The Thing With Feathers

I just spent my morning devotional time reading every Bible verse that includes the word "hope." There are a great many of them, in both the Hebrew Scripture and the Second Testament (a.k.a. Old and New Testaments in traditional parlance.) It's a great way to start the day, when you're a clergy person searching for a new call.  I like some of the verses better than others but I love so many of them so much that I would be hard pressed to choose a favorite. I also like the Emily Dickinson poem about hope. I love that she compares it to a singing bird. I bet if a Psalmist saw her poem he or she would wish to have thought of this image first, it is so beautiful and perfect.

Hope is a the cornerstone of our faith. Where does it come from? How does one get and keep it? The Bible is actually pretty articulate on this score. In my experience, it comes from spiritual discipline, from things like prayer and Bible Study and providing direct assistance to people in need. I think it is fair to say, however, that some people are born with a gene that makes hope easier. I suspect I could be one of those people. There was a time in my life when my hope was more likely to be swamped by pessimism, but that happens less often and does not last as long now. On the other hand, I have experienced hope as a thing that I have had to work to get and keep at times, so perhaps it doesn't come naturally to me after all. Someday maybe science will have an answer for me. In the meantime, I have scripture, and I have the descriptions of churches all over the country. Some of them are struggling and in deep denial of the nature of their dysfunction, but most of them are out there making the world a better place. Just knowing these churches exist, even if none of them chooses me as their Pastor, gives me reason to feel hope.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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Falling in Love Again...

Searching for a new position as a Pastor is different from other kinds of job searches. Everyone wants to fall in love with their employer and be loved by them in return, but at one time or other, we've all taken a job we knew we probably would not love just to stay afloat financially while looking for something better. That doesn't work with Pastors. Our jobs are referred to as our "calling" for a reason: if we don't truly love the folks we serve, we will not be successful (and also will not likely be employed for long.)

Finding that "just right" fit--the ministry that feels right to both Pastor and congregation--doesn't always happen, and that is a frightening fact for Pastors and churches alike. The bond between a Pastor and ministry position is more like the bond in a marriage marriage than it is like a conventional job situation. Compatibility is a key factor, and it goes beyond merely finding someone with the right skill set. The personality of the church has to mesh well with the personality of the Pastor. Another fact that isn't always acknowledged and dealt with in a healthy way is that churches and Pastors change over time. That has happened to me more than once. A position that felt "just right" for a long time started to feel less than perfect. It's difficult sometimes for a Pastor to realize this and to seek a new position in a timely fashion.  After all, we do truly love the folks. It's hard to acknowledge that just because we still have love for people that we are no longer called to serve them in the same way anymore. We don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. And because we're human, we hesitate to leave, fearing that we will regret leaving a good situation for the unknown.

The truth is, falling in love, whether in a romantic situation or metaphorically, as is the case when seeking a new Pastoral position, is scary and risky. Things don't always work out. Heartaches happen. There is no surefire road map. Back in the stone ages when I began preparing to be a Pastor, we got little education in discernment--the art of figuring out what God wants for us. Now there is more emphasis on practicing discernment as a type of spiritual discipline. St Ignatius came up with a technique for discernment that is still widely used. I have used this method and find it useful.  Others swear by engaging in regular sessions with a Spiritual Director, a trained professional that helps people stay in touch with their spiritual side. There is, however, no substitute for a daily spiritual practice to allow you to get and stay in touch with what God is calling you to do. It's easy even for Pastors to let this fall by the wayside, especially when we get busy. A time of seeking a new calling can be an especially busy time; in many cases it means holding down one full-time position while actively seeking another--which can seem like a second full-time job at times. It is, however, important to trust your heart and trust God's leading--even if at first it seems as though God expects too much of you, or that God is calling you in an unexpected direction. God is full of surprises. That's one of the best things about Ministry--a miracle is always just around the corner, and we get to witness an above-average share of them. If you are searching for a clergy position, may you find the right calling, and may it feel miraculous and amazing when it happens.
I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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Do Pastors Need an Elevator Speech?

