Every year, Greg and Mary Kaye intentionally surrender their ministries, Bay Area, and their future to God. Those close to Greg know he has often said, “I’m ready to stay and I’m ready to go. Whatever Jesus wants.” Originally, Greg anticipated this transition might happen in 2029. However, as he continued to pray, reflect on the incredible health of our church and leadership, and seek the Lord about his own passion to focus more fully on global missions and church planting, it became clear that God was shifting the timeline. Over time, the Lord confirmed that now is the right season to begin this healthy transition and allow the space for God to reveal the next Lead Pastor.

We trust God with His timing for Bay Area. These processes can be unpredictable, taking more or less time than planned, but our prayer and hope is that sometime in the Summer of 2027 a new Lead Pastor would be at Bay Area, and we will have a period of overlap with Greg before he officially steps away. The national search begins in the Fall, candidates will be presented to the Elder Board in the new year, and candidate visits will occur sometime in the Spring of 2027.

Greg will remain our Lead Pastor until the new Lead Pastor arrives. Greg and the Elders want to avoid a vacant position or an interim Lead Pastor. Greg and the Elder Board trust God with His timing for Bay Area.

Yes, Greg and the Elders believe Bay Area is well prepared at this time for a Lead Pastor transition. The church assessment provided tremendous data about the health and strength of the ministry. NL Moore, who is our consultant and conducted the assessment, said this: “By God’s grace, Bay Area Community Church finds itself in the ‘Transformation’ category, meaning it is a healthy and vital congregation. This is great news! These are the churches we hope will expand, replicate, or serve as mentors to other churches. Bay Area is poised to make an even greater Kingdom impact.” This report, in conjunction with a strong group of Elders, an excellent Staff team, and many faithful and committed church members gives us great confidence heading into a transition. We are excited for what God is going to do during this season at Bay Area.

The Elder Board will serve as the Search Team and is the final authority at Bay Area, and they carry the responsibility to call our next Lead Pastor. Our Lead Pastor reports to them. While the congregation does not vote on Lead Pastor hires, the Elder Board is committed to listening to the shared voice of the Staff and congregation, and will be informed by the input gathered through the church-wide assessment, interviews and focus groups with our Staff and church family. They will also rely on the input from the Advisory Team made up of church members who will interview candidates. Greg will provide input to the Search Team but not be part of the decision. NL Moore & Associates will facilitate the process and serve as an advisor but not as a decision-maker. The Elder Board will exercise their spiritual leadership and prayerful discernment in making the hiring decision, as directed by our bylaws. The Elder Board believes in the power of prayer and has committed this process to prayer. All of us who love Bay Area and call this our church home are encouraged to diligently pray for God’s wisdom to guide this important discernment.

Proverbs 15:22 tells us, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers, they succeed.” We have hired N.L. Moore and Associates to guide the search process. With 20 years of experience and significant history with Bay Area, they understand our church, our leadership and our vision. They led the searches that brought us Jeff, Aaron, Allen, Jason, Drew, Evans and Shawn. Nancy Moore has led many churches through the Lead Pastor succession and search process, and we are confident the Lord will use her to help us now.

NL Moore will be on site to:
• Conduct focus groups with the church family.
• Conduct interviews with Staff and key leaders.
• Meeting with the congregational Advisory Team for an orientation.
• Interview the Elder Board and help prepare them for their role as the Search Team.

With all the input gathered, they will create core documents necessary for the search process. Then they will conduct a national search. Each candidate considered will pass through numerous interviews and assessments. This includes video and in-person interviews that focus on spiritual life and character, theology, preaching, education, pastoral experience, multiple personal assessments, references and a background check. This includes a possible site visit to his current church, too. Through it all we will be prayerfully discerning and assessing fit to the culture of Bay Area.

Following multiple interviews, a few candidates will be invited to visit Bay Area for a more personal, mutual discernment through in-person interviews. The Elder Board gathers all input and will prayerfully decide which candidate to offer the position to, or start over with a new set of candidates.

We have gifted pastors on our staff, and we are thankful for each one. The leadership has processed with each pastor their individual aspirations, gifting and readiness. At this time, none of our pastors believe they are called to the role of Lead Pastor at Bay Area.

Anyone may submit their name for consideration. If you know someone you believe may be a viable candidate, have them send an email to info@bayareacc.org and it will be sent to the Search Team.

Yes, Aaron will remain as the Teaching Pastor and will preach a similar number of times per year. The Elders believe in a team-teaching philosophy, with two primary communicators: the Lead Pastor and the Teaching Pastor. They believe this is the most effective and healthy teaching model for the church and it will continue under the leadership of our next Lead Pastor as well.

There are no anticipated Staff changes as a result of Greg’s transition. The Lord has a plan for each of our lives and ministry as His disciples and we trust and follow His leading. We have an exceptional Staff and hope the Lord will lead each one to continue as a part of the Staff Team.

The Elder Board believes that Bay Area has a robust vision for advancing the gospel locally and globally that has been prayed through, built over many years, and affirmed in the congregational assessment last fall. Therefore, we are not looking for a ’transformation’ of the vision but rather an ‘extension’ and advancement of the vision. God wants to take the mission and vision of Bay Area to the next level – to ride the next wave of God’s grace – and we are excited to see that realized.

Yes, Greg and Mary Kaye will remain a part of the Bay Area church family. They will take a period away from the church to rest and settle into their new rhythms before they return to regular involvement here.

No, Greg will not be on Staff. He and Mary Kaye will be part of the Bay Area family serving and supporting the various ministries. He will be available to the new Lead Pastor as needed. He will also be involved with Times 12 (times12.org), the church planting organization Bay Area founded, and Tamarind Global (tamarindglobal.org) which Greg founded to further resource our Global Partners.

Pray! Jesus is the head of the church, and we are trusting Him, through His Spirit, to direct our path to the next Lead Pastor of Bay Area. The Elders invite the entire Bay Area family to join them in seeking the Lord. Here are specific things we invite you to pray for:

• That the Lord would prepare the heart of the new Lead Pastor and his family.
• Wisdom and discernment through the process and in the decision.
• Unity among the Elder Board as they make the final decision and strong confirmation from all those who interact with the candidates.
• That the new pastor would come and be ready to lead Bay Area in riding the next wave of God’s grace to advance the vision and mission the Lord has already shaped here.
• That the Bay Area church family would be united and enthusiastically embrace this season in the life of our church, with anticipation and faith. That we would allow God to till the soil of our own hearts to welcome the new Lead Pastor He calls to us. That we would engage even more in serving, living as Good News people, inviting people into our family, and faithfully giving to support the many aspects of the ministry.

Aside from pray, we invite you to continue to focus on the mission of Bay Area by serving, participating, giving and living as good news people. As a church, we must all commit to continuing to advance the Good News of Jesus and see a transition period as an acceleration into the work the Lord has for us. Let us continue to ride the wave of God’s grace as we prepare to ride the next wave.

The Kent Island Campus process began long before Greg came to his decision in January of 2026. The Elder Board decision to launch a campus on Kent Island was made in August of 2024, and the lease on the property was signed in March of 2025. And yes, we would have still launched even with Greg’s decision because we believe the Lord has a vision for our church, and that vision drives decisions, not the specific timing of a transition.

Your questions are welcome throughout this process. We encourage you to seek out Greg (Greg.StCyr@bayareacc.org), Brian (Brian.Hopper@bayareacc.org), or Jeff (Jeff.Supp@bayareacc.org) who serve as our Staff Leadership Team, or Rich Heath (Rich.Heath@bayareacc.org), an Elder Board member who is serving as the point person at Bay Area for the search process.