St. Francis Search Team Final Article

August 23, 2009

 I watched during worship service recently as one of our young parishioners attempted to light a prayer candle. He had some trouble striking the match in order to light the symbolic fire to the Holy Spirit and send his prayer to the heavens. I’m sure his prayer was ready to send, but getting it off his mind and heart and floating to the heavens was presenting a bit of a challenge in the form of a stubborn match. Soon, with a suggestion from his parent, he continued his prayer rite by lighting the match using another already lit prayer candle. Prayer successfully dispatched, he returned to his seat.

 I pondered this for a while, wondering whether he had learned the lesson he had just demonstrated to me. His prayers, while perfectly glorious to God all on their own, were lifted up by the community of prayers, specifically the already lit prayer candle, together an offering to God. Henri Nouwen writes about prayer, “Prayer is the language of the Christian community (Reaching Out) … Many people tend to associate prayer with separation from others, but real prayer brings us closer to our fellow human beings (Compassion).”

 Your prayers for the Search Team during this process have been encouraging, energizing, and empowering. Your prayers have not gone unnoticed; they have been a sign of our community and our faith, hope, and love … and they have been answered.

Our Journey

 In early 2008, the Vestry chose several members of our church to represent all corners of our congregation. The Vestry reported to the congregation that the team was formed with concensus, and all who were called agreed to serve. We began our process by meeting with Rev Canon Rick Calloway in late March, and charged out of the gate with energy, excitement, and optimism. Of course, we were younger then …

 We met as a team, and with our consultant, Tim Graham, a priest in our diocese, charted a course and began our journey. We reflected internally on our parish. The team led countless small group discussions to give everyone an opportunity to share. We exhausted countless reams of paper (God and the rainforests forgive us), in an attempt to survey every member of the St. Francis community willing to share their hopes, dreams, and fears. All of this data was organized and subjected to statistical analysis, reviewed, and interpreted until a vision of a Parish Profile was formed.

 After developing the spirit and message of the profile, the actual compilation and publishing of the profile was performed, including hours of editing, image manipulation, video development, and production. After almost nine months of incubation, a Parish Profile was born, approved by the Vestry, and shared with the parish as a milestone of our process. After developing a Church Deployment Office profile, we formally entered the market for a new Rector by the end of 2008.

Selection Process

 The Bishop’s office presented us with the results of the church-to-priest dating service, matching our profile to the prospective Rector’s. The Bishop’s office also sent us candidates who were specifically interested in St. Francis, some who were standing in line as soon as Dan’s call to Bishop of Nevada was announced. We also received direct inquiries from candidates who were inserted into the process. In considering more than 50 candidates, we began by reviewing resumes, visiting church web sites, reading priest’s blogs, discerning who might be a good match with St. Francis based on the Parish Profile. We did not look for reasons to eliminate candidates, but searched for reasons to continue conversation. It is a subtle point, but this attitude was adopted to remain open to new experiences, and to the Holy Spirit.

 A group of candidates was chosen to continue conversation and discernment. They were each sent a list of questions proposed by the diocese, along with additional questions developed by our team. The nature of the questions and the depth and subject matter often prompted long, detailed responses. This was an arduous task for candidates; some responded and some did not. We reviewed all submissions, an arduous task for the team, and decided to move forward with many to a telephone interview. Each interview was about 3 hours, including team discussion before and after the actual call. The team again determined which candidates we wanted to get to know better, and scheduled in-person visits.

 We traveled thousands of miles by plane and car, spent many nights in hotels, attended services at many churches, listened to sermons by our candidates, observed them celebrating the Eucharist and interacting with parishioners. During our visits, we had opportunities to sit down with candidates and have in-depth conversations. They had an opportunity to share, as well as ask questions. It was very apparent during this process that the candidates were interviewing us as well. Through hours of team discussion and prayerful discernment, we decided to bring a small group of candidates to Macon, to visit St. Francis and the community. Spouses of visiting candidates were also invited to allow them to consider Macon as their new home. It was a very special time during this phase to allow search team and candidate to consider the proposed relationship in a real, personal way. During the process of in-person visits, we discerned to end conversation with some candidates, and some decided to end conversation with St. Francis. After this process, our list of candidates was down to four.

