Our Internship Programme Continues To Grow

Let me begin this blog post by allowing our current interns, Chopo Mwanza and Sydney Kombe, to tell us how they have found the programme as they come towards the end of their one year with us. (Scattered across this post will be photos of some of the other men who have been through our internship programme).

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Chopo Mwanza preaching on assignment

CHOPO MWANZA: I came to Kabwata Baptist church for my internship in January this year with several expectations. The first one was to experience and be part of a church that has an evangelistic thrust and fully committed to missions. The second expectation was to witness and learn biblical church government. I was eager to see how an eldership functions. I further wanted to see how a pastor can have a sustained and effective ministry for a long time.

As I come to the end of my internship I can confidently say my expectations have been met. One of the first things that were made clear to me was the fact that Kabwata Baptist is “outward” looking. Every ministry is evangelistic; the church is always looking for ways to reach out to the world. Providentially, I came at the time of the missions conference. The church’s heart for missions was clearly evident, through the giving, the prayers, the concerns and the support towards missions and the missionaries. It was clear to me that the church exists to reach out to lost souls.

Kwenda Kwenda went through our internship
programme and is currently labouring in Choma

Working with the elders at Kabwata has been a learning curve for me. It has left me convinced that plurality of elders is the biblical church government. What made my internship even better was the fact that it was done in partnership with Lusaka Baptist church. Not only did I learn from probably the biggest reformed churches in Zambia but also two experienced pastors, in pastors Conrad Mbewe and Ronald Kalifungwa. It was a privilege to have them pour their lives in my life.

The four years of theological training gave me the tools to work with while my internship was a workshop where I actually used the tools. It’s my prayer that I will continue using what I have learnt till “the church is built and the earth is filled with God’s glory.”

Sydney Kombe, one of the current interns,
trained in South Africa

SYDNEY KOMBE: I came to KBC as an intern on 21st January 2012. It has proved to be a fruitful experience. I came having a stereotyped mentality with regards to ministry. I never knew that pastoral ministry goes hand in hand with administrative traits. I have learnt this in my internship. Observing and participating in the running of the church and its ministries has sharpened me.

When the internship program commenced, I was on an observing side. In the second quarter, participatory strands got extended under observation. In this last quarter, I am more in the running of the church programs and other ministries reporting to me.  My duty is to update elders of the happenings.

Adamson Shamfuti, a graduate from the Theological
College of Central Africa, also interned with us 

KBC has served me the way in which Antioch Bible Church did while I was studying at Bible College in South Africa. KBC is a viable and reliable launching pad to reaching Africa with the gospel. It is well vested with the manpower to equip men like me to do effective ministry. The essential place of godly character and devotion to the spread of the gospel is what has been passed on to me.

During my internship, I have observed that my commitment to the work of ministry and the word has really developed. Cardinal administrative skills have been developed—and I am still developing in them. This is because you are given very clear areas of responsibility as an intern with the purpose of shaping your focus on what is important. Thus you are helped to do the Lord’s work with excellence.

As my time at KBC draws to an end, I can say that it was time well spent, which will have an effective impact in my ministry for many years to come, through the fruitful discipleship and edification of the saints, to the glory of God.

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Emil Grundmann attended our internship programme
all the way from Germany!

Our pastoral internship programme has continued to grow. Next year we are expecting three interns—Matthews Fikati from the Copperbelt Province, Kuyumbana Poniso from the Western Province, and David Chibanga from the Lusaka Province. These men commence their stay with us in January 2013. God has also given us a former pastor with vast experience to coordinate this work.

I mentioned in an earlier blog post that we were purchasing two houses to accommodate our interns. In fact, at the time of that post, the purchase of the first house had been concluded. We have struggled a little to find an appropriate second house but we are almost there.  This will enable us to accommodate a maximum of six interns at any one time.

Andrew Matoke is a Kenyan who also went through
our internship programme at KBC

Our idea is to make our internship programme open to anyone across Africa who is preparing for pastoral ministry and who would like an exposure in how a Reformed Baptist church functions in its membership, its meetings, its ministries, its officers, and its missions work. This is meant to augment the training that such a person has already received in his Bible College training. We are willing to consider anyone, as long as they have commendation from their church leadership and are willing to learn. We provide a small pocket allowance and accommodation for the entire period of the internship.

Monametsi Bahudi from Botswana also came for
a brief period of internship with us here at KBC

I would like to urge readers of this blog to pray for these men who come to us that God will use our church to horn the gifts that these men have so that they can blend what they have learnt in the classroom with what they experience in the context of a lively congregation whose life and ministry is fashioned after the New Testament. We have no doubt that it is when these two things come together in souls that are filled with the grace of God that we shall see well-trained men go out and lead churches that will truly impact the world and glorify Christ, the head of the church.

If you know anyone who is interested in such a programme, or you are interested in such a programme yourself, do not hesitate to get in touch with us at tulip@iconnect.zm.