The Search Begins . . .
This is part one in what will become a series of posts following the search for a new pastor at Glenwood Presbyterian Church. You can find the table of contents here.
As most of you know, our minister of 10 years recently resigned to take a job with the Servant Center here in Greensboro. As a Presbyterian church, it falls to the local church with assistance from the Presbytery office, to call a new pastor when there is a vacancy. I am an elder on the governing board of our church which is called the Session, and while we make decisions that enable the church’s day-to-day “business” to continue, two special committees will handle the hiring of an Interim Pastor and the search for and call of a new permanent Pastor.
In the ten years since Glenwood Presbyterian last had to go through this process, there have been quite a few changes made. The most striking is a greater emphasis on the period of time where a church has an interim pastor and what should happen during that period. In the past, a preacher left, a pulpit nominating committee was elected, and the search was on. The interim pastor was hired more to bridge the gap between full-time pastors than anything else.
Now, however, the first step in the process is the creation of a transition committee (or team, for those that don’t like the negative bereaucratic connotations of the “c” word). This team of about 5 people are tasked with the duty of finding and hiring an interim and then working with that interim pastor in completing a series of five developmental tasks for the congregation. These tasks focus on the church’s history and vision, helping the church discover who it has been, who it is, and where Christ is calling it in the future. Normally, this type of “moshy” stuff doesn’t appeal to me at all - but the idea here is to get everyone in the church on the same page with what our goals are for our church. The idea is that we as a congregation take stock of who we are and who we are called to be so that then we can search for and find a pastor who fits in with and shares those same goals and visions. It is only after that process is complete that Presbytery gives permission to elect a Pastor Nominating Committee (or PNC).
Here’s the rub: persons on the transition team will not be considered (generally) for the PNC. So taking a position on the transition team means that you will not be involved with the search for and calling of the new pastor.
I was very unsure of which committee God was calling me to serve on or whether He was calling me to be a part of the process at all. But if you are patient, God will usually let you know where you need to be. So at our Session meeting last Sunday night, I had one of those moments where God hits you over the head and lets you know pretty clearly what His will is. We were discussing who we might ask to be on the transition team as opposed to the PNC and we asked our moderator for a little guidance. (Our moderator is assigned by Presbytery to preside over our Session meetings until we get an interim.) He described the type of person that should be on the transition team and one of the things he stated was “someone who likes setting goals.” At that point, I could feel the eyes in the room look at me, because I had been the one who pushed our church to set goals for the last two years. So, I agreed to serve on the transition team.
And you know what? I’m pumped! Immediately after Randy resigned, I was dreading this process a lot. But I believe that this transition process, if done correctly, could lay a great foundation for the future of this church. And I have the added comfort of knowing that this is the job that God wanted me to do - and His Word tells me that He will provide the strength and wisdom to enable me to complete it…
So let’s get to it!
Written by Brian Beasley.
"But seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well." Matt. 6:33
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[...] pastor. Part of the process of finding this new leader is a time of self-evaluation as a church (which you can read about here.) A fellow member and I exchanged several lengthy emails recently about what our church could look [...]
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