Other Details

About the Senior Associate Pastor:

The Senior Associate Pastor of the Naples Community Church will come alongside the Senior Pastor to serve  the unique culture and people of the church. They will have the privilege of pastoring in the context of a vibrant, warm, and friendly community of faith, who naturally love and laugh and welcome each other and all who walk through the doors of the church.

The ideal candidate will demonstrate growing proficiencies in relationships, ministry practices, worship, pastoral care, general administration, and teaching the Word of God. They must be comfortable leading and shepherding with ever-increasing responsibility.

The Senior Associate Pastor’s Responsibilities Include:

• Enabling: We strive to live God’s love in Christ by declaring and demonstrating the power of the gospel, inviting people to discover and deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ, one another, and the community. We see Naples Community Church as a contagious, worshiping community of grace-filled, generous, and growing disciples who are blessing each other with fellowship and our city with service.
• Teaching: Sunday and midweek classes, and other special classes as needed, and always founded on Scripture taught from the historic perspective as the primary witness to Jesus Christ.
• Preaching: On occasion and for extended stretches of time, especially during the offseason, post-holidays.
• Engaging: Act as point person for the Communications & Engagement Team to resource and assist in raising the church’s profile in the community.
• Assisting: In worship, pastoral care, general administration, and management. Participate fully in the life of the church, fellowship outings, prayer, etc.
• Cooperating: Participate in the collaborative processes that yield various ministry initiatives with staff and leadership.
• Evaluating: Assess the current needs of the congregation and opportunities for growing the church and work with the pastor and other leaders to develop appropriate ministry initiatives.
• Communing: Engage with the community in a variety of civic activities, especially in providing what might seem to be innocuous occasions of “blessing the event.”
• Relating: Maintain an open, transparent relationship with the Pastor, leadership, and congregation.

What You Bring: 

Education & Experience

Completion of undergraduate degree, a seminary Master of Divinity or Master of Arts, or in process toward completion. A doctorate is a plus.

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

It is vital the Associate Pastor willingly enters into a relationship with the Senior Pastor and the Church Board that involves mentoring and coaching for congruity with the congregation and community. It is our intent that this occurs smoothly and organically, growing out of mutual respect and affirmation, a process of:

• Listening – We never hear anyone say, you listen too much! Listening communicates genuine care for the other and a desire to understand.
• Learning – Every church is unique. Cookie cutters don’t work on people or the cultures they form. Models of ministry from seminars and books may be helpful, but not nearly so much as the ministry being exercised in a particular place by a unique people.
• Loving – We cannot minister to those we do not love. Yes, everyone has a personality, and some can be “fun” to deal with. But our calling is clear:  We cannot lead those we choose not to love. Maybe it was Jesus who said something like that?
• Leading – The goal is that the Naples Community Church continue as a vibrant, loving, and faithful people until our Lord returns.

Personal Characteristics & Qualifications

Relational: 

• Loves people and is re-charged by being with them.
• Lives out humility,  integrity,  and authenticity.
• Demonstrates listening skills and emotional intelligence.
• Cares that everyone knows the love of God by showing that love in a Christ-like manner.
• Preaching and teaching will likewise emphasize the fact that ours is more a relationship than a religion.

Orthodox: 

• A solid, growing Christian faith with a theological conviction that is comfortable with such affirmations as, “orthodox” or “evangelical” or “historic” without those terms being alloyed with current political or cultural definitions.

Initiative: 

• Recognizes needs and moves to address them.
• Embraces opportunities to expand the reach of the ministry to the enhancement of people’s lives.