A Mission Study is a season of discernment churches undergo when they are in a season of pastoral transition. It's a several month-long process of self study, led by our own people and guided by an outside consultant, that helps us discover our identity as a church body. It's a process that invites us to discern the movement of the Holy Spirit in our midst so that we can be the people and the church God needs us to be in the community of San Clemente.

A Mission Study is a requirement by the Presbytery (our regional governing body) for any church that is in pastoral transition. After this season of listening, learning, and discerning, the Mission Study Team will produce a report that essentially says "This is who SCPC is at this point in time." This report will then help us in our discernment of selecting our next permanent pastor.

The team includes: Jim Hawkes, Casey Comeau, Mike Bautista, Sharon Davidson, Tracy Huiberts, Molly Kempson, Mike Nicolai, Carolyn Peters, and John Ko.

The members of the MST were brought to our Nominating Committee through nominations and recommendations of the congregation. The Nominating Committee selected the final members who were then confirmed by the Session. The MST is a sub-committee of the Session.

AE Sloan Leadership is the consulting company leading us through this process. Interestingly, the company is named after two long-time members and saints of our church - Al & Enid Sloan who have since passed away. The Session looked at several consulting options, but AE Sloan was chosen for their superior methodology and healthy reputation in their work with churches, universities, and faith organizations.

Tod was the pastor at SCPC from 1997 - 2014. He is also the founder of AE Sloan Leadership. Although Tod continues to care deeply about the SCPC community and its future success, he will not be directly involved in our account with AE Sloan. Rather, our consultants will be Erin Zillner and Craig Williams. (Craig is also a transitional pastor in our presbytery and a long time friend of SCPC who coaches for AE Sloan on occasion.) You can learn more about AE Sloan at www.aesloanleadership.com

Yes. Jesse is definitely our pastor, but he is technically our "transitional pastor" since our last installed head pastor resigned two years ago. Jesse will serve faithfully as our head pastor until God reveals (through this process) who will be our next "permanent pastor".

Yes. As the transitional pastor (or interim pastor), he can apply for the permanent position and currently plans to do so. The final decision of who our next pastor will be the sole decision of the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) that you will elect. This is a committee made up of members of our church. This committee has not yet been selected. That will not happen for several more months until the Mission Study is further along.

It's hard to say as we really are trying to heed the voice and pace of the Holy Spirit. Some Mission Studies take six months. Others can take close to two years. Regardless of the timeline, we want you to know that even in this season of transition, we are growing, changing, innovating, and trusting our God who has proved faithful here for decades.

First, stay engaged! Read the updates from Pastor Jesse, the Mission Study Team, and the leadership in general. Ask questions if you have them. Sign up for a Focus Group. Share your stories.

Second, pray with us and for us! Pray that God will continue to reveal His will for this church. That we will seek to serve God's will above all else so that He alone is glorified.