                       
The "Elevator Speech" has entered the common lexicon in the last few years. If you haven't heard this term, basically it is a short verbal summary about who you are and what you do that you should be able to rattle off at a moment's notice, for the purposes of career networking.  It's called an Elevator Speech because it is supposed to be short enough to get through in the length of an average elevator ride.

Do Pastors need an elevator speech? After all, most people know what Pastor's do--more or less, and how much knowledge can you impart about your work in 20 or 30 seconds?

I would argue that all Pastors, not just those looking for work, should master the following 20-30 second speeches:

What a Pastor is/does
Why I became a Pastor
Why I am a Pastor
What it means to be a Christian
What a church is/does
An invitation to your church

I realize that most of us are more comfortable talking in longer blocks--like, 20 minutes or so. But studies show that we have to grab the attention of our audience, no matter how big or small, within the first 30 seconds of talking anyway, so at minimum it makes a great exercise.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.

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The spectacular now

When you are seeking a ministry calling it can feel like a not-so-spectacular time in your life. That is why this blog is called "The Wilderness Time."  Even if you are fully employed, you no longer feel called to remain in your current situation. That does not mean, however, that God does not have work for you to do.

A few weeks ago I preached to a congregation that is between pastoral leaders. My sermon, based on a passage in which God speaks through Jeremiah about the Babylonian exile,  was called "Bloom where you are planted." (You can check out my blog entry for that Sunday, which includes an inspirational video, here.)

God tells the Israelites to "seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile." Did you catch that? God says the Israelites have been put into exile by God. Even if you feel strongly called to change your current job situation, it is also important to remain mindful that God has important work for you to do right now--even if you are unemployed, underemployed or in a position that you feel you have outgrown.

I was reminded of this as I looked over my job references today. Many of them spoke of how they had initially come into the church where I served during a time of personal crisis and I had ministered to them and helped shepherd the through their crisis and into a better life. Yeah, it makes a Pastor feel good to read testimonials of this nature, but there is a larger message. God has work for you to do in whatever situation you find yourself. In fact, you may be having trouble moving on precisely because you have not completed the work that God has for you in your current situation. On some level you may be having trouble letting go and moving on, and as a result you may send subtle signals that sabotage your job hunting efforts. That idea may be hard to accept. It may even make you angry to hear me say that, but it happens to the best of us. It has happened to me. Asking God searching questions such as, "Why am I in this situation?" or even praying the prayer of Samuel: "Here I am, Lord. Send me," can help you gain clarity and refocus your efforts in a more productive way.

Someday you may look back on the time you are in right now and recall it with great pride and a sense of accomplishment. You may see that the seeds of your greatest achievement were planted during a time you spent that felt like the years the Israelites spent wandering in the wilderness, searching for the promised land and and begging God to tell you why everything that is happening to you is happening, and how long it will last.  Someday you will know why the time lasted as long as it lasted.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.

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Self-Improvement

As my search for a settled position continues and rejections pile up, I'm spending some quality time on self-improvement. On the one hand, it's not an easy time to seek self-improvement, as a job search involves putting yourself out there in a way that feels personal. Self-improvement efforts tend to make just about everyone feel vulnerable, and self-improvement often involves finding, facing and seeking to shore up weaknesses. 

On the other hand, even if you are fully employed during your job search time, if your search seems to be dragging on, it is important to ask and answer the question, "Is it me?" It could just be that you need to tweak the way you present yourself a little bit, in order to make yourself seem more interesting and appealing to people who don't know you and are probably in a hurry to reject as many candidates as they can just to make their own job as members of a search committee a little bit more manageable. I know some successful pastors that experienced trouble getting their current job, and I also know pastors who got a job quickly and did not last long. 

If I had a formula for finding the right job just when you need to and keeping it forever, I'd freely share it. Part of getting into a job that is a great fit involves self-knowledge. Kate Matsudaira on the website Popforms suggests that a good way to increase useful self-knowledge involves asking others for feedback.

