Exciting hurdle cleared

I just took the liberty of updating the page on the right hand side of this blog that outlines the eight steps we must take to call our next head of staff. I was able to mark number three as "complete" and list number four as "in process," which might not seem like such a huge thing, unless you realize that the Church Information Form (CIF), the primary document we provide to the denomination and any potential candidates, is now complete.

The PNC and session met a few weeks ago to discuss the draft and shared a meaningful time of conversation and unity around the direction we are heading as a church.

Then, last Monday night, the CIF was formally approved by Session at its monthly meeting and has been sent on to the Presbytery of the Inland Northwest Committee on Ministry for their approval in early June. Once approved there it will be sent to Louisville to be posted as an open position (and posted here for your consideration).  At that point candidates may start applying for the job.

We know there are a lot of people interested in this position, as we are already hearing from them in various ways, but the formal start to the search phase will begin when potential candidates are officially able to send us their Pastor Information Forms (PIFs) and we are also able to begin making contact with our network of friends, Presbyterian pastors, and others in the denomination, encouraging them to consider the opportunity or help connect us with other pastors who might be a good fit for our church.

This is a very exciting time for our church and we give thanks for your continued support and prayer.

Progress, Prayer and Patience

While this post could easily be a quick report of great progress, since we will soon be sending the Church Information Form to the WCPC elders for their input and eventual approval at a session meeting in the near future, it is important for those of us on the PNC that you understand something even more significant to us.

Bill Yakely is a member of the PNC who has been tabbed by chair Gary Carlsen to serve as our "spiritual guidepost" and he begins each of our bi-weekly meetings with a short devotion and prayer time. Last week,  Bill shared a prayer, inspired by Thomas Merton, that he wrote several years ago: "Let me abandon my way, Lord, seeking the course you have set before me through your still and quiet voice. You move in mysteriuous ways with a kind and gentle way. Lord, in my wandering circles, help me to come to you each and every day....Lord, thank you for your direction, answer to prayer, glimpses of your kingdom, direction and path and the peace that transcends all my mortal ambiguous flailing about in the ashes of life."

If there is one thing we are about collectively as a PNC, it is prayer. We are committed to the concept that as we are prayerful, lifting up our church, our journey, and the leader for our church that God has already chosen, we will be given direction.

While we are hopeful, there are no guarantees that our recent progress is anything more than an incremental step in the right general direction, and believe us, we are every bit as anxious to be making progress on this search as you are. But our God is a God of long journeys, stories that are still being written, and plans that conform to a much larger set of needs than our own.

We covet your prayer and thank you for your continued patience and participation on this journey.

10 Skills

As part of the process of creating the Church Information Form (CIF), the PCUSA's primary document to be shared on our behalf with potential candidates, we were provided with a list of more than 60 potential skills that our new teaching elder/head of staff might possess. Then we were asked to select no more than 10. It is at this point that many of us on the PNC were checking off 20, 30, even 40 or more...and were forced to acknowledge that the only person who could conceivably possess all of these skills was celebrated a few days ago on Easter Sunday.

"Preaching" was one skill that we pretty quickly agreed on, but the rest of the process, a conversation that helped us eventually arrive at 10 (at least for now), was a rich one and really helped the PNC arrive at a better understanding of how we are approaching this discernment process as individuals, and how we can come to consensus as a committee.

This is all part of sharing the news that the CIF does now exist in a draft form, and while it still has quite a lot of revision ahead before it can be sent to session, approved by session, sent to the Presbytery Committee on Ministry and approved by them so that it can be shared with potential candidates, we have reached one more milestone on WCPC's journey of discovery.

Thanks for your continued prayers.

An important invitation from the PNC

We are now several months into the search process for our new Teaching Elder/Head of Staff and one of the primary tasks of the PNC is to write the Church Information Form (CIF), which describes who we are and what we believe God is calling us to be as a church. Pastoral candidates will be reviewing this CIF to help discern if WCPC is God’s call for them. In order to assist us with this process, we are inviting you to prayerfully consider who we are as a church and respond to the following questions:

1. Why did you initially choose Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church?

2. Why have you stayed at Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church?
 

3. What is one thing you would want potential pastoral candidates to know about Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church?

We would appreciate your answers to these questions, as well as any additional information you would like us to know, by April 15th. You can share your answers with us in the following ways:

• in the PNC mailbox near Tiffany Hall
• in a sealed envelope delivered to the front office and clearly marked "PNC"
• via email to whitprespnc12@googlegroups.com
• directly to a PNC member

If you would like to have a member of the PNC talk with you individually or meet with your group to discuss these questions please contact PNC Chair Gary Carlsen or email whitprespnc12@googlegroups.com. As always, you can keep abreast of the latest communication from the PNC via The Chimes or the PNC blog at www.whitprespnc.blogspot.com. Thanks for your continued prayers for this most important process.

A statement from Session

The Session wants everyone to know the following things about Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church and its congregation:

• We love Jesus and we want to know and love Him more. We do not all agree on everything, but we do agree that we love Jesus.
• We love the Bible. We deeply want to hear and understand God's Word. We do not all agree on everything, but we do agree that we love God's Word.
• We love each other. We do not agree on everything, but we do agree that we love each other.
• We love being involved in the kingdom work of our Savior.

Introduction: Let us prepare

As God has called Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church to a specific work here in Spokane, in the Inland Northwest, and in the world, now is the time for us to prepare: for our new Teaching Elder/Head of Staff (Senior Pastor), and for the new avenues of ministry and growth God has for our church. In faithfulness to Jesus Christ, let us move into this next season of our life together with strength and purpose. Here are three ways that everyone in the Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church family can engage in this work of preparation:

• PRAY: by committing to regular, faithful prayer for our church and the Pastor Nominating Committee.
• GIVE: by helping our church to be healthy, strong, and ready for our next Teaching Elder/Head of Staff by offering our time, talents, and finances generously and regularly.
• INVITE: by extending the embrace of God to one another by offering hospitality, service, and witness to our neighbors, families, and friends.