PRAYING FOR THE POTENTIAL ASSOCIATE PASTOR

I have already mentioned how close we believe we are to calling a new Associate Pastor. The process has been long and very thorough. It started with a resume (we received over 50 and considered and made contact with perhaps a dozen); a phone call to confirm continued interest; a skype interview between the candidate, Neale and myself that lasted for 1 ½ hours; the prospect visited with the staff during a staff meeting and lunch since this is the primary group he will work with; he was interviewed by my pastor buddies, a practice we have had for many years; at a separate date, he met with a group of leaders at JIBC for a lunch interview; that evening he met with the elders and more leaders, along with his wife; he and his wife spent an afternoon with Janie and I for a tour of the island and an evening meal; he passed background and financial background checks; and he received great reviews from all his references. 

That is about a thorough as I know how to be…and it is not finished yet. We are planning, maybe even before you read this, to invite all of our Connection Group Leaders and Ministry Team leaders to a meet and greet. You can tell we believe he is the right candidate. I know the old saying “the proof is in the pudding”. And I agree, only time and a look backwards will confirm that this was a very good hire. I am praying and having Daring Faith that it is. I really believe the decision has been made. Now we are just dotting the “i’s” and crossing the “t’s” so to speak.

His position will be Associate Pastor of Connection Groups, Ministry Teams and Administration. Susan Warren is praying as hard as anyone I know that this prospect accepts the position and comes quickly. Susan has been great in helping me keep up with the multitude of task that needs to be handled. Please do not think Susan will be sad to see the Associate come, she will rise up and call him blessed! Now he can work on my “other duties as assigned” list. Susan Warren… thank you for stepping up to help lead in so many areas during our transition time. I look forward to our schedules returning to normal so I can just overwhelm you with stuff as I used to do …not the extra ordinary kind of overwhelming! You are the best, thank you.

If all goes well, maybe, the Associate will be able to wrap up things at his current church by the first of August. With a little extra blessing, maybe he can visit some in July. Please pray for his wife. She is looking for a job in the area of school administration. If for some reason that is not available, she will hope to get a job teaching.

I love it when a plan of God comes together. He gets the credit, the glory and we get the blessings! What a great God we serve.

Pastor Tom

THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER

The Hunt for Red October is a 1990 suspense movie based on a Tom Clancy novel. It starred Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin. A Soviet sub commander decides to defect to the United States with the new Soviet submarine. It is quite the suspense movie and it was made before the current Russian collusion fiasco!

I have sometimes felt the search for the Associate Pastor was as intense and suspenseful as The Hunt for Red October. There has never been a straight line in the process. We have been close and then nothing. We have filtered resumes and interviewed prospects. We have made dozens of follow up calls and letters to references. Did I mention we have been close and then nothing! The good thing is we are blessed to claim Romans 8:28. We do believe that God is working all things to the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose in Christ Jesus. We also truly believe the old adage: it is better to want it and not have it than to have it and not want it. Let the people say “Amen”. Patience is a fruit of the Holy Spirit that we are blessed with on a regular basis. We are in the process of setting up a second meeting with what we believe is an excellent prospect. He has already come to meet the staff and by the time you read this, will have already met with a group of leaders. That is what we call “serious dating”! We will keep you in the loop when it is time for the big old family meeting!

Just a reminder of the position we are looking to fill. The title we have chosen is Associate Pastor of Connection Groups/Discipleship and Ministry Team Administrator. Years ago, Susan Warren started out with us as our Leader of Small Groups. When she shifted over to Minister of Outreach (and all things Tom assigns!), we shifted small groups over to former staff member, Sean Rheaume. Now, the primary responsibility of the Associate Pastor will be to lead our Connection Group and ministry teams.

Now, a final two words that might help clarify this “hunt for Red October”. First, Susan will continue in her role as Mission Director. She will gladly hand off a few areas of ministry she has graciously and effectively led. Ministries like the Safety Team and Greeters. No change for Susan’s role except to give her a well deserved breather from all the Pastor Tom assignments. Second, the position is strictly an Associate Pastor position. There is not plan for succession or for this potential staff person to be the next pastor. Please let that idea go. It was a good idea worth considering. It is not longer in any way a part of our thinking and/or process.

I am so looking forward to having a person in this position. I many ways, it will be a first for me to have this position. I am praying it will be everything I am hoping and much more. To God be the glory.

Pastor Tom

WE ARE GETTING CLOSE

We have two very big and very exciting changes that are getting closer and closer to being a reality. It has been a long wait on both of these anticipated blessings. So let’s talk about them both.

As I type this article, there is the wonderful sound of construction going on. I really do mean wonderful. During staff meeting I said: “That my friends is the sound of progress!” Sheet rock is going in today. The inside framing that was just for protection will be coming down so they can complete the details of sheet rocking. So, this Sunday, you will be able to see inside the entrance…but YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO USE IT TO ENTER OR EXIT JUST YET. As the old Andrea Crouch song says…”Soon and very soon!” We are planning a day of celebration when it all gets ready. Maybe, just maybe by the church anniversary Sunday…maybe? Someone asked when the restrooms would be renovated. It is only money…right. So far, by God’s grace, we have been able to basically pay as we go. We have incurred no debt in all the renovations. Thank you for giving and giving so generously. The next thing on the agenda will be the Library/Conference room renovation. The cost of the elevator was not just a financial cost. It ended up costing us four rooms. The elevator project totally took up Marty’s office. So he moved upstairs into a smaller, empty Sunday School room. The third room lost is where the elevator goes upstairs. That room was a casualty of the elevator as well. The fourth room, the library/conference room, would be the office for the Associate Pastor. By faith, by Daring Faith, it will be worth it all.

