Monthly Call Committee Sunday Forums are available to stream on our YouTube channel.
The Call Committee has been hard at work excitedly, optimistically, and prayerfully preparing for the search for our next Senior Pastor. The items on this page should help inform about the call process, answer your questions, and serve as a venue for feedback.
WHAT IS A CALL COMMITTEE?
A call committee is a group of congregation members charged with promoting Christ the King and the city of Houston with the goal of attracting a strong pool of candidates for our next Senior Pastor. Working with the Synod, the Committee will use a broad network of connections to advertise, screen, interview, and recommend candidates for our next Senior Pastor to the Congregation Council.
WHAT IS THE CALL COMMITTEE PROCESS?
The Call process is prescribed and guided by the ELCA Synod leadership. It is divided up into several stages:
- Organizational Period – (May – June 2022)
- Preparation of the Ministry Site Profile – This is essentially a recruiting profile for the position of Senior Pastor and it will be used to solicit candidates
- In response to the ministry site profile, rostered ministers will submit their rostered minister profile to the Synod and Synod leadership will screen the candidates for suitability
- Waiting Period – when the Committee waits on God through the Synod to send candidates for review
- Interviewing of Candidates
- Selection of Final Candidate for consideration by the Congregation Council who will present the candidate to the congregation for approval
For more resources on the Call Process in the ELCA, please visit the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod website, or view a brief video about the Call Process presented by our Synod advisor, The Rev. Tracey Breashears Schultz.
MINISTRY SITE PROFILE OF CHRIST THE KING
Click here to view our Ministry Site Profile and to see what potential candidates will see.
WHO IS ON THE CALL COMMITTEE FOR SENIOR PASTOR?
VOTING MEMBERS:
Victoria Allen is a senior at Bellaire High School. Victoria joined Christ the King in 2005 when she was only a few months old. She was baptized and confirmed at Christ the King. Victoria was an active worship enabler from 2014 through 2019, serving as an acolyte on a regular basis. Victoria is involved with the Luther League and has attended almost all of the travel trips and lock-ins, as well as many other youth events. She also volunteered with Camp Hope in its inaugural summer at Christ the King in 2019. Most summers, you will find her at Camp Lutherhill!
Email Victoria: victoriallen05@gmail.com
Jill Bailer joined Christ the King in 1980 and was immediately placed on the Altar Guild. She served 10 years before being elected to the Congregation Council where she served as Worship Commission chair and vice president. She is currently serving as an usher, president of the Altar Guild, and a member of the Piecemakers. She is a retired middle school science teacher but continues to teach preservice teachers at the University of Houston. She volunteers at Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens and the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.
Email Jill: jbailer@earthlink.net
Anne Clutterbuck joined Christ the King 10 years ago after being a long-time visitor and falling in love with the message of LOVE at the church. She serves as a worship assistant at the 11 am Sunday and Saturday Taize services at the Rice campus and is a member of the CTK Foundation. Anne was a member of the Houston City Council for 3 terms and represented the southwest Houston community. She currently serves on boards in the medical field including Community Health Choice. Anne and her husband John have two adult children, Caroline (29 in Austin) and William (26 in Washington, D.C.), and two dogs that take up all the remaining space in their empty nest.
Email Anne: anne.clutterbuck@outlook.com
Kathy Collins, and her husband Bill Mintz, have been members of Christ the King (CTK) since 1996. Kathy served on the CTK budget committee, was a board member of the Bach Society and currently serves as a board member of the CTK Foundation and Campus Lutheran Ministry. She was treasurer for the Texas Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod from 2016 to 2020. Kathy graduated from Mount Holyoke College, where she has been a trustee since July 2013. She has worked in budget and finance at Rice University since 1995.
Email Kathy: KECollins52@gmail.com
Henry Goodrow is a technology professional at Microsoft Corporation where he works with Fortune 50 customers to adopt cloud computing. Henry and his wife Alicia are long-time members of Christ the King Lutheran Church. Henry joined CTK in 1997 and has served as a Bell Ringer and advisor on many technology matters. Henry is active in Freewheels Houston and Houston Foodbank ministries. Henry is also a member of the newly formed CTK Technology Committee. Henry and Alicia have two children: Haley (21) attending Wellesley College, and Zachary (20) attending McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin.
Email Henry: henry.goodrow@outlook.com
Andrea Salas has worked as a veterinary assistant for the past 5 years at Westbury Animal Hospital and is now starting a new position in the same clinic that as yet doesn’t have an official title. She alternates between helping to run the pharmacy, creating financial estimates, scheduling surgical procedures, and acting as a liaison between the customer service representatives in the front of the clinic and the doctors, technicians, and assistants in the treatment area. Andrea has been a member of Christ the King since she was born and has been involved in various programs, including first the Children’s Choir, then the Youth Choir, and ultimately the Chorus; the Luther League, first as a member and then as an occasional leader; and the Call Committee that was put together to hire a new Youth and Family Minister and that ultimately hired Ben Remmert for that position.