Presentation to the Vestry

 The search team was charged, following the suggested process, to present 2-3 candidates that are equally suited to be the next Rector of St. Francis to the Vestry for consideration. Many of the candidates along the way would probably be fine Rector’s at St. Francis Church. In discernment of our final four, all are excellent priests and wonderful people. We were not charged, however, to present a good potential Rector, but the best match for St. Francis based on our profile. We cannot present 2-3 candidates that we feel are equally suited to be the next Rector of St. Francis because that would be inaccurate. One candidate was head and shoulders above the rest regarding match to St. Francis. We discussed this predicament with Rick Callaway and the Bishop approved the submission of a single candidate to the Vestry. In fact, it was stated that this would likely become the preferred method of candidate submission in the next revision of the process.

 We presented a single candidate, the Rev. Chad Vaughn, to the Vestry. After the initial shock of a change in expectation and process, the Vestry understood our position and why we could only present a single candidate. They met with Rick Callaway, then met with Fr. Chad, then with the Bishop’s blessing, issued the call.

<see actual announcement details under "Our Rector">

Going Forward

 Much will be discussed in the immediate future as we get to know and celebrate our new Rector. Like any relationship, bonds with our new Rector will take time, experiences, and love. Being human, I’m sure at some point in the future you will find our new Rector to have a flaw, do something that disagrees with you, or otherwise be imperfect. We already have a Savior … what we need is a Rector. I believe you all will be very pleased. More importantly, we can end any sense of being “on hold” as we move forward, growing together as the Body of Christ, and doing our best to fulfill our call as a parish.

 The search team would like to thank the Vestry and the parish for this opportunity to serve. It is often in the giving of one’s self that we truly see Christ, and we have had that opportunity many times and in many ways. We thank you for the faith and trust placed in our team by the parish, and can only hope that the Holy Spirit truly guided this process and continues to guide us all to the service of God’s Kingdom on earth.

Our Final Report, Respectfully Submitted,

Bryan Hinson, Chair, and the St. Francis Search Team

Search Team Letter to Parish: Mid-year Meeting - June 14, 2009

Greetings dear brothers and sisters of St. Francis!

 It was my wish that one of your Search Team members could be present at this joyous sharing of our parish life and happenings. When Charlie informed me of the date, my heart sank. I considered as a title for this letter, "Go find us a new Rector, and don't come back until you do!" Some of us have not worshipped with you since mid-May, and some of us may not see you until into July. While we are in the midst of the busiest phase of our work, it is also the most exciting. I would like to share with you recent activity, where we are today, and expectations for the final phases of our search for the next Rector of St Francis Church.

 We completed our phone interviews of many, many excellent candidates for Rector. These phone interviews were tedious, often taking 3-4 hours made up of an hour or so on the phone with the candidate, along with much hard discernment of the potential match to our parish, judged by the parish profile you all helped create. We learned much about each candidate, and had the opportunity to reflect on St Francis as well. We asked questions, and the candidates asked questions of us. Through this process, we chose to end conversation with several candidates. This is difficult, as all of them were wonderful priests and wonderful people. In the end, however, it comes down to a good match with our parish. Some candidates, after this phase, chose to end conversation with us. While it would be easy to take this personally, we had to have thick skin. Again, it is an issue of the best match. As I have jokingly referred to this process as "church-harmony.com," it really is a dating game. We are evaluating candidates just as they are evaluating St Francis, and prayerfully discerning our respective call.

 We currently have a slate of 6 candidates. As of today, we will have met in person with 5 candidates. We have another visit to conduct, and hope to have a slate of names (2 or 3) to submit to our Vestry by mid-July. At that point, we will urge the Vestry to practice the kind of schedule bending we have subjected ourselves to in order to do their discernment quickly. This will involve the Vestry meeting with these candidates in person, doing the final, critical discernment, and finally calling our next Rector.

