What Happens NOW?!

Many of you are wondering what's ahead for Freedom River. There are plenty of questions.

How long will Jay be the Pastor?
What does Interim Pastor mean?
Are we looking for a Senior Pastor?
If so, when will we have a FULL-TIME Senior Pastor?
Does Jay want to be the Senior Pastor?
Won't he be upset if he doesn't get it?

These are just some of the questions that folks have been asking in the past couple of weeks as Pastor Scott prepares to move to Dallas and I step into the pastoral role. Let me take a moment to make a few things clear.

First of all, the Elders and Governing Board have asked me to serve as our Interim Pastor for a period of three months (basically July, August and September). At the end of three months, we'll pray and see if God wants us to continue. If so, we re-examine our situation in another three months.

As Interim Pastor, the Elders have charged me with very clear duties. I am to preach God's Word on Sunday mornings. I will be the liason between FRCC, the theater companies and North Hills. I am also the "single point of contact" for other issues of ministry that might come up. Most of the time, I'll be delegating these issues to others. If it's something we can handle internally, great. If not, God has provided us with numerous contacts and resources outside the church family to make sure His people are being shepherded. I am NOT resigning my position at WRAL, so this new way of ministering is essential. And I think VERY healthy.

Yes, we are looking for a new Senior Pastor. The Elders and Governing Board will be announcing the members of the Pastor Search Committee very soon. Stay tuned!

When will we have our new Senior Pastor? Well, that's really up to God. Many times, the pastor search process can take months. But as we saw when the Lord brought Pastor Scott to our door, it can happen much, MUCH more quickly. Be praying for our next pastor. We don't know his name, but Jesus does!

Let me be as clear as I can about this: I am NOT a candidate for the Senior Pastor position at FRCC. While I am humbled and honored to serve in the interim role, I don't sense God's call on my life to take the next step into full-time pastoral ministry. As some of you know, I'm currently enrolled at Shepherds Theological Seminary in Cary. I still have two to three years before graduating. I currently don't see taking that leap until then.

No, I will NOT be upset when the church calls it's next Senior Pastor. I'm hoping it will be soon, very soon. I'm looking forward to stepping back to my role as Worship Leader once he gets here.

Let me close by saying what will NOT be happening at Freedom River.
We will NOT sit around and lick our wounds.
We will NOT pout and feel sorry for ourselves.
We WILL "stay the course."
That means moving ahead with the mission of being a river of grace to everyone we come in contact with, the North Hills community and the city of Raleigh.

While we will miss Pastor Scott, Pastor Jamie and their families, our true Shepherd isn't going anywhere. "I am with you always," Christ told His disciples before returning to His Father (Matthew 28:20). This is Jesus' church. And He is faithful to see us through. "Great is His faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:23).

I'm going to use my blog as one way to communicate with you. You can check it it out at http://jellyrolljam.blogspot.com/. Feel free to email me at jay@freedomriver.org if you have any questions or concerns.

I love you guys. But most of all, He loves you and wants His best for you.

In Christ,
Jay