Email Andrea: andi11235@yahoo.com
EX-OFFICIO:
Amandus Derr (See profile master list)
Email Pr. Mandy: Amandus.derr@gmail.com
Theresa Koehler (See profile master list)
Email Theresa: Theresa.M.Koehler@uth.tmc.edu
NON-VOTING PARTICIPANTS:
Quentin Adams is an engineer in the chemical manufacturing industry. Quentin and his wife Whitney have been members at Christ The King Lutheran Church for 6 years. Quentin has an 8 month old son, who was just recently baptized in May. He has served as an usher and actively participates in the Young Adult Professional group.
Email Quentin: adamsq10@gmail.com
Nathan Wiker is a chemical engineer from South Carolina who has moved into the business side of the plastics industry. Nathan, with his wife Wendy, moved to Houston and joined Christ the King in 2004 and has boomeranged back twice after moving away. Nathan has served on the Houston Lutheran Campus Ministry Council and Call Committee, participated in choir, co-led the Feed the Homeless ministry with Wendy, and most recently serves on the Nominating Committee and as the Church Representative for CCSC. He also currently is a Board Member of CCSC.
Email Nathan: nathan@wikernet.com
Emily Winesett is a sophomore at Heights High School. She was baptized and confirmed at Christ the King. She is an active Luther League member and often serves as an acolyte. She also enjoys spending time at Lutherhill in the summer.
Email Emily: emilywinesett@gmail.com
HOW WERE THE CALL COMMITTEE MEMBERS SELECTED?
The Call Committee for Christ the King was established pursuant to the congregation constitution of Christ the King:
C13.03. When a pastoral vacancy occurs, a Call Committee of six voting members may be appointed by the Church Council of this congregation. Term of office will terminate upon installation of the newly called pastor.
Members were selected by the Congregation Council (the Congregation’s governing body) to reflect a broad cross section of church membership. Three Non-voting Participants and two Ex Officio Participants also serve on the Committee and will interview candidates and share the full obligations of the committee process. In the event that one of the voting members of the Committee is no longer able to serve, one of the Non-voting Participants will be moved to a voting member position.
HOW MAY I PARTICIPATE IN THE CALL PROCESS?
The Call Committee needs your prayers and input
- Please join in praying for the church, for the Call Committee Members, for the Call process, and for the next Senior Pastor that God has for CTK. Ask God to prepare our hearts and provide us with wisdom and patience; ask that the Holy Spirit grant us a spirit of surprise and open mindedness as we anticipate the fullness of God’s grace and promise for Christ the King
- Contact the Call Committee by email individually or at Call@ctkelc.org
- Drop a suggestion in the suggestion box in the Narthex
- Seek out the Call Committee Members at church – they wear special name tags and can be spotted at most church activities; Committee Members debrief on feedback and share the input at each meeting
- Submit an anonymous comment here
- Attend and participate in the Sunday Forums that will be held on the 3rd Sunday of every month throughout the process at each campus, beginning in September – notice of the dates and times will appear in the weekly church email
- Volunteer to be part of the church video being prepared by the Call Committee
- Direct prospective candidates to the Synod or the Call Committee so they can submit their Rostered Minister Profile (RMP) for consideration
HOW WILL THE CALL COMMITTEE RECEIVE CANDIDATE NAMES?
The Call Committee is committed to casting a wide net and conducting a global churchwide search for candidates. Outreach activities include personal calls and notifications through the broad network of ELCA contacts and connections, and advertising in The Christian Century Magazine.
Candidates for consideration may arise from three sources:
- People in the congregation may nominate candidates. Nominations from congregation members must be submitted to the Call Committee who will then forward them to the bishop’s office. Tracey Breashears Schultz, the Bishop’s Associate for Leadership will then contact the bishop of the nominated pastor/leader for a reference check. If approved by both bishops, then Bishop Associate Schultz will contact the nominee to determine their level of interest. If the nominee is interested, then they must submit a Rostered Minister Profile (RMP) to the Synod. Please email the Call Committee to submit the name of a candidate for consideration. In order to nominate someone, you will be asked to complete a brief form for submission to the Call Committee to explain why you think this person would be a good fit for us.
- Pastors/leaders may express an interest. Interested Pastors may contact Tracey Breashears Schultz, the Bishop’s Associate for Leadership at the Synod. They will then need to submit an RMP in order to be considered. In addition to rostered ministers from the ELCA, submissions may come from any rostered minister from any of our full communion partners, including: the Episcopal Church, United Methodist Church, Moravian Church, Presbyterian Church USA, Reformed Church in America, United Church of Christ and the Lutheran World Federation.
- Church Wide Database. Most of the candidates will come from the ELCA churchwide database of all rostered leaders who are presently seeking a call and have submitted an RMP. The goal of the office of the bishop is to provide well matched candidates to the Call Committee for each round of interviews.
Please understand the Committee’s need for confidentiality once the screening of candidates has begun. Please do not ask who is being interviewed, where the candidates are from, or any other identifying information that may compromise the confidentiality of the process for CTK or the candidates.
