Quiet By Nature, Bold in Ministry

Each year, the Institute for Christian Thought and Practice sends ministry students who have just finished their junior year of college on a seven-month, full-time, full-semester college credit internship called PRIME. PRIME stands for “Practical Research and Immersion in Ministry Effectiveness.” Current students and alumni of our ministry degree programs agree: PRIME is life-changing.

I sat down with Lydia Welch and asked, “In what ways did you grow while on PRIME?” She responded,

“I cannot possibly list the number of ways I grew during PRIME. I grew most in my reliance on God’s strength and grace, being flexible, and not taking everything so seriously.”

She discovered that she could thrive in ministry as an introvert. Lydia is very quiet, but when she teaches, she has a lot of wisdom and passion that comes from the relationship that she has with the Lord. She learned how to talk to people and be friendly at work by getting to know people’s names and smiling at people as they walk by, even though she is naturally shy.

In addition to the high value she places on relationships in ministry, Lydia also enjoys working behind the scenes to help the ministry thrive. While on PRIME, she learned that her interest in the administrative side of ministry is a strength she brings to the Church since not all leaders enjoy those parts of the work as much as she does.

Her favorite memory from PRIME is singing the “Goodness of God” with the day program participants, people who have special needs, during the church services. She had the opportunity to help a participant who is deaf sing the song using sign language. Everyone in this program was welcomed to the stage — people in wheelchairs, people who are nonverbal, people with severe disability — and got to praise the Lord with the congregation.

If you are interested in growing into the gifts that the Lord has for you, the Institute for Christian Thought and Practice offers the PRIME internship to students studying youth ministries, special needs ministry, children’s ministry, missions, or worship leadership.

Learn More about PRIME at Huntington >