Hello Milliken Wesleyan Methodist Church Brothers and Sisters!
I hope and pray that life finds you well. This is a very exciting time in the life of our church as Pastor Edward Jjumba will be preaching a Call next Sunday followed by a ‘meet and greet’. After the call, we hope to have a congregational vote for this Senior Pastor candidate the following week:
Sunday, February 13, 2022 at 10:00 am
The Call with Pastor Edward Jjumba preaching
The Meet and Greet
Sunday, February 13, 2022 at 11:00 am
Meet and Greet with the Jjumba family and MWMC family
The Pastoral Vote
February, 14 – 17, 2022
electronic and in-person Pastoral Vote
Frequently Asked Questions
1. “Wow that was sudden! How did we get to this point in the life of our church?”
Prayer, acting in faith, and more prayer – and now God is answering our prayers. Here’s a synopsis of the Search Committee activities to date:
- March 2020 to present – COVID restrictions added complexities and delays to the search process.
- May 2020 – Pastor George resigns. Search Committee (SC) begins the process for a new Senior Pastor
- September 2020 – several applications were received, vetted, interviews were conducted, but no ‘fit’ was found as we listened to discern God’s voice.
- November 2020 – Church wide survey was administered resulting in a list of desired Senior Pastor characteristics and an interim church vision: A Christ-centred church growing outward and growing younger – first coined by our friend the late George Dukhilall
- April 2021 – New SC generated a new job posting armed with a new vision and desired senior pastor characteristics from the survey
- June 2021 – re-posted new job description, and began collecting applications
- Fall 2021 – received applications and Interviewed a few candidates including Pastor Edward Jjumba
- December 2021 – held a 2nd interview with Pastor Edward Jjumba. Pastor Jjumba met all the Senior Pastor characteristics, and was a good ‘fit’ with respect to the church’s vision. We were definitely hearing from God regarding Pastor Eddie AND he was hearing from God as well.
- January 2022 – SC recommended Pastor Edward Jjumba to the Local Board of Administration (LBA) for MWMC Senior Pastor. Pastor Jjumba met with Dr. Eric Hallet (Central Canada District Superintendent) as well as the LBA, and reference checks all came back positive.
- Thursday, February 3, 2022 – LBA voted to recommend Pastor Edward Jjumba to the Local Church Conference (LCC) for the position of MWMC Senior Pastor.
- Sunday, February 13, 2022 – Pastor Edward Jjumba to preach the Call followed by a virtual ‘meet and greet’ so that you have some context when casting your vote.
- February 14 – 17, 2022 – electronic or in-person Pastoral Vote. We encourage you to take some time to pray before casting your vote.
2. Great job Search Committee. Are there other candidates for us to consider?
The Wesleyan Church discipline clearly states that only one candidate at a time is invited to preach a “Call” followed by a Pastoral Vote by the LCC. The process would repeat itself with another candidate if the vote is not in favour of the current candidate, or the current candidate does not accept the position.
3. I hear that Pastor Jjumba is not a Wesleyan Pastor?
That’s correct. Pastor Eddie is currently pastoring at a church affiliated with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. Pastor Eddie would need to have his credentials transferred to The Wesleyan Church; similar to Pastor George Pryor and Pastor David McMaster before him.
4. It is awkward to vote for someone that I have never met. Can we get more information about him?
That is so true! It is even more frustrating to conduct interviews where in person interactions and relationships are really at the heart of the Senior Pastor position. However, the congregation would normally only have the Call before voting. That being said, check out this article by an independent blogger on Pastor Jjumba: https://ugandancommunityinontario.org/blog/f/living-the-life-of-a-of-a-servant-leader—rev-eddie-jjumba
5. How will the Pastoral Vote work?
Pre-COVID, we would have an LCC meeting where members and non-members sign the attendance list in effect authenticating who they are, and will be handed a white or green ballot (depending on their membership status). They would ask questions and then vote anonymously. But having an in person meeting is just not safe and too risky to be gather as a group.
The Q&A can be handled by sending your questions to mwmcsearch@gmail.com starting today.
(for lack of a better analogy) a polling booth will be set up at the church on Thursday, February 17, 2022 at:
- 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm
- 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm
A list with names will be provided. You are to sign beside your name, you will be handed a ballot, which you may mark your ballot anonymously and deposit it into the ballot box.
There will be an option for electronic voting but unfortunately the vote cannot be anonymous in order to authenticate the voter and their membership status. However, there will be only one LBA-appointed teller who authenticates the electronic votes and reports only the final result. The link to the electronic vote will be available to the congregation from Monday February 14, 2022 at 9:00 am to Wednesday February 16, 2022 at 8:00 pm.
If you have any questions for Pastor Jjumba or about the process PLEASE send them immediately to mwmcsearch@gmail.com or call Philip Farrell at 416 665 3955. In summary, here are the three important events coming soon:
The Call
Sunday, February 13, 2022 at 10am
The Call with Pastor Edward Jjumba preaching (join us on YouTube or Facebook channels)
The Meet and Greet
Sunday, February 13, 2022 at 11am
Meet and Greet with the Jjumba family and MWMC family (see Zoom Meeting Link Below)
The Pastoral Vote
February 14 – 17, 2022
electronic and in-person Pastoral Vote
(voting link available on Monday, February 14, 2022 at 9:00 am)
God bless you all,
MWMC LBA and Search Committee
Milliken Church is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Milliken Church “Meet and Greet” Pastor Edward Jjumba
Time: Feb 13, 2022 11:00 AM America/Toronto
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8702493380?pwd=OUFrcXhnUVNkZnhMYkpIK21ua2pDQT09
Meeting ID: 870 249 3380
Passcode: 9054753579
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