Senior Pastor at Fellowship Bible Church

Description:

Fellowship Bible Church (FBC) is searching for a new senior pastor to lead us.

This is an opportunity to shepherd a Christ-centered bible-based evangelical church with the mission of “Win – Build – Send”. We also lift up core values of G.R.A.C.E. (Grace, Relevance, Authenticity, Community, and Extension.)

We seek a man confident that God has called him to serve, and has provided him with the right skills, experience and convictions to lead FBC into the future.

The Senior Pastor Search Team and the Board of Elders invite interested candidates to prayerfully investigate this opportunity.

Vision and Mission

Our Vision
Fellowship Bible Church exists to glorify God, caring for others as Jesus did.


Our Mission
Our Mission is to WIN people to faith in Jesus Christ; BUILD them up in their faith; and then
SEND them out to repeat the process.

Our Values
Using the simple acrostic G.R.A.C.E., the five values that guide and provide specific direction to this mission include:
1. Grace: Grace is the core. Grace is what saves us and grace is what gives us security as believers that we are in His care. We are to live in grace all the time and our personal relationships are to be ones of extending and showing grace in all we do.
2. Relevance: We believe the truth of the Gospel is timeless and never changes. However, culture does change and we must communicate the Gospel in a culturally-relevant way. The use of contemporary music and current artistic forms are key components to this, as well as application teaching of the Word of God.
3. Authenticity: Simply put: we are REAL sinners who have a REAL Savior. With a commitment to truth and transparency, our ministry is marked by a genuineness that others can sense and feel.
4. Community: We are very committed to connecting believers with each other in life-changing FBC. Honest sharing, speaking the truth in love, biblical teaching, serving and caring for one another are all hallmarks of the community we desire to become and also believe was part of the first century church.
5. Extension: The Church does not just exist for herself, but to reach a world that desperately needs Christ. Through sharing our faith with others, as well as demonstrating that faith in acts of service and kindness, we impact our local, regional and global culture with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.


Church Profile

Our Church
FBC is a vibrant, independent, evangelical church located in Northeast Ohio. Founded in 1976, the church is committed to preaching and teaching the Word of God with the goals of introducing seekers to Christ and encouraging deeper growth among believers. Since its inception, FBC has been lead by the Board of Elders.

Our church always seeks to respond to the changing cultural needs of the members through worship, education, fellowship, and other ministries, while remaining grounded in the truth of God’s Word and the infallible teachings of Jesus Christ.

FBC has nearly doubled in size over the past six years. Currently, the Sunday morning attendance exceeds 1,300 people. Over the past two years, FBC has received 165 people into membership, with approximately two-thirds of the growth coming from conversions and un-churched new believers. Prompted by the continuing growth, in 2004 a new worship center seating 700 was constructed; also remodeled were the youth and educational wings. This was all accomplished while maintaining a viable and solid financial situation.

Our Church Culture
FBC emphasizes small, home based groups to cultivate authentic relationships and create a caring network that naturally uplifts the value of community and ministers to the needs of the church family. There is an abiding willingness to share burdens and to foster a spirit that is open, trusting, and warm for both members and non-members. Over half of our attendees currently are involved in small groups.

The staff and congregation share a heart for seekers and a strong desire to reach them with messages and programs reflecting the truths of the Bible. The church has a historic emphasis on missions with 20% of our annual budget allocated to international and local ministries. In addition, we organize multiple adult and youth mission trips every year. .

Our Leadership History
FBC was blessed for the first twenty-five years of its history with a highly respected and much loved Founding Pastor, Lud Golz. Pastor Golz, now our Pastor at Large, is an inspiring preacher and teacher with a passion for seeing souls saved. His shepherd’s heart is always comforting, challenging and encouraging those within his care.

Under Lud’s spiritual leadership, FBC grew from a church planting to approximately 650 people worshiping weekly. The church culture of FBC today still reflects his gifts, vision, and passions. Lud’s commitment to small groups and missions both locally and internationally remain a vibrant part of our fabric.

In January 2002, Jamie Rasmussen succeeded Lud Golz. It was a successful transition-- in large part due to the character of both men. Under Jamie’s leadership, FBC more than doubled in size, and entered into a new era of evangelism and growth. Guided by Jamie’s leadership, FBC completed the facility expansion, the hiring of multiple staff, and the restructuring of our ministry plan.

Jamie also brought the gift of leadership to his role as Senior Pastor, as well as almost 20 years of experience in church growth. In October, 2007 Jamie was called to assume the role of Senior Pastor at the Scottsdale Bible Church. He remains a Christ-directed visionary for the 21st century church.

Our Staff
Our current ministry staff is comprised of seventeen individuals. The staff includes:
• Executive Pastor
• Pastor-at-large,
• Associate Pastor
• Pastor of Worship and Creative Arts Ministry & Associate for Worship and Creative Arts Ministry
• Pastor of Adult Ministries & Ministry Associate for Adult Ministries
• Middle School Director
• Director of Children’s Ministries
• Pastor of Student Ministries
• Pastor of Administration
• Ministry Associate of Finance, Office Administrator, and Office Assistant

The staff at FBC is collegial, respectful, professional, open, and honest. They represent a hard working, task oriented group which is willing to be part of a learning community. In addition, they maintain strong family lives and their families are well integrated into the church. Their wide range of abilities and personality styles are a good reflection of our church as a whole. The recent addition of an Executive Pastor was met with overwhelming affirmation and expectancy.

The staff members’ goals are aligned with the overall vision of the church. They are empowered to work independently in carrying out their responsibilities. However, as a team they function collaboratively in a weekly three hour, all-inclusive staff meeting. Staff members value authenticity and communication from the Senior Pastor and each other. Effective communication must be honest, direct, speak the truth in love with consistency, and never compromise the trust within the team. As the church searches for a new Senior Pastor, the staff is hopeful that the man selected will be both relational and visionary in his style of leadership.

