PULPIT COMMITTEE

 

In the following video from September 24, 2023, Pastor Peterson announced to the congregation that he would be retiring at the close of 2024:


 


 






Per the church’s Bylaws, a Pulpit Committee has been formed for the purpose of locating our next pastor.   Work has already begun on the difficult task of locating his successor.  As that work progresses, the Committee will provide monthly updates on this page as well as in the 11:00am Sunday service.  Feel free to email the Committee at External link opens in new tab or window[email protected] with any questions, comments, or information on a perspective candidate.  And please keep our church and especially the Committee in prayer as we seek the man God has selected as our next pastor. 

 

(Note: A list of Committee members can be found at the bottom of this page.)

 


Updates


April 21, 2024

 

1.     We had our last meeting on Wednesday evening, April 3rd.  By that night we had already began reaching out to the Top 7 candidates.  We are encouraged that our top 2 were interested and already taking the next steps.


2.     However, the balance of our Top 7 were not promising.  They were either pastors in large ministries or evangelists, and neither group felt the Lord was leading them away from their current ministries.


3.     Because of this, we have already reached out to our 8th candidate.  He also is interested and already taking the next steps. 


4.     Somewhat surprisingly, the Lord through different methods has continued to send names our way.  Since the last update we’ve added 5 candidates bringing our grand total to 44 candidates.  Of those 5 new candidates there are 2 to 3 that are very promising.


5.     So as of today, we have 3 strong candidates already taking the next steps of reviewing documents and answering questions.  And we have 5 brand new candidates that are going through our initial review.


6.     As with every update, please remember to:

           a.     Be patient. 

           b.     Be praying.

           c.      Specifically pray at noon on Fridays.



March 24, 2024

 

1.     We added another 5 candidates since the last update, so that brings our total to 39 candidates.


2.     We had our last meeting on Thursday evening, March 21st.  By that night we had completed all of our initial reviews, and each member submitted their top 10 candidates.


3.     By the end of our meeting, we had settled on a top 5.  We expanded that list to be our top 7 as a couple of the top 5 seemed unlikely to be interested due to their current work situations.


4.     Next, we will be reaching out to each of the top 7 to ascertain their interest and begin the interview process.


5.     As with every update, please:


         a.     Be patient.  This is a slow process.

         b.     Pray daily for God to send us the man He wants.

         c.      Pray specifically at noon on Fridays.



February 18, 2024

 

1.     Our pool of potential candidates back in January was 25.  Three weeks later it has risen to 34, and the additional 10 are all active in ministry.  And we’re expecting more.


2.     We have begun the initial review process and are almost done with the first 10 candidates.


3.     Once we complete reviewing everyone in the pool, we will reduce the list to the top 5 and begin a very in-depth review including contacting the candidates.


4.     On the homepage of the church website you will find a Pulpit Committee button that will take you to the Pastoral Search Committee page where you can review the updates the committee has provided.


5.     Every update we give will include the following reminders:

         a.     Please be patient.  This is a slow process.

         b.     Please pray on a daily basis for God to send us the man He wants.

         c.      Please pray specifically at noon on Fridays.


6.     I’ll close once again my reminding you of Proverbs 3:5-6  “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”



January 28, 2024


Thanks to the church for their continued prayer that the Lord would bring the right man to our church.

 

1. Our pool of potential candidates is currently 25. We appreciate your input

on that, and we have started the review process.

 

2. There are some people that have just recently joined us for the winter

months. If that’s you and you know of a potential candidate to become our

next senior pastor, please send the information to the committee at the email address above.

 

3. We are also revisiting those people or organizations that you previously
identified as might being able to make suggestions. Our first contact with
them, which of course was during the holidays, didn’t prove to be as fruitful as we had hoped.

 

4. We will reiterate our friendly reminder to you:

         a. Pray often for God to send us the man He wants.

         b. Make a special effort to pray at noon on Fridays.

 

5. Let’s close by reminding you of Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but

in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests
be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all
understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”


 


Committee Members


Trent Avriett (Deacon/LOLCS School Board)

Jamie Becker (LOLCS Staff)

Dan Fralic (Deacon/LOLCS Teacher)

Brian Francisco (Deacon)  

Bruce Galster (Chairman of Deacons)

Lee Hurst (Deacon)

Paul Little (LOLCS School Board)            

David Mengel (Vice-Chair of Committee/Deacon)

Maresa Shelburne (LOLCS Teacher)

Caleb Steele (AWANA Commander)

Chris Steele (Secretary of Committee/Deacon)

Terry Templeton (Chair of Committee/Deacon/LOLCS School Board)