Oklahoma Conference of the United Methodist Church

Pastor Profile

(Revised July 2016)

Please note:
This is a Word document that will expand as you type. Please complete it by typing your answers following each question.
This is not a Charge Conference form, though your DS may ask for it at the time of Charge Conference. This Profile is submitted directly to the district office/superintendent by the date specified by the DS.
The purpose of this document is to communicate clearly with the District Superintendent, and to create a conversation that inspires reflection toward more effective, fruitful ministry and leadership in the Church. This is a confidential document between the Clergy and the Superintendent/Cabinet. Answers should cover the time period since the last submitted Pastor Profile, including time from a previous appointment if the pastor moved since the last submission (In the case of a first time appointment, cover the months in the current appointment).

Clergy Name: ______
Charge: ______

  1. What is the best thing that happened through your ministry this year?
  1. What in ministry seems to drain the energy from you?
  1. Have you or your church intentionally explored how your community assesses the vitality and impact of your church upon the community within your reach? ___
  2. If so, when?
  3. If so, how?
  4. If so, how do you summarize the community’s assessment?
  1. The Annual Conference makes available the extensive demographic research findings of Mission Insite (MI, Have you used Mission Insite? ____. Whether you have used MI or not, please briefly describe to what extent you (your church) clearly and thoroughly know(s) the demographics, lifestyle preferences, and community realities of the people and people groups in your mission field.
  1. Whatactions have you completed to help your people become more open and accepting of people who are more diverse economically, racially, culturally, etc., and who are younger than the current participants in your church?
  1. In what ways have you engaged your congregation with the ministries and mission of the District and the Annual Conference, including “Missional Areas”?
  1. In what ways are you serving the District and the Annual Conference, including “Missional Areas”?
  1. Statistical Review: (year-to-date plus the previous five years)

Year / Professions of Faith / Weekly Worship Average / How many are involved in Discipleship Groups each week? / Apportionment % Paid that Year / Number of People Involved in Hands-On Mission
2016 to Date
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
  1. What trends do you see in the statistics above?
  1. How do you account for these trends? (Describe what is going on that results in the trends you have named.)
  1. How do the trends affect the priorities of the church in the coming year (such as strategies of ministry, personnel/staffing, facilities, budgeting, or other priorities as determined by the Church Council, the S/PPRC, or other leadership groups)?
  1. How do the trends affect your own priorities?(such as learning, training, leadership strategies, worship design, preaching, teaching, etc.)
  1. What numerical goals for next year have you/your church projected for increased fruitfulness in the 5 areas named in the Statistical Review above? Place them in the table below:

Projected Outcomes—for Next Calendar Year

Number of Professions of Faith / Weekly Worship Average / Number involved in Discipleship Groups each week? / Apportionment % Projected / Number of People Involved in Hands-On Mission?
  1. Local Church Financial Health Questions (Note—this set of questions is the same on both the Local Church Profile and the Pastor Profile. Both the pastor and the S/PPRC should know and discuss the answers to these questions.):
  2. What action plan does the church have to pay the apportionments in full this year? __ Budgeted __ Other—please name or explain: ______
  1. Are the expenses of the General Fund greater than the giving to the General Fund? [If “yes,”answer the following questions]
  2. What is the amount over?
  3. How did the church make up this shortfall?
  1. Is the church in debt? [If “yes,” answer the following questions]
  1. How much is the debt?
  2. What percentage of the church budget is the debt payment?
  3. What is the payment schedule?
  4. How long until the debt is scheduled to be paid off?
  1. Did you draw from reserve funds this year? [If “yes,” answer the following questions]
  1. How much was drawn from reserves?
  2. Are these reserves to be used only for emergencies (typically capital expenses) or may they used to supplement the regular expenses of ministry (general fund expenses)?
  3. Were these funds used to pay general fund or capital expenses?
  4. How much does the church have in reserved funds?
  1. Does the church receive income from endowments, investments, oil and gas royalties and/or rental properties? [If “yes,” answer the following questions]
  1. Is this income restricted for a particular purpose or unrestricted and available for general use?
  2. How much income was received from such restricted funds?
  3. How much income was received from such unrestricted funds?

f. What percentage of last year’s expenditureswas spent on total staff salaries, wages,and benefits (clergy and lay)?

g. Does the church anticipate that it can sustain the current compensation of its appointed pastor(s) for the appointment year beginning next June? [If “No,” answer the following questions.]

  1. If the compensation(s) cannot be sustained what amount of salary can the church sustain? (Refer to the “Total Paid by Local Church” line on the official OKUMC compensation form.)
  2. If the church has an appointed associate pastor(s) does the church plan to continue this position(s) for the appointment year beginning next June?
  3. If your church is receiving Equitable Compensation funds, what is the plan to reduce and/or end the reception of such funds?
  1. Please name the location of your church on its current lifecycle per the diagram below: ______. (Birth/Infancy, Growth, Maturity, Plateau, Decline, Drop Out/Rapid Decline, Death/Near The End)
  1. Going beyond countable trends to describable fruit, pleasebriefly summarizefour (4) storiesthat describe how the ministry or missional outreach of your church has resulted in high impact transformation in the lives of persons, families, the community, or with regard to some aspect of social justice.
  1. What advances or changes have you and your church accomplished in the past 12 months resulting in new or substantially redesigned ministries, organization, practices, etc.?
  1. Knowing that our mission is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world, what are the specific measurable, describable differences that you discern God is calling you to makeduring your tenure in this appointment:
  2. in your mission field?
  3. inyourlocal church?
  4. in your leadership practice?
  1. In what ways are you leading your congregation in the area of generosity?
  1. Name your best ministry gifts and skills?
  1. Name areas of ministry in which you need to increase your effectiveness.
  1. What Continued Education/Formation did you complete, when, and how have you applied what you learned?
  1. What strategy do you have for increasing your effectiveness as a servant-leader-strategist through Continued Education/Formation?
  1. What role do you need the Superintendent to play in the life of your church this next year?
  1. Have you done anything in the performance of your ministerial function this past year that, in your opinion, or in the opinion of another, could lead to a complaint or charges being filed against you?
  1. Are there special needs in your family that you need to share with the Cabinet?
  1. What would you like to communicate to the Cabinet concerning your future appointment?

(Please affix your signature either digitally by pasting it below as a picture or text box that contains your signature or/and manually by signing this at your annual consultation.)

Clergy Digital Signature:

Date: ______

Clergy Manual Signature ______

Date: ______

By your signature, you agree that the information provided is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge.

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