Pastor of Congregational Care

Position & Church Summary

The Pastor of Congregational Care is responsible to contribute substantially to the pastoral care needs of Bethel Church—particularly at the Crown Point location. Primary duties will include various efforts to disciple and care for the congregation, with a special emphasis on caring for people who are hurting or in need. This position is critical to provide adequate shepherding care to the Bethel Church congregation and will enhance Bethel’s effectiveness to pursue our fundamental goal, which is to make disciples of Jesus Christ whose lives are all about him.

Bethel is a growing, nondenominational, evangelical church that is striving to exalt Christ through expository preaching, God-saturated worship, loving community, and gospel outreach. We are located 40 minutes south of downtown Chicago in Northwest Indiana. Our weekend attendance is around 3,400 people across our five locations and online (80% attendance is on-site). Outreach Magazine has named Bethel one of the 100 largest churches (2019 & 2020) and 100 fastest growing churches (2017) in America. Visit www.bethelweb.org for more information about the church.

Primary Tasks

 Pastoral Care

• Be an active pastoral presence within the church. Seek to build relationships with congregants, welcome newcomers, and relationally interact with a large number of people.
• Act as the primary “first responder” for pastoral needs within Bethel Church – particularly at the Crown Point campus.
• Frequently visit local hospitals and homes to be physically present in peoples’ lives.
• Monitor the church prayer list and proactively reach out to congregants with pastoral prayer needs.
• Provide leadership to the Prayer Counseling Team at the Crown Point Campus.
• Collaborate with campus elder teams, deacon teams, and the pastoral team to ensure healthy coverage of pastoral concerns.
• Work to develop/improve Bethel’s training processes for staff and other leaders regarding shepherding and care efforts.

 Pastoral Counseling

• Work carefully with the Pastor of Counseling to provide for the counseling needs at Bethel Church. Maintain a regular rhythm of pastoral counseling appointments.
• Assist and/or coordinate with the Bethel Church STEPS Recovery Ministry. The level of involvement in this ministry will depend on giftset and synergy with the existing STEPS leadership.

 Bereavement Care

• Oversee a significant percentage of funerals within Bethel Church. Personally officiate many of these funerals or assist other pastoral staff in doing so.
• Maintain an ongoing follow-up system for families who have lost loved ones to death.
• Lead efforts to address grief in its various forms within the church.
• Collaborate with the Deacon Ministry to provide special care and attention to the widows/widowers at Bethel Church.

 General Church Duties

• Personally model and reinforce the mission, values, and culture of Bethel Church.
• Participate in all required events and activities for Bethel Church staff, such as Sunday services (including major holidays), staff meetings, prayer meetings, special events, continuing education events, training opportunities, etc.
• Teach and train in a variety of settings, including classes, workshops, and worship services as needed.
• Other responsibilities may be added as new ministry needs arise and personal gifting develops.

Qualifications

• A stable, mature, and growing Christian with an exemplary personal, marital, and family life (if applicable) who meets the qualities of elder as prescribed in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9.
• At least 5 years of full-time experience as a pastor or comparable shepherding role (i.e., chaplain, professional counselor, parachurch minister, etc.).
• Adequate biblical education (preferably at the seminary level) with a sound knowledge of Scripture and an earnest desire to learn and grow.
• Committed to teamwork with the leadership, staff, and congregation of Bethel Church.
• Identifies closely with the mission, values, and doctrinal position of Bethel Church.

Competencies

Shepherding – Relational, outgoing, and good with people. Able to empathize with hurting people and provide a comforting presence. Strong capacity to remember faces and names.

Counseling – Gifted at providing impactful pastoral counseling for various needs. Good at resolving conflict and being a peacemaker between individuals. Proven ability to handle sensitive issues and maintain confidentiality.

Discipleship – Able to personally disciple individuals toward spiritual maturity. Has a strong ability to help people identify areas for growth and encourage them to move in that direction.

Teaching & Communication – Demonstrated capacity to inspire, instruct, and encourage through effective communication in various settings. Able to communicate and work within a complex organizational structure with multiple layers of input.

Administration – Ability to plan, organize, implement, and refine ministry programming and systems. Self-motivated and able to lead tasks or projects to completion. Competent at multitasking, time management, and prioritizing.

Reporting Structure

The Pastor of Congregation Care is a full-time position that is considered ministry staff of Bethel Church. He will have a direct reporting relationship to the Executive Pastor of Ministries.