Middle School (Jr High) Pastor

POSITION OBJECTIVE

To pastor, disciple, connect, and develop the 6th–8th grade students of Creative Church, creating a strong bridge between Creative Kids and Youth Ministry during some of the most formative years of a student's life.

The Middle School Pastor will help students become deeply rooted in Jesus, Scripture, prayer, worship, relationships, serving, and the local church—while also becoming a trusted resource and ministry partner for their parents.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

The Middle School Pastor will work alongside the Youth Pastor and in partnership with both Creative Kids and Youth Ministry to ensure middle school students are personally known, spiritually growing, relationally connected, and excited to be at church.

This is designed as Part-time, but could develop into Full-time.

This person should genuinely love middle schoolers.

They should understand their humor, culture, interests, pressures, friendships, and challenges while possessing the spiritual maturity to disciple them rather than simply entertain them.

The goal is for every middle school student at Creative Church to know:

“There is someone at my church who knows me, cares about me, believes in me, and is helping me follow Jesus.”

QUALIFICATIONS

SPIRITUAL

The Middle School Pastor must:

• Have a clear testimony of faith in Jesus Christ and a growing relationship with Him.
• Be deeply rooted in Scripture and committed to sound biblical doctrine.
• Maintain a consistent personal prayer life and put prayer first in ministry.
• Demonstrate a genuine love for worship and the presence of God.
• Be committed to personal holiness, integrity, and biblical Christian living.
• Have a personal desire to continue growing through discipleship, Scripture, prayer, and accountability.
• Be committed to the mission, vision, doctrine, culture, and leadership of Creative Church.

PERSONAL

The Middle School Pastor should be:

• Relational, personable, energetic, and approachable.
• Relevant and able to genuinely connect with today's middle school generation.
• Fun without sacrificing spiritual depth.
• Patient and a strong listener.
• Emotionally mature and trustworthy.
• Organized and dependable.
• Comfortable communicating with both students and adults.
• Able to teach Scripture clearly and engagingly.
• Able to lead both small groups and larger gatherings.
• A strong team player who works well under the leadership of the Youth Pastor.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. PASTOR & DISCIPLE MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS

Develop meaningful relationships with 6th–8th grade students.

• Personally know and connect with students.
• Meet appropriately with students for discipleship and spiritual development within church safeguarding policies.
• Pray with students.
• Teach them how to read and understand Scripture.
• Encourage Bible memorization.
• Develop their prayer lives.
• Help them grow in worship.
• Challenge them to serve in the house of God.
• Help students discover gifts and leadership potential.
• Follow up with students who are new, inconsistent, struggling, or disconnected.

The goal is not simply middle school attendance—it is middle school discipleship.

2. CREATE A CHURCH THEY WANT TO ATTEND

Help create an environment where middle schoolers genuinely look forward to coming to Creative Church every week.

Work with the Youth Pastor and ministry teams to create:

• Strong Sunday experiences
• Strong Wednesday-night experiences
• Small groups
• Games and activities
• Relational moments
• Spiritual experiences
• Age-appropriate teaching
• Opportunities to worship, pray, serve, and lead

Middle school students should feel that Creative Church is their church, not simply the church their parents bring them to.

3. SUNDAY & WEDNESDAY MINISTRY

Sunday and Wednesday will be the primary recurring ministry environments for this position.

The Middle School Pastor will:

• Prepare for each week's ministry.
• Be present and engaged before, during, and after services.
• Personally connect with students.
• Identify and welcome new students.
• Teach or facilitate as assigned.
• Lead prayer and spiritual moments.
• Develop and oversee middle school leaders.
• Follow up with students after significant ministry moments.
• Work alongside Youth and Kids leadership to create continuity between ministries.

4. CONNECTION EVENTS

Create regular opportunities for middle school students to build relationships outside normal services.

Events should intentionally help students:

Make friends → Build relationships → Love church → Encounter Jesus → Grow spiritually.

5. PARENT PARTNERSHIP

Build strong relationships with parents of middle school students.

6. CARE FOR STUDENTS THROUGH DIFFICULT SEASONS

7. BUILD A MIDDLE SCHOOL TEAM

BRIDGE BETWEEN KIDS & YOUTH

One of the most important responsibilities of this position is creating a healthy transition between childhood and adolescence.

The Middle School Pastor will work with Kids and Youth leadership to:

• Prepare 5th graders to transition into middle school ministry.
• Help 6th graders establish relationships quickly.
• Help 8th graders transition successfully into high school ministry.
• Prevent students from disappearing during ministry transitions.
• Share appropriate information between ministry teams.
• Build relationships with families before transition points occur.

No student should fall through the cracks simply because they aged out of one ministry and into another.

SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Middle school students should measurably grow in:

• Bible knowledge
• Bible reading
• Scripture memorization
• Prayer
• Worship
• Understanding the Gospel
• Biblical identity
• Christian friendships
• Serving
• Generosity
• Sharing their faith
• Church attendance
• Personal discipleship

The Middle School Pastor should continually evaluate whether students are simply attending or actually growing.

MEASURABLE MINISTRY FRUIT

The Middle School Pastor should track and regularly report:

• Weekly middle school attendance
• First-time students
• Second and third visits
• Students participating in groups
• Students serving
• Students engaged in Bible memorization
• Salvations and baptisms
• Students personally discipled
• Students receiving pastoral follow-up
• Parent connections
• Connection-event attendance
• New leaders recruited
• Leaders developed
• Students transitioning successfully between Kids and Youth
• Testimonies of spiritual growth and life change

Success is not only measured by how many students follow the Middle School Pastor, but by how many students are learning to follow Jesus and help others follow Him.

SCHEDULE & AVAILABILITY

This position may be structured as part-time or full-time depending on the candidate, responsibilities, and ministry needs.

Regular ministry commitments will include:

• Sundays
• Wednesday evenings
• Weekly preparation and follow-up
• Student and parent meetings
• Team development
• Periodic evening and weekend events

Because student ministry occurs when students are available, this position requires flexibility for occasional evenings, weekends, special events, retreats, and ministry opportunities.

THE WIN

The Middle School Pastor is succeeding when:

• Middle schoolers want to come to church.
• New students quickly make friends and return.
• Students know they are personally cared for.
• Students are reading and memorizing Scripture.
• Students are learning to pray and worship.
• Students are serving in the church.
• Students have trusted Christian leaders in their lives.
• Parents feel known, supported, and confident in the ministry.
• Students receive pastoral care during difficult seasons.
• Students transition successfully from Kids to Youth.
• Leaders are being multiplied.
• Attendance and spiritual engagement are growing.

Ultimately, the goal is to help raise a generation of middle school students who are anchored in Jesus, anchored in Scripture, anchored in healthy relationships, and planted in the house of God.