General Information

Job Title:

Pastoral Resident: Hope Church

Job Description:

What is Pastoral Residency?

Pastoral residency is a full-time paid pastoral position where you can practice, learn, and grow in the skills and character needed for long-term effective pastoral ministry. It is pastoring with guardrails. It's pastoring with direct mentoring from seasoned leaders. It's a spot where you can do ministry, and others can encourage and pass wisdom to you from years of experience.

We are offering this role for a 3-year term so you can have multiple cycles of the church calendar. And you can have a variety of experiences in a small church environment. It's a spot where you can be a part of a growing community. And then be guided toward launching into a lifetime of ministry.

Take some time to check out the rest of the description and process. Please reach out to us with any questions.

What are we offering?

• • • 3-year pastoral position to grow
    • $55k annually (willing to license to enable housing allowance)
    • Path toward health insurance
    • Moving expenses (up to $2500) –
    • $2000 scholarship/student loan payoff
    • Annual book budget
    • Annual Conference budget
    • Path toward licensure with the EFCA
    • Help with placement at the end of the Pastoral residency

Position Qualifications:

Who are we looking for?

• • • Male (Hope is complementarian in reference to the pastor/elder roles)
    • Seminary trained (or close to completion) or graduate level degree
    • Ability to teach & preach
    • Teachable
    • Elder Qualified in process (1 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Pet 5:1-4)
    • Desire to go toward lead ministry (eventually)
      • Hopefully, in a smaller church setting
    • Agreement with EFCA statement of faith & ethos
      • Statement of Faith – https://www.efca.org/sof
      • Ethos meaning – ‘In essentials unity, in non-essential charity, in all things Christ'
    • Alignment with Hope Church
      • • • Reformed inclined
          • Credo-Baptist
          • Consecutive exposition
          • Historic orthodox position on human sexuality
    • Willing to work in the context of the Southeast

Application Deadline

Job Type:

Full Time

Salary Range:

$55k-$70k

General Information

Church/Organization Name

Hope Church

Contact Name & Contact Info

Industry

Church

Denomination

Evangelical Free Church (EFCA)

City, State

Madison, AL

Description of Organization

History of Hope

Hope Church was planted in 1989 by a group who desired to plant a

contemporary, Bible-centered church. With help from a church planter connected to the

EFCA, they began services in July 1989, after moving to a few locations and working to

establish a stable group of leadership. In 1992, the decision was made to hire a full-time

pastor. In December 1992, Jim Wilson was hired as the first full-time staff member. Jim

was a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and had pastored previously. Under his

leadership, the church grew to around 125, bought and built a facility at the edge of

town (1995), grew the leadership team, and established regular mission training in

Nicaragua. In 2003, Jim left to pursue pastoral ministry alongside his brother.

In 2005, they called Andy Wulff as pastor. Andy was a younger pastor who was

educated at The Master's Seminary and had a connection to the EFCA. He was called

with the desire that Hope would be handed to the next generation. The transition from a

founding leader to the next proved to be a significant hurdle for many. In April 2011,

there was a massive tornado outbreak across Alabama. In the wake of that, Hope,

alongside EFCA Crisis Response, began to help in the long-term recovery efforts. While

this tragedy did not cause the difficulties, it exposed the fissures that had developed in

leadership over time, and significant disruption in both the leadership and membership.

The next phase of the church was one of replant, where programs, leadership,

philosophy, and mission had to be re-established. And this kicked off a new season in

the life of the church. In 2016, we produced a statement on marriage and human

sexuality. 2019 we updated the governing documents and adopted the newer EFCA

statement of faith. 2020 the building and property were paid off, and the church remains

debt-free and financially healthy. In 2020, the pastoral residency was established. The

desire was to bring in a candidate who would function as a pastor, be here for a limited

timeframe (2-3 years), and be given the opportunity, coaching, and encouragement

specifically in the areas of skills and character to put them on a path to an effective and

long-term ministry. We have worked with two residents and are looking to hire our third

to begin in May 2026.

In 2021, Andy was given a ten-week sabbatical. This was primarily for a time of

rest and renewal. But coming out of that time, he returned with a greater desire to see

Hope gather, encourage, and empower the next generation of leaders at Hope. In

recent years, we have seen that begin to happen. We have seen slow but steady

growth, and at this time, we are around 160 people who call Hope their home. Much of

the growth in the past few years has been among those in the 25-30 age range.

Today, we are a church with the mission of ‘multiplying people who are

passionately pursuing Jesus and fearlessly on mission.' We strive to keep our church

simply organized by focusing on Gathered Worship, Community Groups, Next

Generation, and Mission. As the suburbs have grown up around the church, we have

sought to be connected to our local community by being a polling place, hosting local

homeowners associations, hosting veteran groups, and local community forums.Local Context

In the 1950s, Huntsville was transformed from a cotton town to a technology hub

by the opening of the Marshall Space Flight Center. Since then, it has been the hub of

much of the space and missile technology that has been developed in the US,

beginning with the Saturn V through the Space Shuttle and now Ares. Many of the jobs

in the area are technical engineering and require security clearances. Other defense

industries have grown up and now include areas like cybersecurity.

As a result, the median income is higher than in most of the state. And at the same

time, the cost of living remains relatively low. This has meant the area has had an

ongoing growth curve for much of the last three decades. This also means that many of

the people are transplants from other areas of the country. And soon, the Huntsville

metro area will be the largest metro in the state. And Huntsville/Madison is often touted

as one of the best places to live throughout the Southeast and the nation.

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