The second blessing getting closer and closer is the calling of our Associate Pastor. We are now on our fourth meeting with him. This is a serious as it gets and we do believe he is the one God has led us to call. We still have one more official meeting with our Connection Group leaders and all of our Ministry Team leaders. Pray for his wife as she will be seeking a job as a school teacher/administrator here in Charleston. (Romans 8:28)

It is all very exciting and it is really starting to come together. More news as we get closer and closer.

Pastor Tom

Why we do what we do!

This past Sunday we hosted Class 101: Discovering Membership at James Island Baptist. Think about this: we have those who will give us four hours of a Sunday afternoon to attend a seminar about membership at JIBC. I consider that a most wonderful gift and I do my absolute best to make sure there is an informative, inspiring picture of what it means to be a member of JIBC.

By the way, welcome to our newest members: Jean Elliott, Babbie Mangum, Todd Jordan, Sara and Josh Bell. I am so excited about these that our Father has added to our church family. I can’t wait to see how our Father will use them to help build His Kingdom and how our church family will love them.

So, what is it we do at Class 101: Discovering Membership? What are we trying to accomplish? Think with me about all the different backgrounds from which people could come from: north/south; Baptist/non-Baptist; different kinds of Baptist; traditional church/contemporary church; absolutely no church background; Pastor led/leader led/ deacon led/unofficial parking lot group led; from a church that split; from a new mission church; from an old ancient church; married, single, kids, no kids, wonderful beautiful grandchildren (ok that was just for me!); multiple generations/all the same basic age group. Get the picture. We come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. How do you get all these on the same page? My best effort has been our Class 101: Discovering Membership at James Island Baptist. This is an opportunity to help those who are interested to “look under the hood and kick the tires” as we used to say. They can meet with the pastor and hear about the DNA of the church. During Class 101 we talk about what we believe and why we are organized in the way we are. Not everyone who attends shares the same vision of how we do church. That is the point. Those who don’t share the vision have an opportunity to bail out before any commitment are made. Those who see and share the vision are able to join the church family, right then, right there. They don’t have to walk down an aisle or be voted on by a group of people they don’t know. What a frightening experience. Walking down an aisle to join a church is not a bad thing. It is not, however, your public profession of faith. Your public profession of faith is what you do in public, every day, at work, at school or at play. That was just one way of joining the church. It is by far, not the only way. During Class 101 we go over what the Bible requires of members and we make it a part of who we are at JIBC. Those who join have already made a pretty good statement about their willingness by attending a four hour seminar on church membership at JIBC.

I am so privileged to have taken over 200 precious souls through our membership class. It is one of the most considerable first steps toward making disciples who make disciples that change the world.

Welcome to the family Jean, Todd, Babbie, Sara and Josh!

Pastor Tom

The Outward Focus

A few weeks back I sent a letter to our Connection Group Leaders. I was asking them for reports on the kind of missions their Connection Groups were involved in doing. Remember, the name “Connection Group” comes for the idea of Connecting with God through studying His Word; connecting with other believers as we gather; and connecting with the community through missions. We must always be true to the great commission to “go” and to “make disciples”.

It has been my observation over the years that gathering for Bible Study and fellowship kind of comes natural for church families. We generally love each other and enjoy spending time in fellowship, eating together and studying God’s Word. What takes a little more effort is the mission, the outward focus, the “going” part of the Great Commission. Over the years, I have joyfully watched as JIBC has become more and more outwardly focused. By God’s grace, we regularly have members going on international mission trips, relief efforts here in the Southeast, volunteering in local missions, going to public schools, etc. I truly love that about our church family. We are embracing more and more the challenge of taking light to the dark places in our community.

I describe mission as having two levels. First, there is what I refer to as mission support. This is vitally important. I never want to under estimate the value of prayer support for all mission efforts. There are some who will go as God helps provide the finances. Giving finances so others can go is one great form of mission support. James Island Outreach is always grateful for JIBC jelly offerings. Imagine, last year you gave just a little short of two tons of jelly! All of these are fantastic. May our Father continue to lead us to be generous in our desire to provide mission support.

I am also rejoicing at the amount of what I call “hands on missions”. That is when God gets the salt out of the shaker…the church out of the building …to go to the mission field. I am currently putting together a list of the mission projects that were turned in. I am not so interested in giving the names of who did that mission project. I am interested in giving God glory for the things He has done. I am believing what the Bible says…that as iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. It is my hope that what one Connection Group is doing will be used by God to inspire another Connection Group or individual to step out by faith and try.

I so love that being outward focused is a part of our DNA. It is one of the 5 purposes of the church as found in the Bible. The list will be coming soon. We are still waiting for a few of the Connection Group leaders to respond. To God be the glory and to you all…job well done.

See you Sunday, good Lord willing,

Pastor Tom