Based on what you have learned about who your church is, who your church’s neighbor is, and who God is calling the church to become, describe four areas of excellence from The Marks of Faithful & Effective Authorized Ministry that your next minister will display to further equip the congregation’s ministry in these areas.
It is our prayerful hope that our Pastor of Faith Formation will enrich the members of our faith community in building transformational leadership skills by identifying their spiritual gifts, empowering and encouraging them to utilize these gifts as leaders within our community. The ideal candidate will, much as the model of Jesus, meet people where they are, loving and challenging them to deepen their walk with God.
The individual God is calling to our congregation will empower our Church to respond to God’s call, recognizing that God calls different people in different ways. Our ideal candidate will encourage leadership development of self and others through continuing education and lifelong learning, while also performing necessary and appropriate administrative tasks. The candidate will be faithful to God’s calling, reflective of Christ’s mission, and will be open to the surprises of the Holy Spirit.
Our Pastor of Faith Formation will exhibit the ability to engage us in sacred stories and traditions by drawing upon their inherent knowledge of the church and its roots. The minister will help our community relate our faith story to their daily lives.
Our pastor will exhibit strong moral character, excellent communication skills, and personal integrity while respecting the dignity of all God’s people. The understanding and the ability to minister to all stages of human development across the life span will be tantamount to their success in strengthening both inter- and intra- personal assets.
Our Pastor of Faith Formation will participate in theological praxis and will practice theological reflection and engagement as part of one’s sense of pastoral identity. We believe that as a spiritual leader to many, our pastors also need to ensure that their own spiritual life is cultivated and nurtured. We encourage our clergy to take two days off as Sabbath during the week for study and reflection along with time away for theological development recognizing that one cannot give without also being open to receive what God is still speaking to us.
We will seek to partner with our clergy, encouraging them to continue in their own daily practice of spiritual care. In having that foundation of practice, our Pastor of Faith Formation will integrate theological reflection in teaching, preaching, and ecclesial and community leadership using a variety of theological perspectives.
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