Send an email asking for insights into your strengths. Send it to one friend or peer this week. And try it again with someone new next week! And again!

Follow the link above for a suggested sample email format that includes questions, plus an extended explanation of why this technique is valuable.

In the meantime, I'm going to try it myself and report back....

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.

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“What God Has For You, Is For You”

(This piece is contributed by invitation. Rev. Malcolm Himschoot, MESA Minister for Ministerial Transitions, works in the United Church of Christ denominational office. He works closely with administrator Darrell Ludwig, who on a daily basis handles all Ministerial Profiles for the UCC. MESA can be found at www.ucc.org/ministers/. )

“What God Has For You, Is For You”

Malcolm Himschoot - October 8, 2013

A man walked past my office, headed for the Profiles desk. He had come from far away for a UCC meeting at the denominational offices. While here, he decided to see what had happened to his profile. In the current system, it’s like an inter-galactic black hole. You never know.

He found Darrell. Darrell found the problem. A piece wasn’t in yet. Darrell didn’t know it because the administrator only is alerted by the system when all pieces are in. The minister didn’t know it because he wasn’t alerted that a piece was missing. The profile was far from circulating, but neither one knew it. Meanwhile opportunities were passing by, and the man who was a qualified and dedicated minister waited, and waited, in search.

Of course this situation is unacceptable; the grief, understandable. MESA is tasked to finally improve the tools of the search and call system this year – to design something that resembles a modern, efficient task process, to fit together procedure and purpose, to align a functional product with the stated goals of numerous focus groups.

The denomination promises to have a better system soon. MESA can deliver on that promise with the help of professionals and suitable centralized technology. (It’s coming! See http://www.ucc.org/ministers/search-and-call/.)

Still, the UCC search and call process will always be more than a little mystifying. Far beyond the professional office, out there even beyond cyberspace, is where profiles are actually picked up and handled, touched and used.

The task before a Conference staff person is to find a batch of possible ethical leadership candidates for a church. The task before a congregation is to find a minister the church will respond to as they grow in God. There are as many ways of accomplishing this outcome, as there are people! Algorithms and heuristics, strategies and shortcuts. There are modern and ancient ways of doing this, there are European and African ways, cheaper and richer ways, speedy and slow ways, considerate and commercial ways, committee and consultant ways, happenstance and certified ways.

There is also, and despite it all, prayer.

The Holy Spirit has worked through stranger things than paperwork. The Holy Spirit has almost certainly moved in spite of paperwork! But the Holy Spirit does move, regardless.

It just so happens that a search process which makes no sense, which shows no rhyme nor reason, which takes too long or comes too sudden, may yet be a very faithful process. One in which God shows up, and has a leading role.

Which is why, for years and years, the starting instruction for the minister preparing their profile has not been, “Turn on your typewriter, computer or iPad.” And the starting instruction for the search committee engaging ministerial profiles has never been, “Locate the mimeograph, risograph, copy machine or PDF.”

The starting advice is always, “Begin with prayer.”

And so, next year when the profiles process is clean and transparent, when a strategic database exists, when authorized ministers in search know entirely what to expect, when colleagues across conferences are working together better than ever before, when each church in search is miraculously behaving as a rational engine no longer a called community of human beings, when the numbers of supply and demand equalize marvelously in the perfectly demographically-matched employment marketplace… unless that year is also the year in which Jesus comes, there will still be a moment when everything apparently breaks. Down.

Somewhere, a person of faith will be trying to discern their path while stressed out to the max, needing a secure place to be, enduring a time of flux and change, with many needs pressing upon them. Somehow this person, an authorized minister, will be doubting or at least wondering about grace and providence, vocation and justice. They’ll be praying that their spirit too may be called for a purpose, that their contribution will have a place in a heaven’s unfolding drama on earth, and that their employment needs will be met. Although anger, despair and fear will come naturally, this person must learn to rehearse, as the visitor rehearsed today in my office, “What God has for me, is for me.”

Try that line on. No matter how long or winding the journey. If it’s true, it’s true.

What God has for you, is for you.

