Call Committee Updates
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of reasons, none of which results in any concerns for SOTV, but primarily for family reasons, each candidate has withdrawn from the call process and decided to stay with their current call.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.