Next Phase Opportunities

The Evangelical Union (EU) at Sydney University is an evangelical student ministry with almost 1000 involved students, affiliated with the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students. The EU Graduates Fund employs staff to serve the EU students as part of its vision: To flood God’s church in Sydney, Australia and beyond, with lay and vocational Christian leaders who are Biblically and theologically mature, servant hearted and innovative ministry strategists.

The ministry of the EU Graduates Fund and the EU at Sydney Uni is entering an exciting new phase. Opportunities exist for suitably experienced and mature ministers of God’s grace to serve Jesus and his kingdom in significant senior leadership roles on the EU Staff Team. The roles are open to men and women. We are praying that we might see Godly women or men taking up some of these opportunities by the beginning of 2018 and that all the roles would be filled by the beginning of 2019 or 2020.

The roles we are seeking to fill are:

• Staff Team Regional Leaders — for experienced ministry team leaders who would love to serve Jesus by leading a staff team of 10–12 and oversee ministry amongst 250-400 students. Two or three positions.
• Director of Training — for an experienced, gospel-centred trainer who would love to serve Jesus by overseeing the EU’s training of students, the EU GradsFund’s ministry apprenticeship program (the Howard Guinness Project), and strategising overall leadership development.
• Director of Gatherings — for a trained leader who would love to serve Jesus by leading the enrichment and expansion of EU’s core gatherings (Bible study groups, weekly Bible talks and annual conferences) so that God’s Word might bear much fruit on campus and around the world.

More details on these roles are given below. For official position descriptions, please contact Rowan Kemp (rowan.kemp@gradsfund.org) before applying.

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Staff Team Regional Leaders

We are looking for two or three experienced evangelical ministry leaders, men or women, to serve Christ and his kingdom at Sydney Uni by leading ‘Regional’ staff teams.

Context

The EU Staff Team is divided into Regional staff teams, each led by a Regional Leader and comprising one or two other theologically trained senior staff and up to ten full-time ministry apprentices. Each Regional staff team serves a community of 250-400 EU students divided into student ‘faculties’ of 25-80 students each. Apprentice staff are deployed to minister in specific faculties, whilst senior staff minister amongst senior students in the Region and support and train the ministry apprentices. Regional Leaders are responsible for the ministry that happens in each of the faculties in their region and for the region and Regional staff team as a whole. For the last few years the EU has had over 900 students involved in its ministries on campus, split across 4 Regions and 19 faculties.

Vision

We are convicted that, under God, the EU ministry at Sydney Uni has an opportunity to flood God’s global church with greater numbers of mature, servant-hearted leaders, for his greater kingdom and glory. To this end we are praying and working for more and more students to come to know the Lord Jesus and be sent out to serve him, especially amongst those less-reached and less-resourced with the Gospel. Our prayer is that the next phase of EU ministry might see the number of students involved on campus increase from 1000 to 1600, spread over 5-6 Regions and up to 35 faculties. We want to see faithful and flourishing gospel ministry in every EU faculty and in every department and sub-culture of the university. Having excellent Regional staff teams is core to this outcome. Prayerful, Godly and wise Regional Leaders are critical to see this vision realized.

Qualities

Personal devotion to the Lord Jesus, passion for his local and global Kingdom especially among those less-reached or less-resourced with the Gospel, a demonstrated commitment to prayer, to evangelism, to growing disciples and to studying and teaching the Christian Scriptures are essential for Regional Leaders.

Regional Leaders utilise their experience, training and gifts to serve their staff teams by leading God-honouring, relationally rich, gospel-multiplying and functionally effective staff ministry teams.

With responsibility for large numbers of students in their Region, Regional Leaders must be committed to using and developing effective systems and structures of pastoral care and discipleship.

Working alongside the senior staff in their team, Regional Leaders provide care and training for senior student leaders in their Region, recruit future ministry trainees and participate in wider EU ministry activities.

A key part of a Regional Leader’s role is to help train and equip the ministry trainees in their region for pastoral Word ministry, as part of the wider EU GradsFund ministry trainee program, the Howard Guinness Project.

Regional Leaders report to the EU Staff team leader, work collegially with the rest of the EU senior staff and lead their regions in accordance with agreed EU and staff team vision, values, outcomes and practices.

It is anticipated that successful applicants will have experience in leading a staff ministry team or the experience and gifting that suggests they may serve ably in such a role.

Successful applicants will be available to take up their role by 15th January, 2018.

Before applying, please contact Rowan Kemp (EU Staff Team leader; rowan.kemp@gradsfund.org) for a formal position description and to register interest.