Through such courage and conviction, a Way will be created to further Jesus’ gospel of mercy and hope, the sacrament of peace in the breaking of the daily bread. I pray such courage and conviction for each and every minister of Word and Sacrament in this time.

Amen.
(This piece is contributed by invitation. Rev. Malcolm Himschoot, MESA Minister for Ministerial Transitions, works in the United Church of Christ denominational office. He works closely with administrator Darrell Ludwig, who on a daily basis handles all Ministerial Profiles for the UCC. MESA can be found at www.ucc.org/ministers/. )

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.

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AFGO

If you've never heard this expression before, it stands for, approximately, "Another Fabulous Growth Opportunity." While I can't deny that searching for a new job is an opportunity for personal growth, sometimes the experience is less than fabulous. Rejection happens, and that can be painful. I have a number of go-to affirmations to deal with being rejected for a job that I really wanted and felt I could do well.

• "A better opportunity is coming up later."
• "This process has helped me learn what I need to know to successfully compete for a better opportunity."
• "The Lord works in mysterious ways. This job wasn't the right thing for me right now, for reasons I do not yet understand but will likely become clear in the days ahead."

You get the idea. I hope these affirmations don't seem lame to you, because there have been times in my life in which the conviction that something better is coming is the only thing that keeps despair at bay--and if I could not keep despair at bay, something better would be far less likely to come along.

There is such a thing as a downward spiral, and it takes work--spiritual work--to stay out of it.

I'm not saying that forces beyond individual control, such as an economic recession, don't play a role in job searches. I am saying that if we let the things that go wrong in life get us down, the weight can crush us. The only way to change the outcome of a job search is to learn from rejection and failure.

This is the third time in my life that I have had an extended job search. Each time I have learned and grown from the experience. It can be painful, but it  can also be joyful. It can provide the gift of re-invention.  We don't always seek this gift, and we probably need it more often than we seek it. Each time I have simplified my life and re-ordered my priorities. Here are the top tips that helped me cope:

• Keep yourself together. If you are unemployed or underemployed you may not be able to keep up a high-maintenance appearance, but when you are out and about when you might run into professional colleagues, try to look as though you have it together. You really never know when this will happen. I ran into a former Board member at a supermarket yesterday. 
• Think of finding a job as your job. A job gives a sense of purpose, so you need to believe that you have one in order to be the sort of purposeful person an employer wants to hire.
• Fit some volunteer work into your schedule. Coworkers help keep up morale in a workplace, and volunteering can help you experience the morale boost of working with like-minded others and accomplishing something of value. 
• Reach out for support. There are support groups for Pastors in many states. If you are not in one, talk to you denominational official. I have been a member of a group for years and during that time members have gone through employment searches and endured periods of unemployment. We have always been there for each other and it makes a big difference.                                                          

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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The Skype Interview

I'm prepping for my very first Skype interview. I'm actually kind of excited. Skype interviews are the greatest thing to happen to job seekers in a long time. They can go a long way in overcoming the disadvantages of looking for a job in a different geographical area. Since a lot of human communication is non-verbal (experts disagree on how much), adding a visual element to a long-distance interview potentially provides an advantage over written and phone communication methods.

I do have a little bit of concern about skyping. A live video feed is similar to a snapshot, in that it can enable you to "crop out" distractions. On the other hand, being "boxed in" on camera can put the focus on something that distracts and distances interviewers, such as a hair twirling habit. Do I twirl my hair? I don't think so, but we all have habits, and sometimes we aren't very aware of them. Watch a few minutes of one of those cable TV shows that put pundits in "talking head" boxes and you will see what I mean. Some people come across as likeable and believable regardless of the content of their message, while others are instantly off-putting. Try watching it with the sound off, and then turn the sound on and close your eyes, and you will see what I mean. Communication is a combination of sight, sound and content.

