Pastoral Transition

This guide to the Pastoral Search Process from the PAOC Western Ontario District is designed to help you understand the approximate timeline and various steps involved in presenting a pastoral candidate to the church. Your Pastoral Search Team will be working diligently throughout this process. The most important role that you can play through this time of seeking God’s will for our future Lead Pastor, is to engage in congregational surveys and be in constant prayer asking that the Lord’s will be done for the future of your church community.

TRANSITION PASTOR (Completed)
During the Search Process, it is important for
us to place a Transition Pastor in your church
to continue to care for the day to day ministry.

PASTORAL SEARCH TEAM TRAINING (Scheduled)
The Regional Director of the Western Ontario
District of the PAOC will take your Pastoral
Search Team through some training to prepare
them for their responsibilities in the upcoming
search for your new Lead Pastor. This will take
place soon after the Pastor’s farewell service.

CHURCH HEALTH ASSESSMENT TOOL (Completed)
One of the tools the Western Ontario District
utilizes to better assess where your church
is currently at and the most suitable leader
for your church is through a Chat Survey put
together by Leadership Transformations.
The District’s Regional Director is fully trained
to review and consult on the outcome of the
congregational survey.

CHAT SURVEY DEBRIEF
A few weeks after the Church Health
Assessment Tool is completed by the church,
both the Lead Team and the church will be
debriefed on the gathered information.

RESUME PROCESS
Based on gathered data from the Church
Health Assessment Tool, the Pastoral Search
Team will now be able to process through a
number of submitted resumes to see which
ones would be the best fit for your church
community. This will take a number of weeks
of thorough prayer and investigation.

INTERVIEWS
Once the Pastoral Search Team has been able
to narrow down a short list of names, they will
have an initial interview with each candidate to
further identify whom the Holy Spirit is leading
them towards.

FINAL INTERVIEW AND INVITATION
At this stage the Pastoral Search Team will
have determined the final 1-2 candidates
they want to interview for a final time, and
subsequently invite one of them to preach the
call at your church.

VOTE SUNDAY
If the invited Pastoral Candidate accepts
the invitation to preach the call, notice will
be given to your congregation as is required
by your Local Church [Bylaws]. On this
announced date an official from the Western
Ontario District of the PAOC will be with you
to Chair the vote Sunday. You will be given
opportunity to meet the candidate with official
church members voting on whether the Lord is
directing this individual to become your next
Lead Pastor.

COMMISSIONING SUNDAY
Following the successful vote of a new Lead
Pastor, within a month of their official start
date, a District Official will be with your church
community to officially commission your new
Lead Pastor, and begin an exciting journey
towards God’s preferred future for your church
and community.

*To become a voting member: individuals are required to attend GTC for a minimum of 6 months, attend a membership class (offered periodically throughout the year), and read through our bylaws. Voting members are expected to attend our Annual Members Meeting held in April, and participate in important church business that may arise.

News updates from GTC Board Chair, Howie Scruton, and other staff updates will be shared here.

• April 28 – Our CHAT Survey is now closed. Thank you to everyone who contributed their feedback. Results will be analyzed and reported back. Our Search Committee will begin their training in early May. Please continue to pray for us throughout this time of transition!
• April 7 – Our CHAT (Church Health Assessment Tool) feedback survey is now available! Find more information at the bottom of this page. We also welcomed Pastor Keith and Esther to GTC. He shared a timely and encouraging message about “Living In-Between” and gave a glance at some topics he’ll be covering over the next month.
• March 31 – Pastor Scott shared the exciting news that Pastor Keith Smith, the teaching pastor at OneChurch in Toronto, will be our interim lead pastor. Pastor Keith and his wife Esther will be joining us next Sunday on April 7. Our feedback survey will also be available next Sunday, with more details to come!
• March 3 – The Board met last week with regional director Jeremy Murdoch. As part of the Lead Pastor Search Process, an Interim Pastor will be joining us during the transition. A Search Committee has been formed consisting of both Board members and voting members (see below for list of names). The Search Committee members will undergo specific training and around early April the process will continue. Also in April, a congregational survey will be available. Everyone will have an opportunity to respond to the questions and indicate what you’d value in the next Lead Pastor. The results will be professionally reported and used to guide the Search Committee in the process. On average it can take about 8-15 months to find a Lead Pastor. We expect an Interim Lead Pastor to join us in early April.

The Board has selected these members to serve on the Search Committee:

• Dr. Ryan Carlson
• Rhéal Mallais
• Dalton Palmer
• Howie Scruton
• Peter Vanderkooy
• Vince Okojie
• Rod Koski
• Aramide Ogunleye
• Dr. Lian Widjanarko

Training for our Search Committee will begin in early May.

Updates from Jeremy Murdoch, PAOC Western Ontario District Regional Director of the North, will be shared here.

Update: Our survey is now closed. Thank you to everyone who took time to share their feedback. The results will be analyzed and reported to GTC.

We value your say in the search for our next lead pastor. As part of our pastoral search process, our church leadership is engaging in a listening exercise provided by Leadership Transformations, Inc. From Sunday, April 7, 2024 until Sunday, April 28, 2024, we’ll be conducting an all-church survey called the Church Health Assessment Tool (CHAT).

This web-based survey will allow us to collect valuable feedback from both the congregation and the leadership team regarding their views on our church health. This tool is based on the “10 Traits of Vital Ministry” from the book Becoming A Healthy Church (Dr. Stephen A. Macchia, Baker Books, 1999). We welcome all congregants (15 years old and up) to participate in this survey. Please take this opportunity to share your thoughts with us. Your feedback will help shape strategic decisions and ministry effectiveness for the future.

Congregants were given a physical card with access to the CHAT survey. Please reach out to us at our office (info [at] gtsudbury [dot] ca) if you missed this, or you can also receive the card when you attend in-person on Sunday. The survey will take 25-35 minutes to complete, and is intended for current GTC church families only. If you do not have access to a device, computer or the Internet, please call our office (705-522-4523) during the week for assistance.