Family Pastor

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The River Church

River Falls, WI United States

The River Church in River Falls, WI is seeking a Family Pastor who can help shepherd the growing children and youth at our church and begin to facilitate a presence on the University of Wisconsin – River Falls campus.

Overview of River Falls:
River Falls is a scenic college town, most known for being home to the Kinnickinnic River and the University of Wisconsin – River Falls. The city is about a twenty-minute drive from the suburbs of Minneapolis/St. Paul. Before “work from home” became popular, many from the community commuted to the Twin Cities for work. The population of River Falls is about 16,000 without college students and 21,000 with college students. The community caters to both the college as well as families and continues to grow.

Overview of The River Church:
The River just celebrated 21 years and has sought to be Christ-centered, gospel-presence in the community! Over the last couple of years, our numbers have been steadily growing and currently, the church is blessed with a wonderful problem: we have a ton of kids! The number of members and regular attendees is about 135, over 50 of which are children and youth. We want to love these kids, be proactive in shepherding and caring for them, and intentionally invest in them for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ in their lives. Please take a few minutes to learn more about our church, both our beliefs and our culture, by visiting our website theriverrf.org.

Overview of the Position:
The ideal candidate would give loving care to the children and youth as well as their parents through regular shepherding, discipleship, resourcing, training, and raising up of volunteers and leaders. One way this care is to be facilitated, for example, is through implementing a quality Youth Night of biblical teaching and simple fellowship for our youth. The Family Pastor will also be tasked with increasing the church’s presence on the UW-River Falls campus, which is a ripe and relatively ignored mission field in the city. Additionally, the ideal candidate will fully align with the vision, mission, core commitments, doctrinal positions, and the philosophy of ministry of The River (much of which can be found in brief on our website). Moreover, he will be able to maintain alignment with the vision, mission, etc. in the Children’s, Youth, and College Ministries he oversees. The Family Pastor will directly report to the Lead Pastor-Elder and the Pastor-Elder Team.

In terms of compensation, it will be commensurate with education and experience. However, while relevant education and experience can of course be helpful, we do not have minimum requirements for either. This is because what we care about most is that the candidate aligns with our doctrine, philosophy of ministry, vision, mission, etc. Contained within what was written above is that he loves God, loves His Word, loves people with the love of Jesus, has a passion and heart to raise up the next generation of joyful, passionate disciples of Jesus Christ through intentional shepherding, and that he loves the Church and wants to cultivate a love for the Church in every student and child, understanding it to be a family and that being in a quality church will be tantamount to their faith enduring in the long run.

To learn more about the specific duties and qualifications of this position, please review the attached job description. However, we will be the first to admit that, on paper, it is a large position like so many ministry job descriptions. This description lists all that the position could entail, all the work with which help is needed, but we are willing to be flexible depending on the candidate, as well as train less experienced individuals with great intentionality. The highest priority is our Youth Ministry, which will be the largest piece of the position, followed by Children’s, then College.

If, after reading this and reviewing our website, you believe you have the qualities mentioned above and would be a good fit, we encourage you to apply by emailing your resume and the attached questionnaire to [email protected].

If hired, the candidate will join our two current full-time vocational pastor-elders who have both had their fair share of searching for pastoral positions and enduring frustratingly slow church application processes (we do not promise to move any faster, we just know how you feel and empathize). We also have one part-time administrative assistant. Thank you for taking the time to read this, for prayerfully considering applying for this position, and may God bless you.

If, after reading everything and reviewing our website, you believe you have the qualities mentioned throughout and would be a good fit, we encourage you to apply by emailing your resume and the attached questionnaire to [email protected].

Family Pastor Application Questionnaire

These questions are a required portion of the job application process. They are provided so that we can get to know you and how you approach pastoral ministry. There is no word limit or requirement, simply answer the questions sincerely. You do not need to use a special form with your answers, just include a document with each question and your answers when you submit your cover letter and resume.

1. What is the gospel?
2. What does a healthy church look like?
3. What does it look like to be successful in ministry?
4. “Pastor-Elders are, first and foremost, shepherds of the flock of God.” Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? What are some of the ways a pastor-elder shepherds his people?
5. How do you balance and prioritize the different duties of pastoral ministry?
6. How have you grown spiritually in the last year?
7. If applicable, does your wife support you applying for this position?
8. How did you hear about this job posting?

Handout: Family Pastor Job Description.pdf