There are a lot of sources of advice for Skype interviews online. I thought this brief video on Time.com was particularly valuable. The main obstacle to successful Skype interviewing for the novice can be mastering the technology itself. I'm planning to practice getting on to Skype prior to my interview. I will update you as to how the interview went.
Update: The actual Skyping went well but I was unprepared for a question about leaving my previous position that came up because this committee had received an earlier version of my Profile from their Conference office. I had informed them of my change in status but they forgot. Even though it was down to just a few applicants, it was wrong of me to expect the committee members to all remember every little detail about me. Lesson learned. I ultimately did not get the job but that was mostly because their theology tended to be much more conservative than mine. I have had no conflicts with church participants and members whose theology differed from mine, but that has always been in a context of a church with theological diversity so it might be different in a more homogeneous environment.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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Young at Heart

Most people say that age is just a number. However, when considering two candidates for a job with roughly equal experience, who would you chose--one who is forty years old, or one who is sixty? Enough said. If you are forty-five or older, employment experts suggest that you attempt to make your age less obvious on written materials that you use to apply for a job.  They suggest things such as removing graduation dates, cutting off previous employment that is more than 20 years ago (unless you've had only one job in that time) and the like. It is important not to lie about these things, of course, but it is also important to make these things less obvious so that they are less likely to loom large in the minds of potential employers. You may think that forty years of work experience sounds better than twenty, but most people think it means you are ready for retirement. The bottom line is this: churches and religious organizations are generally held to be exempt from discrimination laws due to the current legal understanding of the First Amendment.

The other thing you need to do, if you are part of the AARP crowd (or if you are beginning to look like it), is  try and freshen up your image. Do an online search of yourself and take down or untag any images that are unflattering or that make you look old. On social media sites use a flattering photo that is more or less current for your profile photo. (Some experts say you should have a professional photo for job searching.)  If you feel you are a poor judge on these matters, ask your spouse or a stylish friend to help you. Update your hairstyle and get some more stylish (though still conservative) clothes for your job interview. Dress in age-appropriate clothing, of course, but make sure it reflects current style trends. First impressions count a great deal with some people. Consider coloring your hair--even if you are a man, and even if you've never done it before. (If you have never done it before and are afraid it will look fake, get it done professionally. If you are unemployed and money is tight, go to a local beauty school.) If you are a woman, consider getting a makeover (again, a local beauty school can help, or ask a stylish friend who looks young for her age to assist you.) Consider having your teeth whitened, or at least use over the counter whitening strips. If you are lucky enough to get a job interview, make sure you are well rested and exhibit energy and enthusiasm when you first enter the interview. If you tend to have a more low-key personality you can tone it down after the first few minutes. Just pay attention to your posture during the interview.

You may find this advice upsetting. Maybe you feel it is unnecessary. You must understand that you ignore this advice at your own peril. I personally know of a woman who was turned down to replace me because she seemed "tired" to the search committee. She also had white hair. An older friend was told point-blank by a search committee member to disguise his age when applying for clergy positions. The committee had decided to interview him over the objection of some committee members, who were worried about his age. The good news is, once they interviewed him, they decided they wanted to hire him. He learned his lesson through a close call and has been warning other clergy about this potential pitfall ever since.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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Family Matters

Steve Urkel (as played by Jaleel White) from the TV series "Family Matters"

A clergy job change can be a strain on the family members of a clergy person, even in the best-case scenario. If the Pastor in question is quietly searching for a new job, the children in the family might be asked to keep that a secret. That can be tough, as the children of Pastors often have friends within the congregation. If a clergy person quits a job before finding a new one, financial woes can materialize. A new job often requires relocation, and all the disruption involved in that.  And even if a job search results in a much-wanted new position that doesn't require the family to move or the clergy spouse to change jobs and the kids to change schools, getting used to one of the adult family members being in a new Pastoral position is disruptive to family life.  These factors also apply to career changes in other fields as well, but clergy folk are often described as living "in a fishbowl" for good reason. Sometimes they even live in a house owned by the church. Any job change is bound to result in stresses and strains in a family--there are nearly always some raised voices and acting out by kids involved--but if you work at GE, your employer doesn't bear witness to it very often.

