Ottawa Bible Church Ottawa, Kansas Church Affiliation: evangelical, nondenominational, independent Christian church Church Website: www.ottawabiblechurch.com JOB DESCRIPTION AND OVERVIEW Ottawa Bible Church is a small, evangelical, non-denominational, independent Christian church located in beautiful Ottawa, Kansas. The leadership and members of OBC are seeking, through the Holy Spirit s guidance, one who will be the lead shepherd to our congregation, proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, use his skills in administrative leadership, and engage in pastoral care ministries to meet the spiritual needs of our congregation and community. As spiritual leader of the Ottawa Bible Church, our pastor's primary responsibility will be to preach and teach the Word of God and "...to equip God s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ." Ephesians 4:11-13 NLT. From its beginning, Ottawa Bible Church has had a concerted focus on supporting missionaries and ministries both close to home and worldwide. A valuable and key ministry is our AWANA program that has been ministering to the children of Ottawa and Franklin County for almost thirty years. Three yearly ministries in which our church participates include Operation Christmas Child; the Bethlehem Project; and Horses, Boots, and Bibles. A ministry of Samaritan s Purse, Operation Christmas Child distributes shoeboxes filled with gifts for disadvantaged children throughout the world. Our other two once-a-year ministries are distinctive ones, conceived and developed by church members and unique to our church. Enacted each December and presenting the salvation message, the Bethlehem project is a walking tour of the birth of Christ from the Gospel of Luke. Horses, Boots, and Bibles is a three-day youth camp on a working horse ranch that presents the message of salvation through workshops and country activities. Other missions we support include Chosen People, RBC Ministries, Rio Grande Bible Institute, TEAM, Teach Beyond, and Youthfront. Working through and with the OBC leadership, the pastor should encourage our congregation to continue reaching the community and the world for Jesus Christ by developing and implementing a variety of outreach strategies. Our pastor must trust in and have a heart for God that will lead him to consistently preach the Word of God; provide general leadership and oversight of the Sunday morning worship service, including coordination of those leading worship, audio-visual presentations, bulletin creation, adult education, etc.; and administer ceremonies of the church (baptisms, communion, welcoming new members, etc.). He should model a life dependent upon the presence of God, join the elders in exercising spiritual oversight and nourishment of the church, work with leaders and congregants to organize and develop service and growth opportunities, mentor men within the congregation to cultivate their spiritual life and leadership abilities, and coordinate with and supervise staff and ministry leaders. We also seek a pastor who will engage in pastoral care that includes short-term counseling, prayer, hospital visitation, weddings, funerals, baby dedications, and other opportunities to care for the needs of the congregation.
KEY QUALIFICATIONS Strong and steadfast trust in God and Jesus Christ: Possess a clear testimony of a Spirit-led, personal relationship with God Verifiable history of biblical integrity and conviction to the gospel Strong evidence of personal character and ethics consistent with biblical leadership qualifications outlined in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9, including: o Have a good reputation o Be above reproach o Display maturity and self-control o Live wisely and make good choices o Strong family orientation Agree with and embrace a worldview consistent with our Mission and Doctrinal Statements (Appendix B): Evangelical doctrine Support our church s mission focus Equip our congregation to reach our community for Jesus Christ Superior abilities necessary to accurately and inspirationally communicate the Word of God Join our Board of Elders to effectively lead the oversight and administration of our church Outstanding communication skills: Able to communicate and connect with those inside and outside the church Flexible and creative preaching style Competency to counsel others from a biblical worldview Positive attitude and approach Highly self-motivated and energetic Strong organizational and administrative skills Education: Seminary or master s degree preferred, or equivalent pastoral training and experience Solid exegetical and theological training exemplified by candidate's words and life Preferred Experience: Minimum of 3 years of ministry experience Strong evidence in building church membership and ministries o Membership growth at prior church o Experience in building youth ministries o Involvement with the church s mission groups History of faithful ministry o Stable work history o Desire for long-term pastoral role
