ReCAST Church has continued to grow. From about 30 people meeting in a basement in 2009 to a store front, to renting school space, to building a building, to going to two services it has been amazing to see the growth. There was once a time when I was the only paid staff member. Things were simple, and my meager skills in administration were sufficient for the needs of a tiny congregation.
Over the years, we’ve grown. We now have 400-450 people at ReCAST on Sunday mornings and we’ve added more staff at different times: children’s directors, youth directors, associate pastors, communications director, office clerks, and now we have facility director and an associate pastor for student ministries and an office manager. I’ve even had administrative assistants the last few years!
And so I am excited to embark on a new journey with a new staff member who will be starting this Monday (September 23, 2024). Trent Johnson will be starting as our Provisional Executive Pastor.
Trent is a hire from within. He and his wife Brittany and their children, Lily, Philip, and Mae have been a part of ReCAST for a couple of years. They’ve jumped in with ministry. They have been a delight to get to know. And I am enthusiastic to be working with Trent.
The word ‘provisional’ is the one that trips people up first, and it comes from a commitment to primarily hiring pastoral staff while allowing a time to gauge fit in both directions. Provisional will be removed from the title after a time of determining pastoral competencies, clarifying theological fit, and Trent assessing his own joy and fit in the role.
Provisional is NOT the only word in his title that needs definition. Executive can mean a lot of things to a lot of people. I can imagine some people wondering if the title implies that the church is turning into a business, or if it is becoming professional. The answer to this is an emphatic, “no!’ The church is never to be treated or conceived of in business terms. Trent is not joining staff in order to corporatize ReCAST Church.
Instead, our goal for his role is to manage and administrate skillfully the many needs of a church family our size. It is worth noting that administration occurs in lists of spiritual gifts that can be applied in the body of Christ. Hiring an executive pastor has two distinct benefits. First, it allows a qualified pastor with the gift of administration to administrate to the blessing of the church. But secondly, it frees me up as the lead pastor to focus on three areas of my calling. I am increasingly convinced of the three primary callings on a lead pastor that are expressed by Eugene Peterson in many of his books on pastoral theology.
First, I am called to contemplative exegesis. This involves intense and deep study of the word interspersed with time of reflection and meditation in that word. Study – contemplation – more study – more contemplation. This weekly routine has been hammered by questions about A/V equipment, concerns for recruiting volunteers for the nursery, and questions about who does and doesn’t need a church credit card. These are all good questions, but these coupled with the thousand other practical questions that arise in any given week, certainly inhibit the cadence of study and contemplation.
The second calling on me as the lead pastor is prayer. I am growing in this area, but it is not easy. Our world cannot understand this calling, and to be honest many in the church in America give mere lip-service to the value of prayer. Imagine how you would view me, if I told you I worked 60 hours this past week? I might gain respect in your eyes, right? Now imagine that I tell you that 40 hours of that work was in prayer . . . (this is merely for illustration and is nowhere near reality). But how would you think of that? We say we value prayer . . . But do we really value prayer? My ROLE and RESPONSIBILITY is to be a prayerful (full of prayer!) pastor.
Lastly, I am called to lean into the congregation with spiritual direction. More than merely counseling people in hard times, I am given to the church to guide and direct individuals toward spiritual growth. And those needs don’t come up at predictable times. The importance of my availability runs parallel to the reality that desires for spiritual direction come up when they come up. And being available for people has always been something I value. And yet I find my availability increasingly crowded out by managing a variety of important but practical needs that are pastoral, but do not fit in these three primary callings on a lead pastor.
I am looking forward to working with Trent to pass over to him many of the administrative tasks in order to free me up for contemplative study, increased prayer, and more availability to guide people through spiritual direction.
I have grown to love Trent and his family in the time I’ve gotten to know them. I am excited to be working with him. And I would encourage all of ReCAST to welcome him into this new role. I believe that his service to the church is the right type at the right time. I am grateful for God’s blessing on ReCAST Church over the last 15 years. And I look forward to seeing what he does in the coming years. Welcome aboard, Trent!