 During preparation of our profile, phone conversations, and visits, we have learned much about our candidates and the process. We have had an opportunity to be very introspective about St. Francis, our ministry, our people, and our life in Christ. This has been very rewarding, as personally it has built an even greater pride for St. Francis. We have learned what a reputation we enjoy throughout the national church. One candidate even stated to a fellow priest in California that he was in conversation and discernment with a church in Macon, Georgia, to which his friend replied, "Oh, you mean St. Francis?" We have seen how other priests and congregations do church. We have learned things that might benefit St. Francis, as well as reinforced all the good work we do here. Most of all, we have experienced the welcome that the Episcopal Church proclaims everywhere we have traveled. I hope we have been good stewards of the spirit of St. Francis.

 We realize from our surveys that most of the church has never known another priest than Dan. Further, many have never known another Episcopal priest, as they came to us from another denomination. We also know this process seems long and foreign to many in our congregation. Through all the trials and tribulations, I do believe we have been guided by the Holy Spirit, as a Search Team and as a parish. You have all been very patient. I pray we are all rewarded as we enter a new phase of spiritual growth and ministry, as individuals, as a parish, and as the Body of Christ.

 I pray for our future, filled with faith, hope, and love (especially love)!

Bryan Hinson and your Search Team

God is Loose in the World - Search Team Update - April 23, 2009

Alleluia, Christ is risen!

 It seems one day is not long enough for Easter. Thank goodness the church calendar gives us until Pentecost to celebrate the Resurrection with extra vigor. Which brings me to the title of the article, taken from a song by one of my musical heroes, Peter Mayer.

"Through the wires it rips and rages,

High above the farm and city griddle line.

Through the ink of thinking sages,

Sleepin' man in a bed of pages, weaves the hand of the divine ...

 

We hunt for miles and all the while it paints the scenery, Scatters and whirls an arabesque.

 

The universe is singing,

Hey, hey, God is loose in the world."

 The search team is loose, too, going where God leads us to find our next Rector for St. Francis. Thank you to so many for your prayers, support, and food during our marathon meetings, at least twice a week lately. We will likely be done with our phone interviews by the printing of this month's Friar's Messenger. We have visited some priests in person, and have already scheduled several visits for May. Those requested frequent flyer miles donations mentioned last month would be helpful. We have several excellent candidates! We are working diligently in the home stretch to discern a mutual call for St. Francis and our next Rector. Our current pace and candidate numbers indicate we should narrow in on those special few candidates that match our profile best in early summer. The Vestry will then conduct their own interviews of the 2-3 chosen candidates and hopefully with divine guidance make our call.

"The word went leaping off the pages,

Breaking in the windows and leaping over walls.

All you asked for was a cool glass of water,

And you got a waterfall.

 

The universe is singing,

Hey, hey, God is loose in the world.

Oh, hear the news,

Hey, hey, Love is loose in the world."

- Peter Mayer, "Loose in the World"

A Year, A Parish, and Lots of Priests

March 28, 2009

 It's a long story. Trials and Tribulations. Faith, Hope and Love. The wonderful part is that the story never ends, and we, by the grace of God, have been brought together in this parish family to travel the journey together.

 Last month marked the milestone of one year since Rev. Canon Callaway came to St. Francis to launch our search for our next Rector. We also marked the milestone of closing our search at the diocesan and national church level. We are no longer accepting new candidates, and are in deep conversation with several priests. God willing, one candidate on our current, relatively shorter list, will be our next Rector. I am very excited. As we have made announcements in each of the Sunday services of these and other milestones, we see the excitement on your faces as well.