CHURCH GOVERNMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY Recognizing Jesus Christ as the head of His Church at Ottawa Bible Church and in the world at large, the congregation prayerfully seeks to ascertain the will of our Lord and to do His will in all matters of faith and practice. The elders have the general oversight of everything concerning the church. The primary concern of the elders is the oversight of the ministries of the church and the spiritual life of the whole church family. The pastor of the church is considered an elder. The deacons have the oversight of the property and business of the church. All matters decided upon by the deacons are subject to the approval of the Board of Elders. APPLICATION PROCESS To apply for this senior pastor position, please do the following three things: 1. Read this Pastor Job Description and Key Qualifications document in its entirety. 2. Respond to the six attached questions (Appendix A) in your own words and provide supporting Scriptural reference. 3. Submit your resume or CV by email at obcpastorsearch@yahoo.com NOTE: Please add the subject line: OBC Pastor Application Please submit your application as a Word.doc or PDF file. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed or processed. Appendix A: Questions to be answered by applicant 1. What are your beliefs concerning Scripture? 2. What are your beliefs about the Godhead? 3. What are your beliefs about the person and work of Jesus Christ? 4. What are your beliefs about the person and work of the Holy Spirit? 5. Briefly share the story of your personal spiritual development, including how you came to personal faith in Christ. 6. Describe your personal vision for ministry and explain why. Appendix B: Our Mission and Doctrinal Statements The Ottawa Bible Church Mission Statement: Ottawa Bible Church exists to humbly and wholeheartedly worship God, share the gospel of Jesus Christ, teach the Scriptures, and minister to our community. We do this by: Proclaiming the gospel Practicing corporate worship Teaching God s Word Administering baptism and the Lord s Supper Educating and edifying believers in matters pertaining to the Christian life Ministering to the spiritual and physical needs of mankind Evangelizing the world through missions and witnessing
The Ottawa Bible Church Statement of Faith: We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God. We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in power and glory. We believe that for the salvation of lost and sinful people, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life. We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost; they that are saved unto the resurrection of life, and they that are lost unto the resurrection of damnation. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. Appendix C: Area Demographics and Opportunity Below are links to websites that contain facts, statistics, and information about Ottawa that someone not familiar with the town might find helpful. While giving background and important data, these types of things never give the entire story. As someone who has lived and worked in Ottawa for most of my adult life, I would like to add a personal perspective as a forward to this factual information. Ottawa is one of those blessed communities that has the advantage of being a smaller town yet close to several larger cities. We are within an hour s drive or less (on great highways!) to Lawrence, Topeka, and the Kansas City area. As such, we have the ease of small city living, but with all the amenities that larger cities provide. For local shopping, we have a Walmart, a new Price Chopper, and several stores for clothing/shoes. Orscheln Farm and Home supplies the needs of both farmers and wannabe farmers. There are even a couple of specialty shops downtown, one which sells handmade soaps and lotions and one that sells unique flavors of popcorn. Dining out in Ottawa can be a bit more challenging, but there are a few restaurants that serve good food, and did I mention that we are close to larger cities? For entertainment, Ottawa boasts the oldest theatre in America and which shows new releases. There is an active recreation organization as well as the Goppert Center that includes a basketball court, an indoor walking track, exercise equipment, and meeting rooms. We have two great parks Kanza Park and Forest Park designed for exercise and outdoor activities that include frisbee golf, swimming, picnicking, a dog park, and baseball. Prairie Spirit Trail is a rails-to-trails walking, biking, and running trail that stretches more than 51 miles from Ottawa to Iola and which passes through 10 small towns and
connects to other trails. If 4-H is your thing, there are many clubs to join, and Ottawa hosts the annual Franklin County Fair in July. Both car enthusiasts and the general population enjoy the Ol Marais River Run which brings over 1,000 antique and classic cars to town every September. The event is highlighted by a car parade down Main Street. Culturally, we are in step with larger communities. The Franklin County Historical Society runs the Old Depot Museum that is certainly worthy of a visit. The Ottawa Library has outstanding programming for kids and adults, and the Ottawa Memorial Auditorium brings events to town. There is a dynamic Suzuki group that performs occasional concerts that are open to the public. During the summer, a city band gives weekly performances at City Park. For the most part, we have solid Midwest beliefs and values in our little town. A before-meal grace is still said at chamber luncheons even though this is a civic organization and not associated with any faithbased group. So far, we appear to be more immune to the anti-christian attitude that seems to be pervading our nation. Ottawa is a nice place to live, to raise a family, and in which to retire. My husband and I had moved from Ottawa after our children were grown to split the difference between our job locations, but, with retirement in the near future, we decided we wanted to move back because of all the advantages this community has to offer. If I sound a little biased, I probably am. That s not such a bad thing, though, when you feel blessed to be living in a good place. Websites that might be helpful: www.ottawaks.gov http://visitottawakansas.com www.usd290.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ottawa,_kansas www.zillow.com/ottawa-ks http://ottawakansas.org www.ottawaherald.com http://www.ottawalibrary.org https://www.ottawa.edu
www.mapquest.com/us/ks/ottawa