Pastor Keith Tillman Retires 

Pastor Keith and Vicki have come to this decision after prayerful consideration and sensing the Lord’s leading into a new season of life and ministry.

We celebrate his faithfulness and trust God’s timing.

Reasons for retirement are three-fold:
1. God has released Pastor Keith of his shepherding of BCBC and is leading him towards other ministries. What they are exactly, He does not know yet, but he does know that he will teach and serve Christ until He takes him home.
2. His health issues have caused distractions in his shepherding on several occasions. His doctor suggested to him to “slow down” several years ago, and he is just now listening to his advice.
3. Family responsibilities. Things are changing quickly in his family, and the recent sickness with his father confirms his decision.

After retirement, Pastor Keith and Vicki will step away from regular involvement to allow the next pastor to lead effectively.
Their desire would be to come back after some time, if that is in the Lord’s plan.

Short Term: A temporary Transition Team has been created to represent the church body as a whole and consists of respected members from different areas of church leadership. Brent Hodson will represent the elders; Scott Capps will represent the deacons; Tim Petree will represent the church staff; and Tony Soto will represent the lay members of the church.

It is important to understand that this transition team is temporary in nature and will not select the next pastor. Rather, the purpose of the Transition Team is to help guide the church through the early stages of this transition.

Long Term: An Interim Pastor will be selected and voted on to lead BCBC through the selection process of the Pastor Search Team and play an integral part of calling the new pastor of BCBC.

An Intentional Interim Pastor is a pastor who has received specialized training to help churches navigate the period between pastors. His role is much more than simply filling the pulpit. He works alongside the church to provide stability, encourage spiritual growth, and help prepare the congregation for the successful calling of its next permanent pastor.

Our desire is to seek God's will with wisdom, prayer, and unity rather than rushing through the process of calling our next pastor. We believe taking this approach will better prepare both the church and our future pastor for a healthy and successful ministry together.
An Intentional Interim Pastor can help us by:

• Faithfully preaching and teaching God's Word each week.
• Providing pastoral leadership and shepherding the congregation during this season of transition.
• Helping maintain the spiritual health, unity, and stability of the church.
• Guiding us through a thoughtful and biblically grounded transition process.
• Helping prepare the church for the pastoral search by providing counsel on the process, assisting in identifying the qualities we should seek in our next pastor, and offering guidance as the church forms a search committee.

We are seeking a man who will:

• Faithfully preach and teach God's Word.
• Shepherd and encourage our congregation during this time of transition.
• Promote unity and strengthen the spiritual health of the church.
• Guide us through a healthy and biblically faithful transition process.
• Help prepare our church for the search for our next pastor by offering wisdom and counsel throughout the process.

Lead with humility, wisdom, and a servant's heart.

A Pastor Search Committee will be formed to lead the search process.
They will pray, evaluate candidates, and eventually present a candidate to the church.

We will share clear qualifications for committee members and a nomination/application process in the future.
The goal is to form a team that reflects spiritual maturity, unity, and wisdom.

Pastor searches typically take several months to a year or more.
We are committed to seeking God’s direction rather than rushing the process.

Yes. There will be opportunities for input through surveys and listening sessions.
Ultimately, the members will affirm the final candidate according to our church’s Congregationalist governance.

Updates will be shared through Sunday service announcements, email, letters, this web page, and special members meetings.
We are committed to keeping members informed throughout the process.

You can reach out to any member of the Transition Team. We want to hear from you and walk through this together.

Brent Hodson, brent.hodson@bcbcpowell.org 
Tim Petree, tim.petree@bcbcpowell.org
Scott Capps, scapps175@gmail.com 
Tony Soto, tsoto5858@gmail.com