For more information on our church please visit: www.fellowshipcleveland.com


Senior Pastor Profile

Role
The role of the Senior Pastor is to glorify God by ensuring the accurate application of God’s Word in all areas of church ministry through doctrinally sound, practical preaching, teaching and discerning the Lord’s direction for leadership. This is to be implemented through pastoral care, counseling, evangelism and missions.

The Senior Pastor serves as a member of the Elder Board.

Responsibilities
The Senior Pastor is the primary preacher, teacher, shepherd and leader of FBC under the policy direction of the Board of Elders. The Senior Pastor will discern God’s vision for the future of FBC and under his strong leadership he will lead us to establish the appropriate goals and objectives of our church.

The four core areas of responsibility include:

• Preaching and Teaching Practical Application of God’s Word: The Senior Pastor will proclaim God’s Word clearly and truthfully through expository, grace-orientated, and life application teaching through the Holy Spirit. The Senior Pastor will prepare and preach at least 42 Christ-centered sermons and worship services each year that support our vision and mission statements. As the primary preacher and teacher of the Word of God, he will put the congregation on the path to a deeper walk with the Lord, a growing prayer life and foster discipleship, all for the desired outcome of spiritual maturity.

• Shepherding through Leadership: The Senior Pastor will work in conjunction with the Board of Elders to discern God’s direction and cast the vision for FBC. He will then work directly with the Executive Pastor to implement the vision through a shared development and execution of the strategic plan. The Senior Pastor will lead and empower the body with a servant’s heart, and will maintain a relational awareness and a pastoral demeanor while exhibiting contagious enthusiasm. He is responsible to teach and lead the Board of Elders in spiritual development. He is charged with teaching the congregation the principles of stewardship and biblical giving.



• Pastoral Care and Counseling: The Senior Pastor will be capable and accessible to provide compassionate counseling and prayer for those in the midst of crisis or significant events where pastoral care is needed. If extended counseling is required, the Senior Pastor may defer to other staff or qualified professionals.

• Evangelism and Missions: The Senior Pastor will lead the effort to win the lost and un-churched in the greater Chagrin Valley community through prayer and preaching of the gospel truth on all occasions and opportunities. He will also fervently support the establishment of churches and missions locally, nationally, and globally.


The Person
The qualified candidate for Senior Pastor must have a strong prayer life and an intimate personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He must also have a minimum of five years experience as a pastor in a bible-believing church. An ideal candidate will be a Spirit-led preacher and teacher who supports our vision and mission statements through grace-oriented teaching. He will also have an evangelical fervor and demonstrate servant leadership with humility. He must possess deep knowledge of the scripture and be in full agreement with the doctrinal position of FBC.
See http://www.fellowshipcleveland.com/whatwebelieve.html.


Other professional and personal characteristics needed in the Senior Pastor include:

• Fulfilling the Biblical qualifications for church leadership (1 Tim 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9)
• Agreeing completely with FBC’s Vision, Purpose, Values, and Beliefs
• Understanding how organizations function, yet being able to let the Executive Pastor manage the day to day church operations
• Having the ability to inspire and motivate people
• Casting and communicating the church’s vision with contagious enthusiasm
• Working effectively with an elder board

Education
The candidate must be an ordained pastor and have a Bachelors Degree, preferably with emphasis in ministry. Advanced degrees, such as a Masters of Divinity, would be strongly preferred.


Search & Selection Process

This is a nationwide search for the person God has prepared to help FBC meet the needs of the congregation. The church has retained a professional search firm, ASLON Group, LLC, (ASLON) which will develop the candidate pool, do initial screening and check references. ASLON will act as a liaison throughout the entire search process.

ASLON will present a candidate short-list to the Senior Pastor Search Team (SPST). The SPST consists of seven members, two of whom are elders. This team will be focused on the interviews, church visits, and assessments of the candidate. The SPST will prayerfully select and present a candidate finalist to the Elder Board for consideration. A unanimous approval vote by the Elder Board will allow for the candidate finalist to be affirmed by the congregation.

There are ten Search Advisory Groups representing a cross-section of the ministries within FBC. The Search Advisory Groups, a series of Focus Groups open to all of the congregation, and a Congregational Survey have been used in formulating this Position Profile and assessment criteria. The Search Advisory Groups also will be a valuable resource for the candidate finalist as he prayerfully considers the calling.

The Board of Elders, SPST and ASLON will work together to insure that the search process maintains integrity and is fair, considerate, and thorough. Every effort will be made to maintain confidentiality for all candidates until the point the person is introduced to the church body as a whole. All candidates considered will go through the same evaluation process and all prospective candidates will deal directly with the search firm.

Compensation
A competitive salary based on experience and appropriate to the size and budget of FBC will be offered at the time of hiring.

Scriptures for Reflection
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves he should do it with the strength God provides. So that, in all things, God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, and power for ever and ever, Amen
(1 Peter 4:10-11)

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified, I came to you in weakness, and fear, and with much trembling. My message and preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on man’s wisdom, but on God’s power. (1Cor. 2:2-5)
I am the vine and you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

To them God has chosen to make know among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you the hope of glory. (Col 1:27)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, that transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and mind in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:6-7)

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)

Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. (Jer. 3:15)

For further information, please contact:
Tim Smith
ASLON Group, LLC
8401 Chagrin Road, Suite 20B
Cleveland, OH 44023
Office 440-543-0334
Cell 440-477-1401
tsmith712@gmail.com

To Apply: Tim Smith

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