Needed: Grandview Church Seeks Lead Pastor

Call for Applications: Lead Pastor
FTE: 40hrs/week
Grandview Church, Vancouver

About Grandview Church
Grandview Church is looking for a spiritually grounded, community-oriented, and creative pastor with a heart for neighbourhood ministry.

Established in 1908, Grandview Church has spent the past three decades birthing a range of vibrant and creative neighbourhood ministries under the leadership of long-standing, well-loved pastoral staff. Following the resignations of three key leaders, Grandview has been immersed in a process of transition and discernment. We are now seeking a lead pastor to shepherd this congregation into its next season.

As a pastor at Grandview, you can expect to lead a congregation of roughly 100 people in worship each Sunday. Families with young children make up a significant portion of this congregation. Though theologically diverse, its members are bound together by a shared commitment to justice, prayer, neighbourhood ministry, and creatively telling the story of Jesus.

Grandview’s distinctive approach to worship is both liturgical and informal. We treasure songs, prayers, and practices that draw on the gifts and experiences of our congregation and the riches of the broad Christian tradition. Scripture, prayer, and Communion are the backbone of our Sunday services.

While Grandview is associated with the Canadian Baptists of Western Canada (CBWC), tension between our membership practices and the denomination’s recent Identity Statement has raised questions regarding the future of that relationship. The statement from the CBWC restricts marriage to being between a man and a woman, and restricts local church autonomy. For these and other reasons, Grandview voted against adopting the statement. Grandview continues to be deeply rooted in the baptist commitments to congregational leadership, baptism, and an open table. At this particular time, the church is in the midst of discerning and adopting an inclusive posture as a congregation, which will be voted on at our February Family Meeting.

Our congregation is known for generous hospitality, deep community, and abundantly creative outreach. Recently, however, the combination of leadership changes, loss of community members, chronic overextension, and pandemic-related disruption have taken their toll. An intentional transition process led by the church council and an interim pastor has shepherded our congregation through this challenging time, allowing opportunities to process losses, rethink and retire existing initiatives, overhaul the governance structure, and reorient toward a centred and sustainable vision.

As a result of this transition process, Grandview is shifting toward a revised policy governance structure. The lead pastor will work alongside the church council and will lead and direct a pastoral team with existing strengths in family, youth, and worship ministry.

Find more at: https://www.gcbchurch.ca/

Lead Pastor Role Description

Leadership (60%)
● Providing leadership and oversight to the Grandview Church Pastoral Team; coaching and mentoring ministry leads and developing leaders within the church
● Stewarding the church towards being a community of people who receive and extend the generous welcome of God
● Representing the Grandview Church Community beyond the church walls into our community, among other church leaders and in interfaith settings
● Working with the staff team to develop priorities and goals

Pastoral Care (20%)
● Providing spiritual care, prayer, mentorship and Godly counsel both to congregants and community members
● Welcoming and integrating new members and finding creative ways to encourage a sense of connection and belonging among congregants
● Perform communion, baptisms, child dedications, weddings, and funerals as requested
● Ability to navigate conflicting perspectives and viewpoints amidst congregants

Teaching (20%)
● Teaching of God’s word, pointing the community towards the work of the kingdom, encouraging the community to grow in their knowledge and love for Christ
● Facilitating and supporting Sunday worship gatherings
● Collaborating with pastoral team to explore faith through various modes, such as wondering, narration, lectio divina, deep musical listening, creative, written and visual arts, etc.
● Fostering a safe place for curiosity, pondering and uncertainty, where not knowing and being uncomfortable is okay

Preferred Qualifications

Personal Attributes
● Mature and taking active steps in their personal Christian faith
● Exemplifies wisdom, integrity and humility in leadership
● Emotional intelligence and openness
● Demonstrated commitment to justice and addressing inequalities for oppressed communities
● Appreciation for people from all walks of life and cultures

Education
● Degree from a recognized theological college or seminary or equivalent education and experience
● Understanding of Kingdom and Liberation Theology
● Demonstrated understanding and history of experience with complex contemporary social and theological issues currently facing the Church (such as gender and sexuality);
● Willing to seek out and hear wise counsel, and act collaboratively

Skills
● Demonstrated expertise in volunteer recruitment, management, and organization
● Demonstrated expertise in setting organizational vision and operationalization/execution by being able to lead staff and congregants towards a shared vision
● Demonstrated experience working with marginalized populations, understanding of trauma informed best practices, demonstration of sound judgement in determining boundaries with vulnerable populations, understanding and demonstrating sound judgement with their specific spiritual scope of practice
● Capable of facilitating church discussion for the purpose of reconciliation, healing and mending of relationships

Terms of Employment

● The Lead Pastor reports directly to the Grandview Church Council, while operating in a collaborative team environment
● Full Time position: 40 paid hours per week, requiring flexibility in scheduling
● Hourly wage: $66,000-$85,000 (based on CBWC paygrid)

Benefits:

Benefits package includes: health, dental, life insurance (including dependent life insurance), critical illness coverage, and long term disability. As well we offer pension matching, up to 6% into a Defined Contribution Pension Plan (DCPP).

Grandview Church is strongly committed to creating a diverse workplace and community. All qualified persons are encouraged to apply.

Are there any accommodations you need during your interview process that will help us meet the best version of you? Please let us know by emailing us at hiring@gcbchurch.ca or calling us at: 604.255.1411

Interested candidates are invited to send their resume with a cover letter to: hiring@gcbchurch.ca

Applications will be processed as they are received until the position is filled.

Employment beginning early 2023.