College Avenue in Arkansas
COLLEGE AVENUE CHURCH OF CHRIST El Dorado, Arkansas RECOVERY MINISTER POSITION
CHURCH DESCRIPTION: The College Avenue church of Christ is an undenominational family of believers with over 500 members and children. We are led by seven shepherds and thirty-six deacons. Our Mission Statement has three parts:
- We seek to truly be a church “of Christ”;
- We want to be genuinely undenominational;
- We strive to be a caring, loving spiritual family.
Our church is a Christ-centered, Spirit-filled, and grace-oriented congregation that is growing steadily in both numbers and ministries. Our welcoming spirit, strong ministries, and outstanding community reputation have enabled us to attract a very diverse group of believers from many religious, social, and ethnic backgrounds. You can find more information about our church atwww.cacoc.org.
COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION: El Dorado is a city of some 19,000. The county has a population of over 41,000. We also draw members from surrounding cities of Camden; Hampton; Magnolia; Strong; and Junction City,Louisiana. Information about our area is available at http://www.eldoradoar.org/
SouthArk Community College is located here. Its website iswww.southark.edu. El Dorado is also home to the El Dorado Promise, a unique program that pays college tuition for graduates of the El Dorado School System. You may learn more about this scholarship program atwww.eldoradopromise.com.
PRESENT RECOVERY MINISTRY: For many years we have had an active Recovery Ministry and we view this as a local “mission field.” We are seeking to expand that ministry by calling a full-time evangelist to work with our current recovery workers. At present we have one shepherd, three deacons, and about a dozen volunteers who serve in this ministry, including individuals who have been converted here.
We are Community Partners with the South Arkansas Substance Abuse Center (http://southarkansassubstanceabuse.org), a local 32-bed residential treatment facility, and support their work in many ways. About half of the Center’s staff, and a majority of the Board of Directors, are members of our congregation, including Dan Williams and Kent Jobe, our preaching ministers, who serve as the President and Vice-President of the Board. A team of five of our men takes turns conducting the “Spiritual Group” in the SASA facility each Monday afternoon.
We also conduct personal Bible studies at SASA, at the local half-way houses, and in the homes of interested individuals. Our ministry staff also makes visits in the county jail when the need arises and their schedules permit. In addition, we cooperate with local 12-Step organizations and host the local NA group in our facility.
Each Sunday morning those residents in SASA who elect to attend church are picked up by volunteer drivers in one of our PeopleMovers and brought to class and worship. Our church offers an entry-level 12-Step group on Sunday mornings for the residents who are currently in treatment. Individuals who have completed their stay at the center and have gone through those steps, and who have made the commitment to remain here at College Avenue, are welcomed into our “Next Step” program.
In any given month our church will be in contact with dozens of recovery prospects and their families. Our goal is not only to support individuals in their recovery but to lead them to become fully devoted disciples of Jesus and active members in His church.
RECOVERY MINISTRY POSITION: This is a permanent, full-time position and is scheduled to begin in the middle of 2013. Our Recovery Minister will report to the Shepherds in general, and work directly with the assigned Recovery Shepherd in particular. The day-to-day scheduling of activities for all our ministry staff is coordinated by Dan Williams or Kent Jobe. All our ministry staff (Dan, Kent, and Jason Baker, our Youth & Family minister) meets each Wednesday morning at 9:30 a.m. to share in a time of prayer, spiritual and professional development, mutual support, and ministry coordination.
The ideal candidate for this position will have some ministry training and/or experience. Specific experience with recovery ministry is preferred. If he is personally in recovery, at least four years of sobriety is required. He will be committed to personal integrity and will be willing to maintain a rigorous accountability partnership with another godly Christian man. The ideal candidate will have an outgoing personality and a passion for bringing the lost to Jesus. He will also have the ability to deal with people of diverse backgrounds, including the poor and those of different races, compassionately and without prejudice. He will have enough Christian maturity to relate well to “mainstream members” and enough worldly wisdom to deal with non-Christian individuals who have backgrounds in addictive behaviors like substance abuse, alcoholism, gambling, anger, pornography, etc. or with those who are impacted by loved ones with such behaviors. Familiarity with the “Celebrate Recovery” program would be a plus.
While opportunities to preach could occasionally be made available to an individual who requested it, this is not a preaching position. In addition, we will require only a limited number of set office hours. We are seeking someone who is willing to spend time in visitation and personal Bible studies, in discipling new converts and equipping Christians to serve in ministry. This will require the Recovery Minister to plan to work most weekends and some nights. Appropriate time off during the week will be made available to compensate. We are especially interested in planning Saturday night fellowship / group programs for our Recovery converts and prospects, since this is a prime time for relapses to occur. We would also welcome an individual with an interest in developing ministries for, and with, women in recovery.
RECOVERY MINISTER’S RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Conduct personal Bible studies and lead individuals to the Lord.
- Design and implement, with congregational support, a rigorous follow-up program for new converts that would include an intentional discipling process, mentoring, and life skills training when appropriate.
- Work with our current Recovery Ministry volunteers to grow our 12-Step and Next Step programs, and create training programs to equip and support our volunteers to more effectively serve in these ministries.
- Create programs to minister to our own members who have suffered the consequences of a loved one’s addiction.
- Work with the appropriate deacon to coordinate the scheduling of our drivers as they pick up residents from SASA each Sunday.
- Coordinate the speakers for the Monday afternoon Spiritual group at SASA.
- Represent our congregation in the local recovery community and make ministerial jail visits as needed.
- Collaborate with the shepherds, deacons, and staff of the College Avenue church to achieve our ministry goals, and especially our community outreach efforts.
- Work with our Benevolence Deacon to coordinate appropriate assistance.
- Help out in other areas as needed and assigned.
- Commit to being a team player with all our leadership, and to helping us maintain the harmony and unity we now enjoy.
- In all things model a life of Christian integrity, moral purity, and dedicated discipleship.
CONTACT INFORMATION: Mail – P.O. Box 10040, El Dorado, AR71730
E-Mail: cacoceld@sbcglobal.net