As a clergy woman married to a non-clergy man, I've found it best not to pretend to the congregation that things are perfect in my marriage and family life, and not to pressure my husband and kids to act a certain way. On the other hand, I've also learned not to involve the congregation too much in family business. If the whole job search process or the acceptance of a new job is putting a strain on you as a Pastor, it is important to find some place other than through the people who employ you at your Pastoral job to help you sort through your problems. On the one hand, they are likely to outwardly offer sympathy, but on the other hand, they may start questioning your leadership abilities, e.g., "The Pastor can't even handle his own kids. How can we expect him to take handle conflict within the congregation?"

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.

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Continuing Education for Pastors

Me, loaded down with a study Bible and lots of textbooks, back when I was in seminary getting my initial theological education and there was no such thing as an e-book or online learning.

To some extent, the church has professionalized the role of Pastor. This isn't strictly true, across the board. There are many folks out there who feel called to start preaching the gospel one day and get right to it the next day. Some of these folks are enormously successful, in terms of sheer numbers of people who want to hear them preach and teach in Christ's name. And some of them do an impressive amount of good in the world. I think it is fair to say that some of them do more harm than good, but then, that is true of some Pastors who have impressive academic qualifications as well.

The bottom line in seeking a call to Pastor an established congregation is that in most cases (maybe even in all cases), education in the art of ministry is a plus. Different churches have different preferences in the education that they want their Pastors to have. Some churches don't care about the Pastor's education level, as long as the sermons are inspiring and the Pastor is an able administrator. Some churches want a warm and caring Pastor and some don't care as long as the sermons inspire. Other churches don't mind lukewarm sermons as long as the Pastor loves and cares for them and keeps the engine of the church running smoothly. Obviously the best approach in getting a Pastoral job is to pay attention to both educational qualifications as well as administrative and people skills.

There are many degree and certificate programs that profess to aid a person in becoming a Pastor. Perhaps there is one that provides all the skills that a Pastor will need, but I don't know of it. Ministry is a job that is widely regarded as something that requires on the job, practical training. As a general rule, Master of Divinity programs are great at teaching the latest in scholarship about the Bible and church history, but traditionally these programs been a bit too light on teaching important skills such as evangelism. Some non-degree and unaccredited programs emphasize evangelism, but neglect teaching students things such as church history and learning about the Bible in the context in which it was written.  I believe that this is changing in a direction that provides for a more well-rounded education for Pastors regardless of the educational path they chose, but people preparing for ministry or seeking a new position in ministry need to carefully examine their own skills and knowledge and actively seek to overcome any deficiencies and also to "beef up" their positive qualifications.

Ministry education can cost a significant amount of money, but it doesn't have to cost a lot. Many seeking Pastoral education will discover that they have access to theological libraries locally. Sometimes the libraries charge a fee for checking out books, but not all do. Most will allow you to study in the library for free. Sometimes local denominational offices have a resource library open to all seekers. In addition, often Roman Catholic institutions have resources available of interest to all Christians.

In addition, there are a number of low or no cost online educational resources for ministry education. The Center for Progressive Renewal offers coaching, seminars, online and regional classes and certificate programs. The Text this Week offers links to resources to help in preparing sermons and worship experiences. The Louisville Institute provides grants for Pastor's sabbaticals, with an emphasis on study. The Christian Theological Seminary currently has a similar program.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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The Clergy Job Interview

This is yet another aspect of searching for a clergy job that differs a great deal from most other job searches. Clergy job interviews sometimes unfold over a period of days, during which time the prospective Pastor socializes with church members, preaches a sermon to an unfamiliar crowd, and (generally) participates in an interview by a committee. If the clergy person has a family, they may participate in the social aspects of the interview process.  It is vital for the clergy person  to "be him/her self" throughout the entire process, but even if things don't feel quite right, she/he needs to make it through the whole marathon and keep his/her ego intact if the church turns them down for the position. Meanwhile, the stakes are high, and these sorts of stakes tend to throw someone off his/her game.