 We are aggressively pursuing continued conversation with our candidates, and I can share that we have a great group of candidates. This has been confirmed by our Canon and our consultant. You, the people and community of St. Francis, have attracted the best Rector prospects available. We expect phone conversations to be complete in April, and in-person visits to commence shortly. You may notice some of your search team absent from church in the coming Sundays. We will likely be sheep, out in search of a shepherd.

 We will continue announcements and postings to keep you all in the know. Thank you all for continued prayers and support.

Peace,

Bryan Hinson & your Search Team

On a Wing and a Prayer - Frequent Flyer Miles Needed!

  Prayers we've got. Keep 'em coming! 

 What we don't have is wings. The search team will be traveling soon to visit candidates who might serve as our new Rector. We are asking for donations of Frequent Flyer miles on a major airline that might be used to redeem a round trip ticket for this purpose. If anyone has miles they can donate as a ticket, please contact Bryan Hinson, Search Team Chair, at 478-335-3046 or email bryan@salientis.net.

Love is in the Air

Search Team Update, March 2009

 I know … Valentine's Day is over, time to move on to the thoughtful examination of Lent, the celebration of Resurrection and Promise of Easter, and more. Call me a romantic; I can't get past the celebration of love with only one day.

 The Search Team is experiencing love in many ways. One of our team members remarked recently how this is a pretty big responsibility on our shoulders. Of course, this did not just occur to us. I believe each member of the team prayerfully accepted the call, and agreed to serve St. Francis from a place of love. We have had many successive Sundays of meetings, along with “homework” of preparing surveys, communications, reviewing candidates, and maintaining team dynamics. Almost every meeting has had 100% attendance and real participation from the team. All of this is an outpouring of love for our church and our ministry. What is obviously a daunting task is truly to us a rewarding labor of love, just being in the process.

 There is also love beyond our current St. Francis community. Many candidates for Rector of St. Francis Church have obviously shown their love for the Church through hours of prayer and consideration of their call, along with even more hours filling out our invitation to be part of the process, which includes many long answer questions. We can attest to this as we review their thoughtful submissions. While we are still searching for the top candidates to recommend to the Vestry, there is no doubt the love at St. Francis is shining out to the world, the love from the candidates is shining back, all reflected from the love of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

 We plan to begin phone interviews this month, which will lead us to a smaller candidate pool, then visits with in-person interviews. The process feels as though it is gaining speed and is very exciting. We appreciate the support from the parish, and continue our labor of love. Through the remainder of the process, we pray for continued faith, hope, and love (especially love).

Peace,

Bryan Hinson

Search Team Chair

Search Team Report
Annual Parish Meeting, January 25, 2009

  We are almost exactly 10 months into the search process. We are following the process laid out for us by the diocese with the support of Rev. Canon Rick Callaway, as well as our Search Consultant, a priest in our diocese. For what was outlined as a 12-18 month process, I believe we remain on schedule.

  Over the past months, we have listened to the parish through a variety of forums. We conducted small group meetings to discern what we as a church value and hold dear. We then conducted a written survey to ask more specific questions about what is important to each respondent, what we feel is important at St. Francis, and what we are looking for in our next Rector. We also have received valuable input through individual discussion.

  The result of this self-study is our Parish Profile. This profile serves as a representation of St. Francis, and allows prospective Rectors to get to know us. The Parish Profile is now available on our web site.

  The Search Team also submitted a profile to the Church Deployment Office, which formally places St. Francis in the search process. Every priest has a profile in the national computer and can bring up our information. This system also matches us with priests actively searching for their calling, and allows for connections. There are also priests that are aware of our opening through other channels, and they may respond to the Bishop’s office, or to us directly.

  We have received more than 30 candidates from the diocese. Additional names continue to come in and will be evaluated and inserted into the process. The process from this point forward is generally: initiate written conversation with the candidates, narrow the search, have telephone interviews with candidates, narrow the search, schedule visits at the candidates location, narrow the search, schedule visits at St. Francis, narrow the search, present 2-3 candidates to the Vestry for final evaluation and interview, make a call to our next Rector.

