Children & Family Ministries Director

THIS IS A FULL-TIME or 3/4-time position with full-time benefits, with the possibility of some hours allocated by passion or skill-set to another ministry, admin, or support portfolio to meet the hours needed. Position is also available as half-time with half-time benefits. Start date flexible.

CHURCH CONTEXT: Messiah Lutheran Church, a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA), is a mid-sized but growing congregation in Chicago’s north suburban Wauconda, IL, where we ‘trust Jesus, grow disciples, and bless others with his love.’ We are a joyful congregation with strong support of children’s and family ministry, a large dynamic preschool, a commitment to inclusion of all God’s children, and a large and multi-use campus with great spaces for ministry that serves the community in diverse ways. With our new pastor and faithful lay leadership, there’s increasing excitement and financial strength as our systems get better, our staff gets bigger, and our dreams get bolder. Values-wise: we’re grateful to God, kind to each other, curious about change, gracious about goof-ups, eager for improvement, and willing to work hard to change lives with Jesus’ love–and grow the local Body of Christ that is Messiah!

DREAM CANDIDATE

• You love to create environments where children learn about and practice living the Way of Jesus, while feeling beloved, self-confident, and knowledgeable about scripture.
• You dream that when students get confirmed or graduate, they have a firm foundation of faith, excitement about the church, and a joyful, future-pointing confidence in Christ.
• You see ministry as a partnership with parents, church staff and other ministry leaders– and others in the community who share our values and vision.
• You aren’t afraid to delegate. In fact, you can already see the “dream org chart” for how we will grow into the future.
• You take quick and decisive action when things don’t go as expected
• You are a good public communicator, verbally and in writing
• You have a heart toward reaching and welcoming families who aren’t already part of the church, the charisma to draw leaders, and the wisdom to mentor them.

PRIMARY DUTIES

• Work with the pastor and ministry team to vision, recruit for, implement, and evaluate a children’s ministry aligned with their passions and Messiah’s vision, values, and strategy.
• Develop and encourage synergies with Messiah’s worship, music, pre-school, middle and high-school student, and community-service ministries
• Develop faith-formation ministries and events for children and their families at various life-stages, such as a first communion retreat, VBS, a “Learn the Bible” initiative, confirmation, and mission/educational trips
• Participate in the work of the church staff, and be a key influencer in the life of the church, vocationally, spiritually, and professionally—and active supporter of the church, their staff peers, pastor.
• Grow professionally through workshops and trainings for self and teammates, and spiritually through an active faith life

DESIRED TRAITS

• Active and joyful faith in Jesus and a commitment to living a Christ-honoring life.
• Drive to help people come to trust and follow Jesus and help His church grow
• Vision and skills for building a life-changing children’s and youth (eventually all-ages) ministry scope.
• Ability to recruit, support, mentor, and supervise volunteer and other paid staff and teammates in creating faith-developing and relationship-building ministry.
• Fondness for planning, execution, and continuous improvement
• Good humor and openness, humility and confidence, and general love of Jesus and people
• Demonstrated experience in using or learning new software and technologies, esp. MS Office, Google suites, presentation and church management software (Planning Center Online)
• Demonstrated experience in working with children and parents
• High level of confidentiality, teamwork, and discretion
• Excellent interpersonal communications skills

REPORTS TO/WORKS WITH:

• Reports to, visions with, and supported by the Pastor.
• Works closely with the current teachers and children’s ministry parents and volunteers, and the leadership team the director develops, as well as the church staff, preschool staff, and key leaders throughout the church.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Associate’s degree minimum, Bachelor’s preferred, preferably in but not limited to a related field
• Fluency in English; additional language skills welcome
• Two years or more of successful experience with families, children or teens— in churches, public or private schools, or religious and community organizations, in teaching, directing, and/or other leadership roles
• Ability and willingness to work Sundays, with some midweek evening services and programming, and occasional Saturday or full-weekend events.

SALARY & BENEFITS:

• Competitive salary commensurate with education and experience
• Employee medical insurance and retirement benefits.

TO APPLY OR JUST LEARN MORE, email hr@messiah-wauconda.org with resume, cover letter, and optionally, any relevant links or files. For theological, affiliation, or vision questions, email pastor.dan@messiah-wauconda.org. Start date flexible.