Call Committee Updates
April 2025
Trusting the Call: An Update on Our Senior Pastor Call Process
As we continue in our call process to discern our next Senior Pastor, we want to share an update and take a moment to reflect on what makes this journey so unique and sacred.
Unlike a typical job search or HR hiring process, a call process in the church is not just about filling a position—it’s a prayerful, Spirit-led journey of discernment. Yes, there are familiar elements such as interviews and evaluations, but this is, at its heart, a faith practice. Together with the Holy Spirit, we listen, we pray, and we trust that God is working through every conversation, consideration, and connection to lead us to the right person for this important role in ministry.
What Makes the Call Process Unique
Calling a pastor is not a solo endeavor. It’s a collaboration between Shepherd of the Valley (SOTV), the St. Paul Area Synod, and in the case of a Senior Pastor call like ours, it includes active partnership between the Church Council, Executive Leadership Team, Pastoral staff, and the Bishop’s office. The Bishop and her team are deeply committed to walking this journey with us, offering tools, wisdom, and spiritual guidance every step of the way.
How Candidates Are Found
You won’t see our Senior Pastor role listed on a typical job board or posted on our SOTV website. Instead, we work with the synod, which uses specialized tools and networks to connect congregations with ordained leaders who feel called into new ministry roles. Earlier in the process, we invited the congregation to nominate potential candidates, and we’re grateful for the names that were submitted. These names have been passed along to the Bishop, who will help us discern how and when we might continue receiving more.
This particular call is a nationwide search. That means the candidates we may engage in conversation with are likely serving in other congregations, possibly in other states. These pastors are discerning a potential call to SOTV while also considering family needs, relocation, and today’s broader social, political, and economic climate.
This is not a quick or simple decision for anyone involved. It is one made in deep prayer, trust, and personal discernment with God.
A Word About Confidentiality
Your Call Committee is working faithfully and diligently behind the scenes, committing time, energy, and prayer to every step of this process. Because of the sensitive nature of these conversations, committee members are asked to maintain confidentiality around
candidate information. We ask for your understanding and respect as they honor that commitment.
What’s Next?
We don’t have a timeline, because we’re working on God’s time. But what we do have is faith: faith in our leaders, faith in the process, and above all, faith that God is preparing the way forward.
Please continue to pray for your Call Committee, our synod partners, and the pastors who may be discerning a call to SOTV. Your prayers and support are important and part of the call process.
As always, if you have questions or would like to share a comment, we invite you to reach out at call@sotv.org. And know that we’ll continue to share updates as we are able.
In faith and hope,
The SOTV Call Committee
Dar Spiegelberg, Chair, Adam Airhart-Swanson, Mary Meyer Haugan, Anne Hemmerlin, Michael Kelly, Paul Moyer, Council President, Chanda Raymond, Bill Wilken, and Jennifer Davidson, Staff Liaison
March 29 &30 2025
Bishop Patricia Lull has been working with our Call Committee on the process of calling a new Senior Pastor. Bishop Lull provided a video update for the people of Shepherd of the Valley in all worship services on March 29 & 30.
Listen to the message from Bishop Lull below.
As always, please direct questions to call@sotv.org.
March 21, 2025
Thank you to all who took the time to read the February-March Call Committee update (below). We are grateful for your on-going support and prayers. The Call Committee met with the Bishop in early March to reflect on process, learning, and moving forward in the call process. The team continues to meet regularly and stays actively engaged in their work.
Please plan to attend worship the weekend of March 29-30, 2025. We will receive a recorded video message at all services from Bishop Patricia Lull.
As always, please direct questions to call@sotv.org.
February - March, 2025
As most of you are aware, your SOTV Call Committee has been hard at work and dedicated to the call process seeking to identify our next Senior Pastor. They have been meeting regularly and have put in many hours over the past thirteen months.
What has the Call Committee been up to all this time?
In the early months, the team worked with Bishop Lull to receive training and guidance for the call process. Additionally, Interim Senior Pastor, Rob Carlson, worked with the team to give additional guidance and support as they continued to come together as a collaborative team. Education and spiritual support provided an excellent foundation for the Call Committee to build upon.
Further work in collaboration with our Pastors, Executive Staff, and Council Leaders was done and completed in July 2024 for the approval and implementation of the Ministry Site Profile (MSP) and Job Description. During the nomination period, these documents were available for review by the congregation.
In late September 2024, the Call Committee received Rostered Minister Profile paperwork for named candidates from the Bishop. The team spent the next several weeks reviewing candidate information, sermons, writings, podcasts, social media posts, and other information available to them.
For the remainder of the calendar year 2024 and through January 2025 the Call Committee was deeply engaged in the interview process including multiple interviews with the candidates. This process also included the completion of reference checks and time provided for candidates to connect with references for SOTV.
For a variety of reasons, none of which results in any concerns for SOTV, but primarily for family reasons, each candidate has withdrawn from the call process and decided to stay with their current call. Currently, the Call Committee does not have any active candidates for consideration. While this is disappointing news, the Call Committee continues to be actively connected, working together, and committed to the call process.
What is next?
The Bishop will meet with the Call Committee in early March 2025. During that meeting, they will have continued reflection, learning, and will receive updates as to when they can expect to receive candidate names from the Synod. Then, they will enter the interview process again with new candidates.
This is a time of great patience, understanding, and faith. Your Call Committee is strong, dedicated, and connected as a team to continue in their calling for this very important service to SOTV. Please support your Call Committee through continued prayer and understanding. In addition, your commitment to respect the call process and the confidentiality requirements to uphold this process for candidates and their current congregation is critical.
Shepherd of the Valley is in a good place. We are thriving and blessed to have an amazing, strong pastoral staff and dedicated staff members. Pastor Rob Carlson will continue to lead us through transition as our Interim Senior Pastor. Pastor Rob will continue in this important role for the duration of the call process. He and SOTV will continue to be supported by our Bishop and Synod leaders along the way.
We will continue to update the congregation with information as we are able. Please trust the process. We have much to be grateful for and excited about as we continue to move forward in ministry together.
Specific questions can be directed to call@sotv.org.