Intentional Interim Ministry

Downloadable Resources
"Being Intentional" PDF article from February 2009 newsletter.
"Being Intentional" Sermon notes preached January 25, 2009
MP3 Sermon preached January 25, 2009
Transition Team Nomination Form with notes in PDF.
What Is the Transition Team?
Team Updates
Transition Team News Bulletin - May 2009
Transition Team News Bulletin - July 2009
Spiritual Discernment - August 2009
Survey Results - Decision Making - September 2009
Survey Results & Observations - Leadership - October 2009

Intentional Interim Ministry is a process that guides a congregation to explore its history, decision making, denominational relationships and core identity before the congregation authorizes the search for a new pastor.

THE FIVE DEVELOPMENTAL TASKS OF THE SELF-STUDY
Research led by Loren Mead has identified five tasks of churches in the interim. As mentioned earlier, these tasks form the basis for the Self- Study. The five tasks are:

Coming to Terms with History: It is vital to make time for healing within the congregation and for putting the service of the former minister in perspective. There must be a time of letting go of the former minister and for discarding old expectations, wounds, patterns, and baggage of the past. Only when the congregation has let go of the former minister, can a new minister be fully accepted. At the same time, the congregation also needs to celebrate those things that have made her ministry strong and significant in the Kingdom.

Examining Leadership and Decision-Making Concerns: Every congregation today must be conscious of developing new leadership for the tasks of ministry and for incorporating younger and newer members into its body. The interim is prime time for reviewing the membership, its needs, and its ways of organizing, and for making decisions on how to best use its resources.

Looking at Denominational/External Relationships: A congregation has often learned to see its relationship to the denomination and other external connections through the eyes of its former pastor. With increasing polarization of theological differences, it is crucial that each local congregation clarify its basic theological belief. A congregation that does not deal with this aspect of its life runs a strong risk of calling a minister who does not align theologically with the congregation. This can be a devastating experience for the minister and congregation and lead to severe congregational conflict.

Clarifying the Congregation’s Identity: A congregation must periodically redefine a sense of purpose, direction, and what distinguishes it from other churches in the community. The interim is an appropriate time to do this. It is also an ideal time to conduct membership and neighborhood studies to find out how effectively the church is reaching and serving its own community. A church that fails to connect and serve its community through missions and ministry becomes an endangered church. Many churches today have turned inward to serve their own members. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

A Commitment to New Clergy Leadership and the Future: When a congregation has completed the four preceding tasks, it is ready to talk with candidates who can be a good match for the congregation. During this phase of the interim, the congregation prepares to receive a new leader and makes arrangement for call, installation, and start-up for its new minister.

These are the five crucial developmental or transitional tasks of a congregation in search of a new pastor. If congregational members do these tasks thoroughly with wide participation, the chances for effective ministry with a new pastor are greatly enhanced.

How Long Does It Take? The Intentional Interim Ministry process typically takes 12 to 18 months from the decision of the congregation to engage Intentional Interim Ministry until the calling of the next pastor. However, certain circumstances can extend this period of time. Experience indicates that if the previous pastor had a long tenure of service of more than 10 years, then the interim time will be extended beyond a year. If the church had a significant conflict with the previous pastor, that also will likely extend the interim time. The Transition Team that guides the process determines the amount of time that it takes for a church to do Intentional Interim Ministry. It also is determined by the length of time that a search committee requires finding an acceptable minister to serve as pastor. There are no hard and fast rules. Usually a church commits to work with an Intentional Interim Minister for one year. The covenant can be renewed after that time, if the church and interim so desire. Most of the time, these covenants also can be terminated at any point by the pastor or the congregation.

Transition Team: The Intentional Interim Minister provides leadership and guidance, but this is a congregational process that is led by a Transition Team of lay people.