationally or in lay capacity.
2. To sense the Lord’s leading toward or away from vocational ministry (both conclusions are “successful” outcomes!).

Network Churches

There must be enough participating churches willing to build into and benefit from Ministry Apprentices in various areas of ministry. A particular apprentice’s track may include assignments at more than one church so that the responsibilities can be shared. 

Network Churches see the big picture value of investing in future leaders, even if those leaders are launched to another area of Kingdom work.

Coaches

Coaches are those leaders who have the capacity to build into future leaders, most often current or former pastors, church staff members, and missionaries. A coach helps the Ministry Apprentice translate knowledge and experience into a robust theology of ministry.

Coaches see their contribution to the Church as passing on to the next generation what they have learned over the years.

Finances

Ministry Apprentices need to be financially compensated for the work they do so that they can afford to do it. This will take donors who share the value of the process as well as Network Churches who have the capacity to hire apprentices.

If a church wants to be a Network Church but cannot afford an apprentice, we still want them to be involved! This will require other individuals and churches to invest financially in the program.

Network Churches can also be creative: a church member who can house the apprentice rent-free or at a low rate, a local business owner who can employ the apprentice part-time in a bi-vocational arrangement, special giving, etc.

Candidates

Anyone who is interested in becoming a Ministry Apprentice.

• Young people who show leadership potential and who are curious about a life of vocational ministry and/or a future of providing church leadership.
• Adults who have some ministry and life experience and want to go deeper.
• Second career folks who desire to serve the church more directly.

Candidates are willing to ask God if He’s calling them to some form of church leadership (including vocational ministry), willing to learn, and willing to be challenged.

Are you what we need?

• Are you interested in becoming a Ministry Apprentice?
• Is your church interested in being a Network Church?
• Are you interested in being a Coach?
• Are you moved to support the program financially?
• Have you identified a potential candidate to become a Ministry Apprentice?

If so, let’s have that conversation!

Our big vision includes more types of Levels 1 through 3. After we get the Gap Year program up and running, our intention is to develop the larger vision.

The possibility of a new TEDS program on competency-based credit towards an advanced degree.