IDEAL CANDIDATE
The ideal candidate has a deep, growing relationship with God and exhibits it in a personal life of devotion and preaching with a strong biblical focus. The ideal candidate will have a passion for making disciples and encouraging every believer to grow in their faith in a way that invites others to meet Jesus. We seek a pastor who has an evangelical perspective and affirms the statement of faith of the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference while supporting themission, vision and values of The Sherman Church.
We seek a pastor who believes in the inerrancy and authority of Scripture - that God’s Word is meant to impact every area of a believer’s life. While sharing an understanding of Scripture, the pastor will help all apply God’s Word and principles to everyday life in a way that engages and challenges people to grow in wisdom. We want our future minister to deliver sermons that not only explain the text clearly but also connect to daily life in a way that inspires Christians regardless of where they are on their faith journey.
Our ideal pastor will help implement our vision for the church, motivating and equipping leaders to come alongside to see God at work through a congregational approach to ministry. This means working collaboratively in the structure of a congregational church, being flexible in leading, evaluating and guiding necessary steps to fulfill the vision.
The pastor we seek needs to be comfortable in small-town ministry, having a desire to engage with the community. We pray our new pastor will encourage, strengthen and inspire the congregation to also reach out in faith to bring the gospel to the unchurched.
SHERMAN CHURCH PROFILE
The Sherman Church is more than warm handshakes, more than genuine concern: felt not only in prayers shared in worship but during times of fellowship and fun. This is a congregation of people who care for one another and the community. Founded in 1744, The Sherman Church was part of the beginning of congregationalism in New England. It is evangelical in theology, and a part of the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference, a growing, gospel-centered denomination. As the only Protestant church in town, it draws its members from a wide variety of faiths, bound together by their love for Christ and commitment to the local church family.
This is a small, rural church, yet they have a history of worldwide mission support as well as local supports. Sunday about 30-40 gather, some five to seven online due to distance or illness. Worship is traditional, though there is desire and effort to blend new music. The music director of 40+ years was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and as is consistent with their awesome compassion, they have chosen to minister to her by guiding her through worship. However, the time has come to transition to someone who can take up the reins and guide the program into the future with us.
The Mission Statement that has endured for decades is “Becoming Like Christ and Making Him Known.” Core values are identified as Worship, Bible, Fellowship, Mission, and Generosity & Service. Recently the church adopted a Vision Statement, and from that is beginning to set goals and strategies to move forward in reaching out to the area with the Gospel.
The church is governed by a Church Council of committee chairs and officers, acting as a board of directors. The church is blessed with a church building that includes a sanctuary, fellowship hall with classrooms, and a separate church office building onsite, housing secretary and pastor office and conference table for meetings. There is adequate property for parking and a large field for activities. The church is off the main highway.
All the property is debt-free. In fact, the church is blessed with a substantial and growing endowment that allows for growing ministry potential without financial burden. Investments have been so well managed that despite drawing for capital needs and to supplement the operating budget, the portfolio has grown more than 75% in the past decade. As the church looks to a new vision and has a growing passion for outreach, God has allowed investments to be a foundation for the future.