In the past I have aced clergy job interviews, and I have sometimes also not aced them. As with other interview processes, it is good to go over the materials you have about the position for which you are interviewing, and check out the web site if they have one. My denomination provides references that the job seeker can call to learn about the church from a perspective other than that of the search committee. The sorts of interview questions you are likely to field can be found here. (Please note that this is a PDF document and you will need to scroll waaaaaay down to resource 11B.)

One thing I have noticed about most clergy jobs is that the interview committees tend to "dress down" even in a formal job interview session, so while it's always a great idea to dress for success, try to also dress in a way that you seem comfortable in your clothes. Dress the way you might on a regular Sunday morning.

As with other job interviews, it is most important to answer questions clearly but try to keep things brief. It is probably not a great idea to launch into mini-sermons or tell long stories.

The thing that helps me the most is to be well rested, well fed and to exercise the morning before the interview. A recent TED talk offered a proverbial "one weird trick" to help prep for a nerve-wracking situation, such as a job interview.

And I would be remiss not to mention bringing spiritual practice into the entire interview process, before, during, and after the interview. You can check out the resources page on this blog for online and phone-app spiritual resources.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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The Sermon Video

                    

One of the many unusual aspects about clergy job searches is that churches often request a videotape of a sermon or even an entire worship service. Some churches settle for an audiotape, which is much easier to produce, but a great videotape of a great sermon is a key ingredient for a successful clergy job search. The difficulty is that a great videotape can be difficult to come by. People who have served on search committees have reported receiving videotapes that were so dark and unfocused that they had difficulty telling there was a person in them, and with sound quality that made it difficult to make out any words, much less follow the thread of a sermon.

I do not know of any service providers who videotape sermons professionally. I know that some seminaries have a studio for videotaping students, but I have not heard of these studios being made available to non-students.

If this post seems as though it raises questions and airs complaints more than it offers answers, that is because I don't have any definitive answers. During my most recent search I made three sermon tapes--one before a live audience with the camera located in the balcony, and two "canned" sermons during which I utilized a homemade teleprompter system (i.e., my husband scrolling furiously on his Ipad as he held it next to the camera.) In general I was pleased with the results of these sermons--at least, in terms of picture and sound quality. Fortunately I had access to a good video camera, the church that allowed me to tape my sermon during their worship service had good light, and the amateur videographer (a.k.a. my husband) did a great job of framing and focusing the shot.

Most pastors, I think, prefer to create the "tape before a live audience" to the "canned sermon" tapes. It is easier to do your best preaching when you are getting a reaction. Perhaps the best case scenario for creating a sermon videotape involves enlisting a few volunteers to act as an audience which the videographer shoots from fairly close up.

Ultimately I have elected, for now, to submit the "canned sermons" made with the improvised teleprompter. I loved the( relatively) high quality of the audio and video on this tape, and I liked how the teleprompter enabled me to look at my notes without looking down at the podium. Did I make the right choice? At this writing, God knows (but I sure don't).

Update: A church kept me in the running for a clergy position after I sent them the video on this post, so score one for the DIY teleprompter!
Second update: I have since recorded a sermon while looking directly at the camera without reading, and a sermon delivered before a live audience.  While I don't believe either of these sermons represent me at my very best, the sermon delivered before a live audience is the best sermon recording I have done thus far, in terms of both quality of the sermon and quality of the recording.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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The Unemployment Office

Most clergy have never been in an unemployment office, because even if we are not working, most clergy do not qualify for unemployment insurance benefits. However, in many states, unemployment offices offer services that can be quite useful for clergy job seekers. In Connecticut, where I live, the regional unemployment offices offer free access to a library of self-help books for job seekers, and free seminars designed to help job seekers that are open to the public. Online tools are also available. While not all of these services are helpful to clergy, some of them are. For example, I feel I gained some valuable tips from a free seminar I attended that offered tips for acing a job interview.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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Starting with Why

Clergy job searches are different from regular job searches, in that we don't generally get to write a new cover letter for each position. In my denomination, we write a generic cover letter called a "profile essay."  If churches express interest after seeing the profile essay, it is often possible to provide them with more information, but writing a compelling profile essay is key. It is also daunting. Churches have specific needs, but profile essays need to be general. What to do?

