Position Description

WestVillage Church is an 8-year-old church in the heart of the Westboro neighbourhood in Ottawa, Ontario. Westboro is a trendy, growing, family-oriented, and affluent community—although Ottawa Community Housing and the Westboro Region Food Bank also serve the area. Westboro was chosen as a location for a church plant because it has few evangelical churches.

Originally a church plant by the Metropolitan Bible Church, WestVillage began to hold regular weekly services in January 2016. Through gospel-centred preaching and a heart for reaching the community, WestVillage quickly grew into a vibrant and dynamic community of believers. However, before we were fully established as a mature church, we were met with significant local challenges and the COVID-19 pandemic, which pruned us back to a point where we needed to rely completely on God.

Through these challenges, God has continually blessed us with many new faces, faithful leadership, and deeper relationships. As a church, we continue to experience God's faithfulness and steadfast love through those He has called to WestVillage as we continue to serve and share the Good News with the community God has given us. WestVillage is a multi-generational, multicultural church of about 230 from various parts of Ottawa and the surrounding region (including those from nearby Quebec), who meet together on Sunday and throughout the week. Over the past year, WestVillage has undertaken a visioning process to seek God’s guidance and direction, including involving the broader church leadership and congregation. This has led to the following new purpose and vision statements:

Purpose Statement: We exist to make disciples who love God, love their neighbour, and make disciples.

Vision Statement: Together, we will reach up, reach in and reach out.

To be an authentic church community radically transformed by Christ, filled with passion and purpose for the Gospel. Together, we reach out to share the Good News and care for our neighbours near and far, especially those who are hurting and in need.

 Our Sunday morning services are led by gospel-centred preaching from our  Interim Lead Pastor and the Youth and Young Adults Pastor. Elders and other ministry leaders also participate in the service in various ways, such as by leading congregational prayer.

Music is also essential at WestVillage. We have a Worship and Media Lead who coordinates the in-person and online sessions, manages the online content, and leads the musical elements of the Sunday Service and the many talented musicians and artists who seek to glorify God with their gifts.

We are blessed with a vibrant children’s ministry overseen by our Children’s Ministry Lead. This ministry offers Sunday School, Monday playgroups, regular weekend events, and backyard clubs in the summer. Since half our church is young families, these play an important role in connection and outreach.

Regarding one-on-one discipleship, we have many members committed to small community groups called C-groups, which gather regularly to study the Bible, pray together, and serve their neighbourhood. There is also a monthly “open” C-group, a women's bible study group, and a monthly prayer gathering at the church office for all who wish to come. We also have recently launched a fledgling young adult and youth ministry led by our youth and young adult pastor.

Finally, as a church that loves our community, we partner with Ottawa Community Housing (by providing meals for low-income seniors), the Westboro Region Food Bank, and other new church plants around Ottawa. We are blessed with many hands willing to work, as seen in our over 80 volunteers serving in various roles in our church and through our ministries in the community!

REQUIREMENTS

Are you a mature, humble man of prayer longing to know Jesus and to make Him known? We seek someone who loves the church and lives out his faith with integrity.  Do you have a passion for teaching and serving? Do you see yourself as one who brings unity and purpose to God's people? We are seeking a Lead Pastor with the following characteristics:

 Spiritual maturity

                         1.1.            You are a mature follower of Jesus with love for His church and its’ mission (Mat 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8; Mat: 22;37-40; 1 John 4:21; Mark 12:30) and, as such, you exemplify the fruit of the Spirit in your private and public conduct (Gal. 5:22). As an Elder-led congregation, all Elders and members of the pastoral team (whether paid staff or volunteer) are expected to emulate the example set by the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ, as they guide our church (1 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9);

               1.2.            You model a godly life by prioritizing family and putting into place guardrails to protect against the spiritual, mental, physical, financial, and social demands that may be placed on them. You maintain a healthy balance between church and personal priorities and encourage others (staff, volunteers, etc.)  by supporting healthy well-being and work-life balance in the work environment and church (e.g. encouraging the concept of rest and sabbath). 

Biblical preaching and teaching

                         2.1.            You effectively preach Biblical truth in a winsome, compelling, expository manner. This includes teaching the application of biblical truths in a way that is easily learned and applied in thought, word and deed. You share the Good News in a way that challenges cultural norms in light of the Gospel and

              2.2.            You prioritize the ministry of the Word and prayer in your personal life as well as during Sunday Services, staff meetings, and other contexts where the church is gathered.  (e.g. Acts 6:1–7; 2 Tim. 2:1–2; 4:1–5; Titus 1:9; 2:1, 15; Heb. 13:7).

 Visionary leadership

               3.1.            You have a heart and a passion for the local church and sharing the gospel locally and globally, especially to those in need. You have a gospel-oriented kingdom mindset with a godly sense of urgency that prioritizes the great commandment and the great commission (Mat. 6:33; Romans 14:17; Col. 1:13-14; 1 Cor 4:20; Hebrews 12:28-29). You desire for the local church to grow spiritually and reach out with the gospel through evangelism and service (Grow: Deep & Wide).

