Friday Communication - 27th October 2023
Today I want to start the first of three Friday talks about our plans for next year. In this talk I will address the staffing decisions we have made in the wake of Chris’ resignation, then in two weeks time our commitment to the AFES Australia wide ‘Meet Jesus’ mission, and finally how that commitment will be reflected in our calendar for 2024.
I have been saddened by Chris’ experience of burnout, by what he and his family have endured, but I am grateful that he has arrived at a point where he can make the decision that for the present he cannot see himself returning to the kind of ministry he has had here. I am also grateful for his and Ruth’s perseverance through this time, and for the growth in self-knowledge suffering faithfully has brought. Please continue to pray that the Lord would guide the Shaws as they think about the ways He would have them serve with the gifts the Lord has given them in the coming years.
But his resignation and thinking about burnout has helped clarify the steps we need to take to sustain the ministry in 2024. As we are in the process of seeking a colleague and successor the time is not right to look for a new assistant pastor, nor will our financial situation permit employing a fourth pastor at the moment. As said on Sunday this means that all the Pastors, including Andrew our Youth Pastor, have more work in terms of preaching, pastoral care, and administrative work. This is not a sustainable position and we do not want to enter 2024 without taking steps to address and reduce in some aspects that increased workload. After reading some of the literature on burnout and the effect of administrative busy work and goal conflict on those with already large workloads, talking to the pastors and getting an estimate from them on the amount of time spent each week on service teams administration, and thinking where we could provide that needed relief Session, Board and Pastors have decided that the most immediate relief could be given by expanding Cat Camilleri’s role so that Cat would become the church’s Pastoral Administrator, employing her for two extra days in addition to the one she has been working since returning from maternity leave. The focus of this role will be to
- Manage service teams, involving overseeing recruiting, training, rostering, supporting team leaders, and monitoring performance. This to be done in conjunction with the pastors
- Recruiting – including scheduling advertising of needs, helping team leaders, monitoring for clashes in team members responsibilities
- Training – scheduling training and either running it or supporting the pastors, team leaders in running the training
- Rostering – ensuring the service roles are filled week by week, including holiday periods
- Supporting team leaders – checking in with them, encouraging them, advising them on how to deal with inconsistency in team members, ensuring they have the necessary resources, helping them communicate with their teams
- Monitoring function – being able to give feedback and helpful suggestions on the performance of the teams
And the full job description will be found by clicking the link HERE.
We offered the job to Cat because we know she is pastorally astute, competent in I.T., knows our systems, has an ability to train, an ability to create and monitor systems, and is committed to serving our church, and loves the Lord Jesus. The two days is restoring days Cat was working at the height of the pandemic.
We do think this appointment will provide significant relief to the pastors, freeing them up for the teaching and provision of pastoral care that is their desire and the core of their work. We also think it will prove of significant benefit to all who serve on our teams, allowing us to enhance the support and training provided, especially to team leaders. Strengthening the administration of the church in general over 2024 will be especially helpful both for the planning of the mission and for a smoother transition to a successor to me as roles are clarified and the work of oversight of our office staff is shared with Cat. This is not a stop-gap appointment but one we have probably needed for some time and one which will continue to pay increasing dividends in facilitating our common life in the years to come.
As said on Sunday the two extra days come with a $38,000 price tag. That is a significant increase in our budget but far less than the cost of employing another pastor. We have gone ahead with the appointment which will commence in January 2024 knowing that we can cover it from our reserves in 2024 but it will need to be supported by increased giving over 2024 if it is a position that will continue. We are not assuming we will get that increase and have provided for the appointment to be reviewed after one year, but we do think it will be very helpful to both the pastors and to us all, and so I would ask you to prayerfully consider supporting the appointment in your giving next year.
We are planning to hold an information evening on Tuesday November 28th at 7:30pm at church to discuss the appointment in the light of the larger budget picture, and to answer any questions you might have. We haven’t yet made a decision about online participation in that meeting. Feel free to ask questions before then about the appointment if you wish.
I think this will be of significant benefit and am grateful that Cat has accepted the challenge of this new role. Please pray for her, for Megan and Maxine, as they continue to serve us in the office in so many ways – from maintaining the website to doing the ordering, from ensuring our safe church compliance to sending our the devotions. Pray with thankfulness for their continuing energy, ability, and growing love of Jesus and knowledge of His love for them as they serve His people here.
And next email – how we can share in helping people meet Jesus in 2024.