MONTHLY UPDATES
Call Committee Update, August 2022
The Call Committee has been hard at work excitedly, optimistically, and prayerfully preparing for the search for our next Senior Pastor. Members were selected by the Congregation Council in May and began the work of the call process in early June. The Committee was formally installed on June 26th. Much of the early activity of the Committee has involved talking with Tracey Breashears Schultz our Synod representative to understand the call process and working on the job description which will draw heavily from the Strategic Plan. The Committee has met frequently throughout the summer. Each member has a strong sense of urgency and is committed to a thorough process and a comprehensive, robust search. Look for us at church events – where we will be wearing Call Committee nametags. We are ready and eager to hear your thoughts and receive your input.
The Committee will meet with the congregation at Sunday Forums at each campus on the third Sunday of every month beginning in September. Updates will be provided in the Banner and on the Call Committee Webpage. For more information on the Call Committee members, the work of the Call Committee and answers to your questions, please visit the Call Committee Webpage.
Please join us in asking God to prepare our hearts and provide us with wisdom and patience; ask that the Holy Spirit grant us a spirit of surprise and open mindedness as we anticipate the fullness of God’s grace and promise for Christ the King as our next Senior Pastor is revealed.
SCRIPTURAL GUIDANCE
The Following Words from Scripture, the Augsburg Confession and Martin Luther may guide the Congregation’s and the Call Committee’s prayers, work, and process:
All baptized Christians are called to share in Christ’s ministry of love and service in the world, to the glory of God and for the sake of the human family and the whole creation. According to apostolic usage you are now to be entrusted with the office of word and sacrament in the one holy catholic church by the laying on of hands and by prayer.
A reading from John: Jesus said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you. Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (John 20:21-23)
A reading from Matthew: Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
A reading from First Corinthians: I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26) (cf. Occasional Services for the Assembly, Ordination to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament.)
Beloved, because Christ Jesus has made me his own… this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you. Only let us hold fast to what we have attained. (Philippians 3: 12c, 13-16).
(cf. June 26, 2022 CTK service bulletin, Installation of the Call Committee)
Article V [The Officer of the Ministry]
To obtain such faith(*) God instituted the office of the ministry, that is, provided the Gospel and the sacraments. Through these, as through instruments, the Holy Spirit is given, and the Holy Spirit produces faith when and where God pleases, in those who hear the Gospel. This is to say, it is not on account of our own merits, but on account of Christ that God justifies that they are received into favor for Christ’s sake. “That we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:14) (Unaltered Augsburg Confession, 1530)
Article IV of the Augsburg Confession, often labeled “the article by which the church stands or falls,” defines “such faith” this way: “ Our churches also teach that human beings cannot be justified before God by their own strength, merits, or works, but are freely justified for
Christ’s sake, through faith, when they believe that they are received into favor, and that their sins are forgiven for Christ’s sake, who, by his death, has made satisfaction for our sins. This faith God imputes as righteousness in God’s sight.” (Romans 3,4)
Martin Luther urged all pastors to pray:
O Lord God, Father in heaven, I am, indeed, unworthy of the office and ministry in which I am to make known your glory and to nurture and serve this congregation.
But since you have appointed me to be a pastor and teacher, and the people are in need of the teachings and instructions, be my helper and let your holy angels attend me.
Then, if you are pleased to accomplish anything through me to your glory and not to me or for the popular praise, grant me, out of your pure grace and mercy, a right understanding of your Word, that I may diligently perform it.
O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, send your Holy Spirit to work with me and in me to will and to do all through your divine strength and according to your good pleasure. Amen. (cf. Luther’s Sacristy Prayer).
Jeremiah 29:11, ”For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”
Acts 2:39-40, ”The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
1 John 3:1, ”See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God, and that is what we are.”
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why are there no members of the West campus on the committee?
The Membership of the West Campus has expressed their confidence and trust in the makeup and work of the CTK Call Committee.
How often does the Call Committee meet?
The Committee began the work of the process in early June 2022. Each member has a strong sense of urgency but wants to be thoughtful and thorough in the process. To get going quickly, the Committee has met more than weekly during the summer. The Committee plans to adopt a regular cadence of meetings as a group on a bi-weekly basis and will move to more frequent meetings when the interview process begins. The Committee will meet with the congregation at the Sunday Adult Forums at each campus on the third Sunday of every month beginning in September.
When do we plan to install our new Senior Pastor?
We don’t know when the Call Process will be complete. The Committee asks for your prayers and patience as we wait in excited anticipation for the person God has for us.
For your consideration, Tracey Breashears Schultz has provided a thoughtful piece on God’s time: A Lesson in Kairos.
How will the congregation be updated on the Call Process?
Updates will be provided and feedback received at the Sunday Forum on the third Sunday of every month beginning in September. Look for updates in the Banner, in the weekly email newsletter, and on this webpage under the Monthly Update heading.