               3.2.            You have experience developing and implementing strategic direction for a church and/or other ministries. Through prayer and meditation on God’s Word, you engage in big-picture thinking and can communicate God’s vision to the local church. You identify and prioritize key strategic objectives that are most important for realizing the vision, including proactively taking the steps to accomplish the goal;

               3.3.            You adapt quickly to navigate change and seek to consistently exhibit a positive attitude rooted in confidence in God’s faithfulness, even in the midst of uncertainty and challenges. You utilize insights and lessons learned from your previous ministry experience to implement changes to and support new and existing ministries;

               3.4.            You are able to collaborate with others to motivate, inspire, and gain buy-in from staff, volunteers, members, and the broader congregation. You effectively delegate tasks and responsibilities to attain key priorities.

Discipleship

                         4.1.            You have a strong desire/passion to lead the church in seeking the lost, making disciples, and equipping workers. You can effectively lead a team of staff and/or volunteers, creating a positive team environment that equips and empowers others to grow personally and accomplish organizational goals;

               4.2.            You are relationally oriented and able to come alongside others, inspiring, encouraging and motivating them to accomplish a common goal. You have a strong passion for discipleship and encouraging the personal spiritual growth of others. This includes successfully leading, implementing and/or administering programs and or processes to support discipleship within the church;

               4.3.            You are welcoming and approachable, able to relate to and empathize with a wide range of people with different needs, backgrounds and perspectives. You also have a heart for reaching out to and supporting persons inside and outside of the church (neighbours near and far) who are hurting and in need. At WVC, this means having a heart for a diverse multi-ethnic church and coming alongside to support and celebrate those with special needs (neurodiverse, physical needs, seniors, etc.).

 Education and doctrinal requirements:

              5.1.            You meet the requirements for an Elder as outlined in 1 Tim 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9;

              5.2.            You agree with and are willing to sign the Statement of Faith for the Associated Gospel Churches (AGC) of Canada and related policies;

              5.3.            You have completed a Masters level in Theological Education and have a minimum of seven (7) to ten (10) years of pastoral ministry experience.

 RESPONSIBILITIES

 Our next Lead Pastor will have the following responsibilities:

 Preaching and teaching: The lead pastor is responsible for regular teaching/preaching during Sunday morning services. This is your primary responsibility and the primary task of the church: to preach and teach the Word of God as written in the Old and New Testaments; call the congregation to personal faith in Jesus Christ, to repentance, spiritual growth, service and evangelism through biblically grounded, expository preaching and teaching.

        1.1.     Specifically, you will develop and plan series content for the ministry year ahead, and it is expected that you will preach approximately 3 out of every 4 Sundays, including the administration of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s supper;

       1.2.     Where appropriate, you will support other speakers in the development of sermon material etc. (e.g. interns, Youth and Young Adults Pastor, fellow Elders, etc.); and

       1.3.     As opportunities arise, and as time permits, you may also be requested to teach outside of a Sunday service.

 Prayer. You will engage in regular personal prayer for the church and encourage a culture of prayer during Sunday Services, staff meetings, Elder meetings, and other contexts where the church is gathered. You will remind the church of answered prayers,  the Lord’s provision, and encourage individual prayer on the part of the congregation.

 Strategic vision: In collaboration with the Elders, Board of Directors and Ministry Team Leads, you will lead in the development and implementation of a strategic plan for the church, including discipleship, community outreach and global missions. WVC has already conducted baseline work on developing a new vision, motto and mission statements that will serve as a foundation. WVC has also recently launched a new membership process and is reviewing church bylaws and governance.

        3.1.     You will lead in refining, developing and implementing a new mission statement for WVC that will cover the next 5-10 years and aligns with the recently drafted vision and motto;

       3.2.     You will work with fellow Elders to oversee the refinement of the membership process and review and revision of the existing church bylaws and governance structure as we transition the corporate structure to include congregational members;

       3.3.     You will work with fellow Elders, Staff and Ministry Team Leads to develop an integrated plan for discipleship, community outreach and global missions.

 Discipleship: Supervise and delegate staff in conjunction with fellow Elders. Actively and regularly participate in the development of staff interns. Mentor all staff and engage in discipleship relationships with others in the congregation, particularly other Elders and ministry Team Leads.

         4.1.     Attendance at and participation in weekly staff meetings, monthly Elders meetings, and quarterly leadership team meetings.

     4.2.     Participation in the development of our interns will include group study and one-on-one meetings, as well as sermon preparation and review with our pastoral intern.

       4.3.     You will also work with Ministry Team Leads and other volunteers to provide support and encouragement, as well as discipleship and mentoring within and across the church body.

Pastoral care and visitation: As opportunities arise, shepherding, caring for, and visiting with those in the congregation who request it and would benefit from it.

Applicants must be credentialed by the Associated Gospel Churches or be able to be credentialed by them. Please visit AGC of Canada for more information on the credentialing process.

 Apply to: pastorsearch@westvillage.church 

 Application deadline: May 31, 2024 7:00 PM