Blandford Evangelical Church Welcoming, Worshipping, Witnessing by G.R.A.C.E. INFORMATION PACK 1
The Town of Blandford Blandford Forum is a small, rural market town in north Dorset, situated approximately 20 miles from the south coast. The population of around 12,000 people includes the adjoining village of Blandford St Mary, across the River Stour. There are very small, minority ethnic groups represented in an otherwise largely white population. About two miles outside of Blandford Forum is Blandford Camp, home of the Royal Signals with Barracks and the School of Training for the Royal Signals. Approximately 6,000 soldiers and their families live on Camp, which is also an employer of a large number of civilians. Employment levels in the area generally are high, with the main employer in the town being the local brewery. On the two industrial estates of the town there is a wide range of light and service industries. Local government and education are also major employers. The education system in the Blandford schools pyramid, transitioned to a two-tier system in 2005. The conurbation of Bournemouth and Poole, 18-20 miles away, is the nearest major shopping and cultural centre, with Salisbury 22 miles away to the north east and the county town of Dorchester 18 miles to the south west. There is no rail link to Blandford Forum, with the nearest mainline stations being Salisbury, Poole and Bournemouth. Church Profile Blandford Evangelical Church was established in 1973, in a local farm house, but purchased and moved into the current facility, a redundant Methodist Church building, in 1975. A major extension was added in 1986 together with internal alterations, to provide a larger seating capacity for services and more rooms for the youth, children s and other ministries. The Church is an independent, evangelical and charismatic church. The family service on Sunday mornings is at 10.00a.m. with coffee and tea served afterwards. The children s and youth ministries run during this service, as does a crèche. The Church has a wide demographic in age range and the Sunday morning service aims to be sensitive and welcoming to newcomers who are unfamiliar with Church. However, the teaching and challenge is applied to both Christians and not yet Christians. As from September 2015 the staff employed by the church comprises one full-time pastor and six part-time staff. The Church gradually and sensitively moved from its conservative evangelical church roots and embraced renewal back in the late eighties. Today the church is Bible-based, evangelical, charismatic and has a desire to be even more missional in our local communities. More than fifty per cent of the congregation comes from the wider catchment area outside of Blandford Forum. 2
Throughout the week there is a range of activities, groups and Smallgroups, with the purpose of building links into the community and growing the church. A typical Sunday morning total attendance would currently be 135-180 people, of which there may be up to 25 children and 10-15 young people. Worship is at the heart of our church life. On a weekly basis, the children are catered for in Creche (0-3years) and Transformers currently run in two groups, 3Ups (3-6yrs) and 7Ups (7-11yrs) and the youth in Junction (12-14yrs). Focus (13-18yrs) is the name of the youth programme of the church and meets on Tuesday and Saturday evenings. On one Sunday each month there is a Youth Service. Our vision is for all ages in the Church family to be growing in faith, Christian discipleship and service. We want to encourage and further develop ministries in the wider community and among our peers. We also want to see new believers discipled and integrated into the life and ministry of B.E.C. We are committed to working in fellowship with the other churches in the town, as well as resourcing and supporting local churches in the rural catchment area of Blandford. Our vision is to see the community of the church and the community outside of the church transformed by the love and power of God. To this end we are intentional in being a welcoming, worshipping and witnessing community of God s people. Current Staffing & Leadership Brook MacCallum - Senior Pastor Liz MacCallum Pastoral Assistant (Part-time) Rachael Crisp - Children s and Families Development Worker (20 hours) Dale Carmichael Pastoral and Outreach Development Worker (20 hours) Emma Carmichael - Pastoral and Outreach Development Worker (25 hours) Trish Reynolds Church Administrator (10 hours) Helen Jeffries Church Administrator (10 hours) Leadership Team: Brook MacCallum Liz MacCallum Dale Carmichael Emma Carmichael Michael Smith Robin Bragg (Co-opted) 3
Legal Identity The Church is incorporated as a Company Limited by Guarantee and is governed in accordance with its Memorandum and Articles of Association. All Church Leaders automatically become Trustees on their appointment and Pastors become ex-officio Trustees. There are also some non-leader, elected Trustees. Company Registration No: 5111593 Trustees Tony Frowd (Chairman) Paul Clark Ruth Disbrow Jerome Dodge Gordon Tuck (External Trustee) Michael Smith (Treasurer & Leader) Dale Carmichael (Leader ex-officio) Emma Carmichael (Leader ex-officio) Liz MacCallum (Leader ex-officio) Brook MacCallum (Leader ex-officio) Registered Charity The Church is also a Registered Charity, Registration No: 1105954 4
Ethos Statement Blandford Evangelical Church believes that our ethos emerges from a desire and motivation to express Christ s love to the community of Blandford, North Dorset and beyond, and to reflect this love internally in our relationships with one another. The motivation for our mission comes from Christ s love compelling believers (2 Cor.5:14) and is therefore rooted in our faith in Christ. This faith produces a distinctive heart attitude of love, which expresses and is characterized by the following values and behaviours: Values of a relational ethos Individual Centeredness Inclusively corporate Interdependence Integrity Seeing the image of God in each individual - relationships as important as results. Facilitating a sense of belonging to the Church family - We recognise the value of people s diverse gifts, experience, perspective and contribution. Understanding the role of self and others in the overall whole. Each member of the church family Is treated with respect as having different function but equal value. The Church and the individual being true to their values - by applying God s principles and ethics to internal and external activities and relations. 5
Our specific values 1. Dependency on God We acknowledge our dependency on God, by faith. 2. Commitment to the Bible We are committed to the truth of the Bible, affirming evangelical Christianity. We seek to be obedient to its teaching, evaluating our work and attitudes in its light. 3. Growth We seek the growth of our personal and corporate faith in God and numerical growth through our commitment to the great commission. (Mat.28:18-20) 4. Response We express our love to God in worship and the use of all our resources. 5. Believing Prayer We believe that prayer is foundational to all ministry we engage in. 6. Mission We are committed to sharing the Christian message and demonstrating God s love through practical aid and support. 7. Christian Unity We are committed to expressing our unity with other local Christian Churches through co-operation, mutual support and shared resources. 8. Equipping We recognize the importance of training and empowering members of the church to use their gifts and abilities in service. 9. Achieving Excellence We are committed to integrity, honesty, quality and professionalism, encouraging creativity and innovation in all we do. 6
