The pastoral search update below was presented by Barb Rengel, a member of the Pulpit Committee, during the morning worship services on Sunday, February 24:
As we have mentioned in the previous updates we have 3 phases of the search process. The 1st is the planning stage, where we were able to document the critical ministry requirements we would have for our next Sr. Pastor as well as articulate the vision for Grace Church. The 2nd is the interview stage and we are currently in that stage. Lastly will be the selection phase when we as a congregation will confirm who will be our next Sr. Pastor. We have received names from you, from others like Pastor Bob Ricker and many from People Management, the organization that is assisting us in our search. What a benefit these brothers and sisters in Christ have been! They have provided wise counsel as well as a deep well of pastors, national Christian leaders and seminaries for us to network through.
We are very excited and encourage about the level of interest we are receiving from qualified pastors. By our last count we have looked at 195 pastors. The process is like a funnel. That number was quickly narrowed to about 40 and now we enter into our next phase of interviews with 11 men. This is a fluid process so we still expect names will continue to trickle in but we are proceeding to narrow down our search.
Our desire is to be very thorough and systematic in the way we evaluate each man, asking them for multiple interviews and to answer some questions in writing. There are hours spent in conversation, listening to sermons, watching DVD’s, and visiting churches. We are checking references early on and then asking those references for further references. We want to gain as much insight as possible. The final few candidates will also go through an extensive profile with People Management that has proven to show the strengths and weakness of an individual and how they will specifically fit Grace Church.
Although our process is methodical and objective there is a non-negotiable that we have that isn’t very quantifiable. Simply stated is he must have an anointing from God. We have 11 highly qualified candidates, but we are looking for the one that has something none of the others have - the Lord’s call on his life to come to Grace Church at this time. We don’t know if our called leader is one of these 11, if it is one that we will go back to, or if it is a name that we haven’t even considered yet.
As a team we believe God has one best man for us. We believe the progress we make is directly linked to prayer. We desire the power of the Holy Spirit to unleash discernment and wisdom each week as we work. We invite you to participate by praying through the requests online or in the Worship folder. Come to the congregational prayer time each Sunday at 5:30.