Cultivating Leaders for God’s Word, Every Child.

Since its start in 2014, OneHope’s Cultivate Internship has been preparing young adults to grow in faith, character, and calling. What began in the U.S. as a program to give young adults hands-on ministry experience has expanded globally to become a living example of shaping leaders for the movement of God’s Word, Every Child. 

Currently, every U.S. Cultivate cohort completes surveys before and after the internship, allowing us to track growth across multiple dimensions. This outcome-based approach ensures that Cultivate is not only a meaningful experience but also a launchpad for lifelong participation in God’s mission.

What We’re Learning

The results are striking:

• Spiritual Growth
  • More than 90% of interns in 2025 said they grew spiritually and experienced deeper intimacy with Jesus during the internship. One shared that they experienced a “complete restructuring of what the Lord says is true of me, rather than what I say of me.”
    
    
• A Call to Reach the Next Generation
  • Every intern reported a greater passion to impact the generations coming behind them. One intern reflected, “I hope to continue to contribute to the mission by leading children at church and in the future, teaching my children in the foundation of His Word.”
    
    
• The Power of Mentorship
  • Over 90% said mentorship with a OneHope staff member significantly shaped their development. As one intern put it, “The culture created here fosters growth in so many ways, especially with the one-on-one aspect of mentorship and Cultivate leadership check-ins.”
    
    
• Equipped to Serve
  • By the close of the summer, all interns reported learning new skills that will help them serve the global Church. One intern expressed, “I feel like this internship helped me learn how I could use my creative skills to further the Great Commission.”
    
    

Interns consistently describe the program with words like Spirit-led, purposeful, transformative, and community. It’s clear: this isn’t just about getting ministry experience, it’s about becoming the kind of leader the next generation needs.

Why It Matters

Cultivate is committed to raising kingdom-minded leaders who are rooted in their own culture and context, empowered to embody OneHope’s core values, and faithful in pursuing the mission of sharing God’s Word with every child and youth. By creating intentional environments of mentorship, community, and professional challenge, Cultivate helps participants integrate their faith with their daily lives and future callings.

This year, the team updated the outcomes framework to better reflect this holistic vision. Developed with input from Cultivate global leaders, the new structure focuses on four key areas: spiritual, relational, professional, and missional. It helps ensure we’re measuring what matters most—growth in Christ, deep fellowship, leadership capacity, and a lasting commitment to the Great Commission..

Looking Ahead

While Cultivate takes unique forms in each region, the heartbeat remains the same: raising up Spirit-led leaders equipped for Kingdom work and committed to the movement of God’s Word. Every Child. 

As the program continues to grow, our teams are developing outcome tools designed to work across cultural contexts. These tools provide shared, foundational measurements while allowing for localized application. This ensures that no matter where a young leader is mentored, their spiritual and leadership growth can be measured in meaningful, lasting ways.

The story of Cultivate is the story of investment in young adults who will go on to shape churches, communities, and culture. And as the data shows, the seeds planted during these summers are bearing fruit for the Kingdom!