Pastoral Search Information
The link below is First Baptist Church of Pine’s letter that goes out to prospective candidates for the position of Pastor.
Five Commitments Every Member Needs to Make During The Search Process:
An interim time can be a time of great opportunity for a church. It can be an opportunity for the church to build a greater sense of unity and fellowship. It can be an opportunity for the church to conduct a spiritual checkup to see what she is doing well and not so well. It can be an opportunity to recommit to the Great Commission. And the list could go on and on. However, these opportunities can only be seized if the church takes intentional steps to do so.
Here are five commitments that ever every church member needs to make to ensure that the interim period is a time of great opportunity rather than a time of great difficulty.
1. “I will be aware.”
Every church member probably has a slightly different opinion regarding the characteristics of a good Pastor. While everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion, church members need to commit to being aware of what characteristics of a faithful pastor are on God’s list. The Greek word used for “pastor” in Ephesians 4:11 is usually translated as “shepherd”. And from Psalm 23, we see that the four primary roles of a shepherd are to (1) feed the sheep, (2) lead the sheep, (3) protect the sheep, and (4) comfort the sheep. If we make the commitment to define faithfulness for our pastor the same way that God defines it, we will be much better off.
2. “I will be humble.”
In Philippians 2:1-4, the Apostle Paul tells the church that he had started earlier in his ministry to “complete his joy”. The way that they are to do so is by being unified and putting the interests (or preferences) of others above their own. If the church will commit to being humble and not demanding as they look for a Pastor that fits God’s preferences, there will be much less difficulty and conflict, which will be a win for everyone.
3. “I will be prayerful.”
One of the things that is often mentioned, but also often overlooked during an interim period is intentional times of prayer. We need to commit to frequent and fervent times of prayer. You can pray for the unity and humility of the church. You can pray for wisdom and discernment for the search committee. And you can pray for our next Pastor and his family. Churches that pray together stay together (especially during an interim period).
4. “I will be patient.”
One of the biggest mistakes that are often made is rushing the pastor search process. One of the reasons that search committees do this is because they constantly feel the pressure of impatient church members who frequently pepper them with questions or complaints about the length of the process. Given the fact that the average search process takes 12-18 months, church members and search committee members alike must commit to being patient and allowing the search process the time it needs without feeling rushed by the congregation.
5. “I will be productive.”
The church is still the church even when the office of Pastor is vacant. However, church members are often tempted to slack off in their church commitments during an interim. Church attendance sometimes wanes. However, every member is part of the body of Christ and has a role to fill. If they fail to do so, the whole body suffers (1 Corinthians 12). Therefore, you must commit to being a fully committed and functioning member during the time that the church is without a pastor.
40 Days of Prayer –
Thank you for taking the time to pick up this prayer guide. We believe this is a time of great importance in our church’s history. We have been given the opportunity to seek God’s face and ask for His wisdom in determining whom He has called to be the next pastor of First Baptist Pine.
As you enter these 40 days of prayer, the key will be prioritizing your time with the Lord. It does not matter what it looks like, when you do it, or where you meet with Him. It just matters that at some point everyday over the next 40 days, you pray.
The goal of our 40 days of prayer is to seek God’s direction and wisdom in a unified effort. Throughout this plan, you will find that each day will prompt you with daily scripture(s) to meditate on and the words to pray which support a particular theme. Praying over the scriptures as a congregation will keep us focused and unified as we grow individually in our intimacy with Christ. As we pray for the church, the next pastor, and the Pastor Search Committee, we also encourage you to ask God to clearly reveal His vision and next steps for your life and the ministry He wants to use you in. Through this we hope you will be able to see what He sees, work where He’s working, build what He’s building and go where He’s leading.
Also, can we suggest you team up with your family, discipleship group, small group, or a few friends to join you in this journey? It will be beautiful to experience these 40 days with your brothers and sisters in Christ. It is our hope that those of you who have children will involve them in this prayer process as well. If our children can understand the power of prayer in their lives now, it will have a profound effect on their lives as adults.
Listed within the guide are the names of the Pastor Search Committee. We ask that you please pray diligently for each member. Thank you for praying as we seek wisdom and discernment of God’s will.
James 5:16 states, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” With this in mind, we need to be right with God and come to Him with a clean conscience so that our prayers are not hindered. Begin your prayer time with praise, gratitude, and confession.
God, get us ready to do what only You can do!
-Your Prayer Team
The goal of our 40 days of prayer is to seek God’s direction and wisdom in a unified effort. Throughout this plan, you will find that each day will prompt you with daily scripture(s) to meditate on and the words to pray which support a particular theme. Praying over the scriptures as a congregation will keep us focused and unified as we grow individually in our intimacy with Christ. As we pray for the church, the next pastor, and the Pastor Search Committee, we also encourage you to ask God to clearly reveal His vision and next steps for your life and the ministry He wants to use you in. Through this we hope you will be able to see what He sees, work where He’s working, build what He’s building and go where He’s leading.
Also, can we suggest you team up with your family, discipleship group, small group, or a few friends to join you in this journey? It will be beautiful to experience these 40 days with your brothers and sisters in Christ. It is our hope that those of you who have children will involve them in this prayer process as well. If our children can understand the power of prayer in their lives now, it will have a profound effect on their lives as adults.
Listed within the guide are the names of the Pastor Search Committee. We ask that you please pray diligently for each member. Thank you for praying as we seek wisdom and discernment of God’s will.
James 5:16 states, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” With this in mind, we need to be right with God and come to Him with a clean conscience so that our prayers are not hindered. Begin your prayer time with praise, gratitude, and confession.
God, get us ready to do what only You can do!
-Your Prayer Team