Bigelow Church
Nondenominational
415 Washington St.
Portsmouth, OH  45662

From the Elders:

For many months the Elders have been discussing the need for additional ministry staff.  At the Annual Business Meeting in December and on multiple occasions since that time, the congregation has been made aware of the need for additional people to fill ministry roles.  These roles require a more intensive commitment than what most people can provide on a volunteer basis as well as special training and skills generally found in ministry professionals.  Though we work hard to match needs with the capabilities found within our congregation, at times we must extend the scope of our search to others.  Allow us to explain the type of ministry support we are seeking and why.

By now you have noticed that something is happening in the ministry of Bigelow Church as a result of our recent constitutional and organizational changes.  We think it is fair to say that the leaders of Bigelow have “found their footing” and now, more than any other time in the past, we have a clear vision of where we believe God is calling us to go and how to get there.  The emphasis on developing godly leaders in the home and providing tools such as the Family Worship Guide is an indication that we are wasting no time to accomplish what we believe is the mission of Bigelow Church for the present and for future generations to come.  Our philosophy of ministry is “To build strong families through practical biblical instruction with frequent evaluation to assure real progress.”  By now, you have heard this several times but it is valuable to repeat it because it drives our planning process and priorities.  It causes us to ask ourselves, “WHO will teach WHAT and HOW will we work with families to assure real progress in spiritual growth.”

Our vision is that we integrate all aspects of our disciple-making efforts so that we are all “rowing in the same direction” with regard to instruction, encouragement, and dealing with the inevitable need to work through problems we face as individuals, families and a fellowship collectively.  With that in mind, we believe our priority for seeking an additional staff person should be to find a gifted, trained, and skilled associate pastor who can come along side the senior pastor. His job will be to share the task of developing training materials, teaching the core seminars, and counseling individuals and families through the trials that are common to all believers, as well as serious problems that are experienced by many.  We also believe that this person should have a particular passion for the younger individuals in our fellowship in order to be an effective complement to the ministry of the senior pastor to the adults.  Finally, we believe this person should share our commitment to develop the nine important characteristics of a healthy church, established in our new constitution.

Many of you have asked about the status of a worship leader and choir director.  Though we believe this is an important role and one that we will continue to seek to fill, we hope that you see how important the role of an associate pastor is to realizing the vision we have for your spiritual growth and the life of Bigelow Church.