These values and behaviour are intrinsically linked to the success and fulfillment of our mission as a local Church. Therefore, the attitude and motivation of our staff and the way our mission is achieved are as important as the mission itself. (Jn.13:34,Mat.22:36, 1 Cor.13:1-2) As this attitude and motivation come only from a relationship with Jesus Christ, it becomes a Genuine Occupational Requirement that our staff are committed Christians. Roles that have significant leadership, or that are central to fulfilling our aims and purposes or developing and maintaining our Christian ethos, will always be held by committed Christians. There are other roles that have key spiritual elements to them that can only be carried out by a committed Christian. It is also essential that these attitudes and behaviours continue, and so we expect our staff to act in good faith and with loyalty to that relational ethos and to evangelical Christian standards of behaviour.. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action. Not withstanding this, Blandford Evangelical Church is committed to diversity amongst its staff and volunteers and will not discriminate on other grounds that are unrelated to our ethos. We believe that defining our occupational requirements does not restrict, but actually enhances our commitment to diversity. 7
Role: Senior/Lead Pastor Person Specification We want to appoint for the following role anytime from the beginning of 2016 and by the summer of 2016 at the latest. This person will replace our current Senior Pastor, who is retiring. Primary areas of spiritual gifting required though not all at the same level:- Visionary, Leadership, Pastor, Teacher Person Profile - required Christian character of honesty, openness, integrity, faithfulness, love etc. Competence proven ability to lead at this level Chemistry essential inter-personal skills and connection with existing leadership Culture in tune with the healthy parts of BEC culture but able and willing to challenge. Warm, approachable, outgoing, inclusive, team builder, Holy Spirit dependent life Theological training Approach to ministry Vision focused, missional, Bible-based, built around healthy teams, equipping and releasing others, on-the-job discipleship/training of others, Mentoring. Theological persuasion Renewed, Evangelical, Charismatic. In agreement with BEC statement of faith Salary : To reflect experience and the level of responsibility 8
Our vision & aims:- To be a welcoming, worshipping and witnessing church, helping people towards a growing relationship with Jesus Christ To relocate to more suitable building facilities and establish a Church Centre, serving at the heart of the community To encourage and model intimacy with God and freedom in our contemporary styles of worship. To engender a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere in which meaningful relationships are established, faith can grow and spiritual gifts are released in ministry. To nurture spiritual growth, fellowship and pastoral care through our Smallgroup network To use relevant ways of effectively sharing the Gospel, especially through our personal relationships with colleagues, families, neighbours and friends. Our heart To build on and increase our connections in the community, working across the age ranges, offering transformational ministries and projects To engage in missionary support and mission at home and overseas. To be a church actively pursuing purpose-driven principles To work with the other churches in the town and area, in order to effectively be and share the good news. To engage with New Wine, Spring Harvest, Willow Creek Association and other training and conferences and local youth camps. Our main involvements in the community:- We have outreach ministries to the elderly, men, women, families, young people and children. We run various courses such as Alpha, CAP Money Course, the Marriage Course and others. From time to time we engage in servant evangelism and other community projects and helped initiate and now help with operating Blandford Foodbank. We endeavour to keep the congregation and our community informed of activities and news through our website www.becbygrace.com and our Church Facebook page. 9
The BEC Statement of Faith This is the Biblical doctrine of beliefs to which all members adhere. It affirms the fundamentals of our faith, outlining the key principles of Salvation, the Trinity, the Deity, the Bible, the Sonship of Christ etc. This is the basis of our unity (Eph.4:12-13) THE HOLY SCRIPTURES We believe in the divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, being the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament and the twenty-seven books of the New Testament; their authority and sufficiency as not only containing but being themselves the Word of God; and the need of the teaching of the Holy Spirit for a true and spiritual understanding of the whole Bible. GOD We believe in the unity of the Godhead with the distinction of persons within that unity, namely the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit to whom equal honour is due and the sovereignty of God in creation, providence and redemption. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST We believe in the true and proper deity of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God; begotten of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, His real and perfect manhood and the authority and infallibility of His teaching. We believe his suffering and death were a vicarious sacrifice to God for the remission of sins and a work of atonement. We believe that he was raised from the dead. We believe that he ascended to the right hand of God in heaven as the all-sufficient High Priest making intercession for His people. We believe He will return personally in glory and receive His people to Himself and set up His Kingdom. THE HOLY SPIRIT We acknowledge the necessity of the Holy Spirit's work in the new birth, sanctification, ministry and worship. MAN We believe in the utter depravity of human nature in consequence of the fall of Adam. That man is lost, weak and at 'enmity against God' and in need of new life. We believe that the justification of the sinner before God is by faith alone, through the atoning merits of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. We believe that every justified one is also born of God, this new birth resulting in, and being made evident by, holiness of life and good works. We believe that at death the spirit of man does not cease to exist or become unconscious, but that the dead will be raised and judged by the Lord Jesus Christ with eternal blessedness of the righteous and the eternal punishment of the unrighteous. BGM.Revised 02/12/15 10