Elder Nominations

The time has come once again for elder nominations as a church family. I want to take a few moments of your time to present the role of elder in the local church and the process we use in adding elders to our leadership team.

Trinity Church is an elder led local church. The congregation must approve each elder by a congregational vote during our annual meeting each year at the end of August. Each elders term is three years and they may serve two consecutive terms. The elder chairman is an exception, his term is for one year and he may serve four consecutive terms. As leaders we believe it is good to have a rotation of new men as part of our elder team and yet still recognize the value of having consistency in leadership. We believe this system provides for both.

The qualifications for elder in the local church are addressed in both 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9.  These descriptions go to the character of the individual who assumes the role of elder in the local church. Biblical qualifications have less to do with age, and more to do with Christ-like character. The role of elders in the New Testament is focused on oversight, leadership within the church and movingthe church in the mission of Jesus. At Trinity Church, we ask our elders to provide direction and oversight while entrusting ministry teams to accomplish the tasks of ministry. It is the elders who hold one another, the staff, and ministry teams accountable and focused in helping our church head in a unified direction of making disciples.

The name, “elder” itself can sometimes be misleading. In our culture, in order to be considered an “elderly” person one must be well advanced in years (for lack of a more politically correct way to say it). The New Testament uses multiple terms, “pastors” or “bishops” or “overseers” to indicate the role and function of elders in the local church. As you look to people you know to nominate think more of character than age.

One new thing that we have implemented over the last year is inviting a prospective elder to sit with our board. This experience has proven to be a valuable process for both the elder team and the individual observing the board. Due to the value added in this process, our plan for this next ministry year is to invite up to two potential elders to sit with the board for a year before asking them to become elders.

You can click here if you would like to view our current elder team or contact any of them. We look forward to answering any questions you may have about our elder team, the elder selection process, or anything else you might be wondering about.