  It is difficult to put an exact timetable on this part of the process. The Search Team has committed to pushing the final phases as quickly as possible, while remaining true to the process and listening for God’s voice in our work. Regular communication with the parish will continue until we have called a new Rector.

  We wish to thank the Bishop’s office, our consultant, the Vestry (past and current), and the congregation for the support and prayers through this process.

Respectfully submitted,
Search Team

January14, 2009

Search Team NewYear's Resolutions

1. Find a new Rector that is a perfect match for St. Francis Church.

 Well, there's a little more to it than that, but that is the goal. The Search Team has submitted the CDO (Church Deployment Office) profile and we await our first wave of candidates any day.  This begins with the process of: refine list of candidates, mail interviews, refine list of candidates, phone interviews, refine list of candidates, in-person interviews at the priest's parish, refine list of candidates, interviews inviting candidate here, refine list of candidates, present top choices to the Vestry.  As tedious as it sounds, this will move much faster than the previous 10 months of the process.  It is also exciting!  We will give regular reports as we move through these phases.

 The Parish Profile wil be presented to the Parish soon, so keep an eye out for this upcoming event.

November 23, 2008
‘Tis the Season

  I always marvel at how the church seasons seem to match the issues and situations in our lives. It might be like astrology or psychics, where we look for the similarities, wishing them to be there, thus creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. It might also be that God has organized all of this quite well, so that His influence in our history, tradition, and our lives today is always there, at just the right time, revealing His presence, wisdom, care and love. I’m OK with either possibility, but I believe it is probably both.

  Advent is a season of anticipation and preparation. It is the anticipation that is especially interesting to me because of where we are in the search process. As of the printing of the December newsletter, we will have submitted the profile for the Church Deployment Office, and will be anxiously awaiting the names of prospective Rectors. This will include both candidates that the computer matches to St. Francis, and candidates that have expressed a specific interest in St. Francis. This is VERY exciting! The Search Team will soon publish the Parish Profile for all to see. By next month, we will be reporting how the selection process is progressing.

  This month will make one year since Dan’s final sermon at St. Francis. On multiple occasions, Dan gave all the credit to his formation and journey to the Episcopate to St. Francis Church. He is obviously humble, and we all know how special Dan is, and how fortunate the Diocese of Nevada is to have him as their Bishop. I do, however, take Dan at his word that St. Francis is a very special place, a very special people, and that we all grew tremendously, together, over the past 14 years.

  Dan departed for Nevada, leaving behind a strong, healthy, ministry-oriented, Spirit-filled community of Christ. Through this year, we have found out much about ourselves, both through purposeful soul searching and by how we relate to each other through this transition period. Thus the preparation component of Advent is also present at St. Francis. We must struggle to reconnect with the church we were one year ago, adding in the past year’s lessons and experiences. St. Francis started the year in a very special place. My hope and prayer is that this valuable year of preparation will result in a new St. Francis, prepared to welcome a new Rector, and begin a new era.

October 27, 2008
Once Upon a Time …

  The content of the Parish Profile is complete! It has been a wonderful experience telling the story of St. Francis. It is like sitting down with a shoebox full of pictures, and finally compiling them into the family album. In our case, the family album goes much deeper, because it not only shares the past, but also brings our story up-to-date, sharing who we are. We also had to share your input to express where we want to go … pictures not yet taken.

  Speaking of pictures, the actual presentation of the Parish Profile remains as the final step. We are turning the black and white text into a graphical presentation that will show off St Francis in words, sights, and sounds. We are working diligently to complete this phase within the month. Then, we share our Parish Profile with the Diocese, the National Church offices, and ultimately, interested priests … one who will serve as the next Rector of St. Francis Church, Macon, GA.

September 26, 2008
How does St. Francis Look, Through Your Eyes?