According to author Simon Sinek, the answer is to "start with why." Sinek's TED talk on this subject, in which he expounds convincingly on how Steve Jobs and Martin Luther King have both tapped into this particular approach with great success, became a viral hit. After watching the video I decided to download the Kindle version of the book to see if it would help me in writing a new profile essay.

 To be frank, the book was a bit of a disappointment. It mostly rehashed the material he covers in the TED talk. The book purported to contain a step-by-step plan to uncovering and articulating your own personal "why," but it was too vague for my taste. I did find the TED talk video valuable, and over the course of the next few weeks, with the help of my husband, I think I did suss out my own "why." I have attached the video to this blog post for your viewing pleasure. Even if you don't find it helpful in your own job search journey, it is certainly interesting and might provide a sermon illustration or two at the very least.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.

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Should I stay or should I go?

In the beginning, I loved my job as the Pastor of the Riverton Church. I also loved it in the middle, but at some point in the middle I began to understand that I had fulfilled my calling to this particular church. As much as I still loved the people and the job, I needed to move on, so I initiated a job search and submitted my resignation.

Now, the conventional wisdom about job searching is that there are pluses and minuses to resigning before securing a new position, but the minuses usually outweigh the pluses.

The minuses mostly involve the financial pain of losing a steady paycheck.

The pluses are many--if, and this is a very big if--you, like me, feel able to take on the huge risk of losing a regular income and all the potential repercussions of that.

Here are what I see as the pluses of searching for a position as a pastor while you are not currently serving a church.

You have time for discernment. Let's be real--discerning what God wants for your life takes some effort. When you take the energy you have spent discerning what God is calling you to do in relation to the church that you serve out of the equation and put that energy into discerning what God requires of you, period, that is a powerful thing.

You can be totally open about your search. This is a big deal for most pastors--especially in my denomination, because we rely on references from people in congregations we have served in order to find a new position. It doesn't feel very fair--or even very smart--to tell people in our home church that we are searching for a position in a job market in which many searches end in rejection.

You can "take your act out on the road" and preach at other churches to see how your message comes across in a variety of contexts. The longer you serve in a particular church, the more likely you are to fall into a habit of preaching in a style that suits them. A really good preacher needs to connect with an audience, and if you have the same audience every week, you may come to rely too much on established relationships to make that connection.

You are free on Sunday mornings. Successful clergy job searches often come down to a few candidates, and at that point the hopefuls have to preach in a "neutral pulpit"--that is, in a congregation that is neither the one you serve nor the one you hope to serve.  This is a difficult thing to manage if you currently serve as a pastor that preaches almost every Sunday.

The ultimate decision of whether you stay in a ministry position or resign is between you and God, but because it effects so many other people, the discernment process that goes into that decision can feel pretty burdensome. Do not be afraid to ask for support before, during, and after the decision. Where I serve the denomination makes available free counseling and some financial support. In some states, if your income dips below a certain level, you may qualify for governmental help with health insurance premiums or SNAP (formerly known as Food Stamps.)  In addition, you may find that family, friends and colleagues can help you by providing referrals for work that bridge the gap. Through local denominational officials you should try to get on lists of supply Pastors--pastors who fill pulpit vacancies during a vacation or extended absence of a Pastor. (In some states it is possible and advisable to get on supply lists for multiple denominations and/or clergy associations.)  You may feel too proud to ask for this sort of help, but before you reject the idea out of hand, take that to God as well. Accepting help when you are in a difficult period can be an important life lesson. It can help you learn what it is really like to be in the position of the people who have come to you as a Pastor and asked you for help over the years. That's not a bad thing.

I blog, therefore I am. If you liked this post and want some food for thought about church ministry, check out http://creativityinchurch.blogspot.com/. If you or anyone you know is looking to hire a new Pastor, check out my professional profile blog at http://dclapsaddle.blogspot.com/.
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