What is the congregation’s or organization’s vision for ministry? Additionally describe how this vision is lived out.
Settlers, having come to Aztec in covered wagons across northern New Mexico, founded and chartered Aztec Presbyterian Church in 1889. These pioneers used available soil to make and build the adobe sanctuary and room behind-the first church in Aztec. With God’s help and a lot of prayer, this pioneering spirit has guided our congregation through the many economic booms and busts, good times and bad, over many years. We are the “Church of the Pioneers” with a continued call to be trailblazers into the 21st century.
We are old and we are young. We are conservative and we are liberal. We are farmers, ranchers, and townies. Deeply embedded in the community around us, we embrace our differences and seek new vision during this time of economic transition-this season of turning.
Caring for each other is the heart and soul of our church. We are family, a small part of the bigger family around us-our community. Caring for our community, its rich cultural history and natural beauty, we yet recognize its disparities and strive to help the poorest among us and to encourage the young and the voiceless. We do so in the name of the one we love, Jesus Christ.
We sponsor a scout troop, have been active with the LGBTQ community and the homeless, and host an in-house food bank. We have an active education program run by gifted volunteers. Our women raise mission funds with the work of their hands; our men organize community building projects; and we work through the schools to provide food, care and scholarships.
|
How do you feel called to reach out to address the emerging needs of your community or constituency?
Our community is changing, and with change, new needs arise. The increasingly secular and inwardly focused modern culture leaves our youth with few places to safely confront the myriad dilemmas of growing up. Systemic poverty, racial divides, the struggle for acknowledgement-there are so many needs here. We take seriously God’s offer of hospitality to all, but our efforts have become fragmented, like an old quilt fraying at the edges, and we hunger for a more cohesive sense of mission. We know, because we have deep roots in our community, that the connections between families, schools, and community can still erupt in joy, celebrations, goodwill, and parades-lots of parades. Perhaps our part is to help revitalize those connections.
We do not know what the future may bring, but we are a people first church, maintaining our commitment to each other and our community. We dream of being revitalized, recommitted-a multigenerational church relevant to today’s community-a middle ground in this time of increasing polarization, a safe haven where everyone’s worth is recognized-a place of hope, good humor, and deep spiritual sustenance.
|
How will this position help you to reach your vision and mission goals?
Caring for each other, we yet recognize that we have grown out of touch with the younger community around us and seek to reengage. We are strong, independent and well run, but we are aging. We need a pastor that will live amongst us and get to know us. To know well our needs and hopes. To shop here, interact, and develop a keen sense of how our church can begin to expand and grow in service to our beloved community.
Like an old shoe, our worship style and traditions are comfortable, but we need to be gently nudged in a new direction to regain our relevancy to the larger community. We need a pastor willing to engage with new programs for young families, youth and the newly arriving retired couples that are changing our town’s demographics. A pastor who delivers sermons that are open, uplifting and inviting-that stretch our thoughts and beliefs in new directions. Sermons rooted in our everyday lives that inspire and reinvigorate all our committees, task forces and missions. One that helps us become known to potential members as a deeply caring church, rooted in Jesus’ message of hope and reconciliation; one that embraces empathy and mission rather than judgment and petty division.
|
Provide a description of the characteristics needed by the person who is open to being called to this congregation and or organization.
We are westerners. We need someone who is open and honest and genuine. Someone non-judgmental, who can work alongside people of differing ideas, beliefs, lifestyles and concepts. A people person that enjoys building connections. One that can lead the ornery and obstinate in new directions through humor and good will. Someone that laughs when the children say funny things during the children’s sermon; because we will. Someone that takes time to get to know us; a leader that doesn’t take themselves too seriously; that can take a bit of teasing and give it back again and doesn’t feel the need to micro-manage.
We need a pastor that appreciates small town America, the rich cultural heritage of Northern New Mexico, and the lower living costs of our semi-rural lifestyle. One that will take advantage of the nearby Rocky Mountains of Colorado, the Red Rocks of Utah, and the local national parks and forests. A person that appreciates the art, culture, and additional employment opportunities of two nearby college towns. A pastor that enjoys working with young people and can think outside the box to engage our community in new ways.
Most of all, we need a pastor that is willing to give us a try-a pastor that will work alongside us as we expand, renewed, inspired, and reinvigorated to tackle the needs of our times.
|
What specific tasks, assignments, and program areas will this person have responsibility?
Our pastor will work to develop a rich worship life in keeping with our confessions; preaching with urgency and conviction; expanding the church’s programs of Christian witness to reengage our community. We need a pastor who will oversee our spiritual growth and reinvigorate our Christian Education Program by nurturing and developing good teachers and administrators, and one who maintains a strong program of Pastoral Care through visitation and counseling.
Our pastor will plan the congregational life throughout the year in partner with church staff and Session. They will maintain a good working relationship with church staff, the Session and its committees, the Presbytery, and other community congregations. You will have a strong vital Presbytery partner and close access to Ghost Ranch Education and Retreat Center, and we expect our pastor to continue developing their own spirituality, skills, and knowledge through continuing education and conference.
Our church remained strong during the pandemic, but we need a new vision. We want to expand our presence with virtual services to reach our committed members who are homebound or have left our community as they aged. Our ties remain strong even as physical distance grows. We have the resources, but we need the expertise. Our pastor should be comfortable facilitating virtual services, hosting zoom meetings, and forging new forms of virtual outreach.
|
Optional Links
www.aztecnm.com, www.nps.gov/azru,
farmingtonnm.org, www.sanjuancollege.edu,
www.durango.org, www.fortlewis.edu,
www.nps.gov/chcu |