Pastor – Pre-teens (Years 7 & 8)

Who we are
LifeSwitch (based in the Hutt Valley) exists to connect people to God. We believe that every life is better when Jesus is at the centre.  We are absolutely committed to looking beyond ourselves and are driven to take the message of Jesus into spaces. places and people where it hasn’t been before.  We unapologetically are outward focused with the vision of being a church unchurched people love to engage with. This focus, more than anything else distinguishes us from other churches.

The Role
We have an exciting new opportunity for a fulltime Pastor for Pre-Teens (Years 7&8) to join our Next-Gen staff team.  This role exists to lead pre-teens to connect with God and grow in their relationship with Him.

We see the pre-teen age group as a key age group to be investing in. Youth of this age are at the stage where they are asking big questions, they are looking for a safe place outside of school & home and are able to have a huge impact on those around them.  We also have some incredible outreach opportunities available to us in the coming year for this age group and having a great leader overseeing this ministry will enable us to reach and connect with as many pre-teens as possible and help disciple those who are engaged with us.

(We are open to negotiate on less hours for the right applicant if that is their preference)

The Team
You will be joining a cohesive, focused and stable staff team who operate with a high trust model. While everyone has individual responsibilities we work as a team and define our success by what we achieve. We value hunger (a strong work ethic), humility (we before me) and smarts (people smarts, EQ) because we know people with these traits are strong team players.

Our preferred applicant will be someone who is:

• Committed to their own faith journey and spiritual growth
• A passionate believer of the LifeSwitch mission and vision
• Living and breathing our values internally and externally
• Passionate about seeing pre-teens find and develop faith
• A natural people person who connects with people with warmth and humble confidence
• A believer in the potential that resides in every 11-13 year old;
• Comfortable working in a Next Gen team,
• Able to connect with those in all those age groups,
• An advocate for the unchurched.

Our preferred applicant will have:

• proven experience in connecting with and bringing positive change in young people
• a passion to reach those who are far from God
• strong presentation and facilitation skills
• experience in leading, supporting, encouraging and engaging volunteers
• a willingness and desire to learn
• a proactive/entrepreneurial streak
• Humility that is evidenced by a willingness to emphasise team over self, defining success collectively rather than individually and a lack of excessive ego
• A hunger to look for more – more things to do, more to learn, more responsibility. Plus a mindset that is consistently thinking about the next step and next opportunity
• High emotional intelligence, good intuition around the subtleties of group dynamics and strong conflict management skills
• A proactive/entrepreneurial streak
• A self starting, self motivation and diligent work ethic

What we offer

• The opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of the Next Generation and their whānau
• The opportunity to use your working hours to make a significant difference and find real purpose in what you do
• Already established outreach opportunities
• A church that is committed to its core to Next Gen ministry
• A supportive environment for professional and spiritual growth
• Competitive salary and flexible working conditions

If this sounds like you, we would love to hear from you.  Please email info@lifeswitch.org.nz for an information pack including the job description, after which you can apply by submitting your CV and cover letter.

Applications close 5pm 31 January 2025.

Applicants must have NZ residency or a current valid NZ work visa and be currently residing in New Zealand.

The successful applicant will be required to undertake successful Police vetting and meet the requirements of our safeguarding policy.