Assistant Pastor For Students & Young Adults

GracePoint Presbyterian Church

Assistant Pastor For Students & Young Adults – Lidcombe

Job Description

Part Time: 2-3 days/week (2 weekdays + Sunday)

GracePoint Presbyterian Church

GracePoint Presbyterian (www.gracepoint.org.au) has two sites (or campuses) in Sydney, Burwood and Lidcombe. The Lidcombe congregation is a broad intergenerational congregation with an average of around 170 people regularly worshipping on Sundays and is made up of children, students, young adults, workers, families and the elderly. The majority of congregation members also meet regularly in our Sunday and weekly small groups for Bible study and community, and are actively involved serving in a range of Sunday ministries.  

Candidate

The role will require an Assistant Pastor who will joyfully lead and pastor our Lidcombe campus in a Part-Time capacity, starting in January 2025 or earlier. The successful applicant will work under the Lidcombe Campus Pastor to provide pastoral care and leadership to encourage the growth and development of our students and young adults in personal discipleship, community, ministry and mission. The role will require a pastor who has a vision to see students and young adults grow in maturity and mission, with a focus on their spiritual health and a drive to reach their community. 

Requirements

Essential Character

• Fulfills the criteria of those who called to serve as overseers in 1 Tim.3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9 and 1 Peter 5:1-4.

• Demonstrates an authentic and tested faith in Christ Jesus as evidenced in the fruit of godliness.

• Has a clear conviction of a call to pastoral ministry.  

• Is a servant leader in loving and serving the body of Christ as a whole and at a personal individual level.

• Is humble, teachable and listens well.

• Is able to work in a ministry team with others and the elders.

• Is able to work under the direction of the Campus Pastor.

• Is able to provide reports in a timely manner to the Campus Pastor.

• Is able to develop and execute plans successfully and consistently. 

• Is able to balance work and family responsibilities if married.

Essential Conviction

• Holds to the Word of God in the Old and New Testament as our supreme standard on all matters of life and doctrine.

• Is able to affirm our subordinate standard i.e. our statement of faith as articulated in the Westminster Confession of Faith.

• Holds to the Presbyterian system of governance.

• Holds a complementarian view of leadership.

Essential Competency 

• Is a competent preacher and Bible teacher. 

• Is able to lead and manage volunteers.

• Is able to build and equip leaders and ministry teams.

• Is able to relate well to students and young adults.

• Is able to give pastoral care to students and young adults.

• Is highly organised and has strong systems and processes thinking skills.

• Has strong verbal and written communication skills.

• Is a strategic and creative thinker able to analyse, problem solve and strategise.

• Is a self-starter who takes initiative to implement creative new ideas and strategies for ministry improvement and growth.

• Is a team player and is flexible in service, meeting both ministry and practical needs as required. 

• Is able to work unsupervised, balance competing priorities and able to deliver on time

• Is proficient with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams.

• Is required to develop a working knowledge of MailChimp and Planning Center (our church management software). 

Essential Professional Qualifications 

• Theological training from an accredited theological institution with a minimum of a Bachelor in Theology (BTh) or Master of Divinity (MDiv).

• A minimum of 2 years experience in student and young adults ministry or a related field would be preferable.

• Ordained in the Presbyterian Church of Australia would be preferable or a willingness to pursue candidacy towards ordination in the Presbyterian Church of New South Wales.

Primary Responsibilities 

• Preaching: Preaching at least once a month on the campus.

• Sunday Worship: Assisting the Campus Pastor in overseeing the Sunday service and our Sunday ministry teams, to ensure that every aspect of the worship experience is executed with Biblical depth and excellence.

• Pastoral Care: Providing pastoral care to students and young adults in need and coordinating their pastoral care needs with our student and young adult community group leaders.

• Student and Young Adults Ministry: The Assistant Pastor for Students and Young Adults is responsible for giving pastoral and organisational leadership to our students and young adults ministry, to cultivate spiritual health/growth (Christlike maturity), Biblical community through our student and young adult community groups, equipping for one another ministry (service) and a heart for student and young adults evangelism/witness on the campus. 

Other Responsibilities 

• Assistant to the Campus Pastor: Assist the Lidcombe Campus Pastor in providing vision and direction to the campus.

• Collaborate with the Pastoral Team and church leadership to plan and implement relevant programs and events that foster the spiritual growth of our congregations.

• Serves as part of the teaching team across GracePoint as required. 

• Serves as a team player with ministerial and support staff, making every effort to attend all relevant staff functions such as meetings, retreats and planning sessions.

• Participates in and supports the church-wide ministry of GracePoint.

• Participate in church-wide events where appropriate. 

Reporting

• The Assistant Pastor for Students and Young Adults reports directly to the Lidcombe Campus Pastor.

• They will be reviewed at least annually by the Lidcombe Campus Pastor & Elders.

Remuneration

Remuneration for all full time pastoral positions are in accordance with the Presbyterian Church of NSW schedule that can be found here, with part-time remuneration determined pro-rata.

All enquiries and applications should be sent to Mr. Minh Vo (Session Clerk of the GracePoint Eldership – application@gracepoint.org.au). Applications for this position closes on Sunday 30th of June 2024. Applications should include:

• A cover letter (max 2 sides of A4) including brief answers to the following:

• Please give us a brief outline of the Christian gospel, an account of how you came to personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and your call to Christian ministry.

• Please give us a brief outline of your philosophy of pastoral ministry, how you understand your primary role as a pastor and your relationship to those under your pastoral care.

• A Resume.

• A link to and/or the scripts of two sermons that you have recently preached.

• Names and contact details of three referees, who have known you for at least three years. One of these should be a colleague in ministry, an elder/deacon/lay-leader/pastor who has worked with you, and someone you have led or pastored.