We Are All Interim Pastors
contributed by William Vanderbloemen
We are all interim pastors.
Unless we are the pastor when our church closes, or we happen to be the pastor when Jesus returns, we are all only in our churches for a temporary stay. And I believe the most critical task for a church leader is to do all he can to secure the long-term future of the church.
"because we are all interim pastors."
Today, a fabulous resource for churches looking at a transition releases.
I’m recommending that every one of our clients read, Transition Plan
Bob Russell, the previous pastor at Southeast Church in Louisville, KY has written an account of the hand off that he, Dave Stone (the current pastor) and the church leadership planned. Their story is perhaps the best known story of a successful transition, particularly in a larger church.
While every church has different needs, and every transition plan should be hand crafted around their particular situation, this book is a must read.
Why? Because we are all interim pastors. And the call to care for Christ’s church extends beyond our temporary stay.
What is your church doing to plan for the next chapter? We’re constantly learning, reading stories, and working on tailor made transition plans and would love to hear your story.
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PS – A while back, my colleague Tony Morgan interviewed me about the need for succession planning in churches. More and more frequently, our firm is getting calls from churches asking us to help plan and execute the transition from one pastorate to the next. Read the interview, and if you all need help crafting your own plan, contact us. We’d be happy to visit with you.