Director of Training

We are looking for an experienced evangelical leader and committed Gospel trainer to take oversight responsibility for training students in the EU, training ministry apprentices in the EU Graduates Fund’s Howard Guinness Project and for overall leadership development across the EU and EU Staff Team.

 Context

Our conviction is that, under God, the EU at Sydney Uni could flood God’s global church with mature, servant-hearted, lay and vocational Christian leaders, especially among those less-reached and less-resourced with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The EU currently trains more than 200 student Bible Study leaders each year and has more than 150 students being trained through its EU Equip training courses each semester, plus various other annual training programs. Training of students takes place on campus and in off-site camps and conferences. The EU GradsFund currently employs 17-20 trainee staff in a two-year ministry apprenticeship known as the Howard Guinness Project.

Vision

We are committed to serving Jesus’ wider church by training and sending out increasing numbers of better equipped students for a life-time following Jesus and ministering amongst his people. We aspire, for God’s glory and kingdom, to offer the premier ministry apprenticeship program available. Our prayer is that the next phase of EU ministry might see the number of students being trained grow by 60%, the number of ministry trainees double to 40 trainees on campus each year, and the depth, quality and coherence of training on campus improve. The Director of Training will have a key role in helping turn this vision into reality.

The Director of Training will oversee the training of EU students and the training of ministry apprentices, as well as having responsibility for leadership development across the EU and within the EU Staff team, working under the direction of the EU Staff Team leader and utilising the experience and resources of the EU Staff Team.

Qualities

The successful candidate will be a devoted, growing and prayerful disciple of Christ, theologically equipped, a proven team player and humbly committed to developing a premier training program for students and ministry apprentices.

It is anticipated that the successful applicant will have demonstrated experience in effectively training God’s people for ministry, preferably including training ministry apprentices.

The successful applicant will be available to take up this position by the 15th January, 2018.

Before applying, please contact Rowan Kemp (EU Staff Team leader; rowan.kemp@gradsfund.org) for a formal position description and to register interest.

Director of Gatherings

We are looking for an evangelical leader to oversee, develop and grow the main gatherings of the EU ministry at Sydney Uni: our weekly Public Meetings, Bible Study groups, Annual Conference and Launch Day.

Context

The EU is committed to the life-giving proclamation of God’s Word from the Christian Scriptures. Faithful proclamation of Jesus and his gospel is central to the EU’s ministry and all its core gatherings.

Currently the EU runs three identical Public Meetings each week where the Bible is taught by members of the EU senior staff team with 300-400 students attending in total. EU gathers into approximately 100 Bible study groups on campus each week, divided into 19 student faculties with separate groups for first-year and senior students; over 1000 students attend or visit these groups across each semester. EU’s Annual Conference is a five-day, residential conference held in the middle of each year where 600-700 students gather to learn from God’s Word together. Launch Day is a one-day EU conference held on campus at the beginning of each year to commence the year of ministry together and welcome in new students. All of these core gatherings have significant evangelistic opportunities with non-believers in attendance.

Vision

Our prayer is that God’s Word might grow and increase at Sydney Uni through these EU ministries in a significant way over the next phase, so that more students might come to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus, grow more effectively as his disciples and be sent out to serve him across the globe in increasing numbers, especially amongst those less-reached and less-resourced with the Gospel of Jesus. To this end, and for the glory of God, our prayer is that these EU gatherings grow in depth, quality and size. We pray that the number of students in Bible study groups increase to 1600, the number of students at Annual Conference grow to 1000 and that 600 students each week are sitting under God’s Word at EU Public Meetings. The Gatherings Director will have a lead role in helping turn this vision into reality, under God and for his glory.

Qualities

The successful candidate will be a devoted, growing and prayerful disciple of Christ, theologically equipped and passionate about seeing multitudes of students engage deeply with God through his Word. The successful candidate will be thoroughly committed to the faithful and prayerful proclamation of God’s Word and the teaching of the Christian Scriptures amongst God’s people in the power of his Spirit, in ways that are faithful, Jesus-centred and helpfully creative, in order to see God’s kingdom grow in maturity, size and global extent.

The Gatherings Director will report to the EU Staff Team leader and will work closely with other Portfolio Directors and Senior Staff, as well as with ministry trainees and senior students. It is therefore essential that the successful candidate be able to work collaboratively in a team context.

The successful candidate will have demonstrated experience and effectiveness in leading ministry teams, in creative, big-picture thinking and the aptitude to tackle challenging projects with perseverance and enthusiasm.

The successful applicant will be available to take up this position by the 15th January, 2018.

Before applying, please contact Rowan Kemp (EU Staff Team leader; rowan.kemp@gradsfund.org) for a formal position description and to register interest.