     The Search Team is assembling our Parish Profile. This is on the surface, our resume. We are searching for a new Rector as much as a new Rector is searching for a new parish. All parties must give prayerful consideration to this part of the process so the initial matching phase is successful, and leads to the right final call.
     With your help, we are creating a profile that really states who we are and where we want to go, and of course, what we are looking for in a new Rector. We also trust in the process that the Rectors looking at us will reveal themselves fully, in faith, hope, and love.
     As you, the people of St. Francis, are the biggest influence on the creation of our profile, we are asking for your help yet again. A picture is worth a thousand words (just ask a photographer). We hope to express much of St. Francis in images of our life, family, ministries, and worship. We have requested images from a few of our stalwart photographers, but realize that many of us take pictures at different events. If you have captured a piece of St. Francis that you feel is representative of who we are and what we are about, please put your best shots on a CD and place it in the Search Team box near the church office, by October 12. If you need to contact us for questions or another delivery method for the pics, email Bryan Hinson, bhinson@mylink.net.
     Thank you for all your support and participation in this search process.

August 20, 2008
Fall: The Season of Renewal and Rebirth?

     Sunshine and green everywhere, a rainbow of colors, the exuberance of youth, the sprinkling of life giving Holy Water ... doesn't sound like fall, but it does sound like the Blessing of the Backpacks at the 11am service. I understand numbers are returning to each service marking the back to school surge we historically see at St. Francis. I have also noticed a few ministries and teams that normally slow down over the summer are filled with renewed Spirit. New activities are beginning to fill our calendars and announcements, and Sunday School will be buzzing again this month. It may not be spring, and certainly not Easter on the church calendar, but we are sharing a spirit of new life and rebirth, and coming back together in love ... a cycle that characterizes our very faith.
     St. Francis is experiencing rebirth of another sort. Through our focus group sessions, and the large percentage of returned surveys, you have shared with the Search Team who we are, and who we want to be, and who we hope to call as our next Rector. Your responses have been reviewed in detail, and every one is being honored in the spirit it was submitted. Our job now is to shape all of this into the Parish Profile that will go out to prospective priests. While no one can place a timeline on the Holy Spirit, we seem to be on schedule with "averages" given to us by our consultants and guides in the Bishop's office.
     Officially 5 months into the process, the greatest gift so far has been the full support of the Vestry, and a lack of pressure from the parish. Many of you have asked, "How's it going?" and even more have simply stated, "We are praying for you and your work." There has been an overall confidence in the team and the process, and more importantly faith that God will lead us all down the right path. This incredible faith, hope, and love is part of the strength of St. Francis, and something I hope will make itself known to prospective Rectors.
     There have been many initiatives launched to spruce up the campus and get administrative items in order. This will make a great first impression when a prospective Rector comes to visit. More importantly, St. Francis needs to continue to reflect Christ in everything we do, letting that faith, hope and love shine through. This is what really makes St. Francis wonderful, and it is a well-earned reputation in our own diocese and throughout the Church. I pray we continue through this process as one, working through everything we encounter with focus on our place and part in the Mission. Then, we will present to a new Rector, not only a good physical first impression, but a spiritually healthy and dynamic St. Francis, ready to move to the next phase of our journey as a parish.

July 20, 2008 - Download our Search Survey

July 1, 2008
An Update from Your Search Team

     I am praying for God to give me patience ... and I wish He would hurry up!!!

Step By Step
(Bold Indicates Completed)

Select Nominating Committee

Survey Parish Goals and Needs

Receive and Analyze Survey Data

Prepare Parish Profile Draft

Profile Appoval by Vestry & Bishop

Publish Parish Profile

Gather Names from CDO & Other Sources

Send Names to Diocese for Screening

Evaluate and Rank Candidates

Send Profile and Questionnaire to Candidates

Select 15-20 Names for Telephone Interviews

Select 8-10 Candidates for Parish Visits

Bring 4-6 Candidates to meet Search Team

Select 2-3 Finalists & Submit to Vestry

Bring Final Candidates back to meet Vestry

Vestry Selects Candidate

Bishop Approves Call for Rector