How many times do you see this: A pastor announces a call to another place of ministry, a pastor is under pressure to resign or is fired or a pastor dies from a disease or a tragic accident.
Perhaps the pastor experiences significant health difficulties, legal problems or financial challenges. Or maybe the pastor’s spouse accepts a significant job offer in another city or state.
Then, before the pastor can clear out his office, a few laypeople start talking with urgency about making their move and remolding the church in their image, whether that is God’s image for the church or not.
Other laypeople, perhaps even ones with official authority in the church according to the bylaws, have no idea what to do next. They see their role as more ceremonial than requiring decisive leadership.
Factions in the congregation have differing biblical perspectives and views on how the church should function. A pastor with strong relational skills held the church together during his tenure but now is gone.
The silent majority speaks up with deep anxiety, saying the church needs to quickly find its next pastor. If the pastor leaving had served the church for many years, it may have been a long time since there was a pastor search team.
The role of the associational mission strategist
In what ways is the associational mission strategist prepared to help in this situation? That depends. Consider these possible ways:
First, how many times has the AMS been in this church for more than worship services when he had an opportunity to build relationships with lay leaders?
Second, what type of events or experiences allowed lay leaders to know the AMS beyond his core expected roles?
Third, has the AMS preached in this church, conducted a training event, met with committees or in other ways become a trusted advisor?
Fourth, laypeople from various churches know one another. How many laypeople can testify to exceptional service by the AMS in their churches when they were between pastors?
Fifth, has the association conducted training for laypeople on what happens when a church is without a pastor? Was it training that shared proactive, healthy ways to deal with issues that could lead to conflict, or a process that could bless the church during the interim?
It’s about relationships
The key is relationships. To acquire the credibility to speak into chaordic situations — those with a simultaneous existence of chaos and order — the AMS must have deep relationships with lay leaders.
This does not happen overnight. It is built through longer tenures by associational directors and with intentional interaction and mentoring of lay leaders. To do this the AMS must develop intentional relationships.
He must be seen as someone who has credibility and the appropriate authority to speak into church situations.
When deep relationships already exist, the AMS can speak into this crucial period of transition. If these relationships do not exist, the AMS may be ignored or considered irrelevant.
Two approaches
There is one approach in which the AMS is seen as the best person to help churches form and orient a pastor search team. Since the typical church wants to move forward immediately to secure the next pastor, if the AMS has credibility, this is a good approach.
Many directors do this well. They mold their process over many years and churches. They talk about how many pastor search teams they have oriented.
The second approach happens when the AMS has enough relationships and credibility with lay leaders to suggest to them a more extended interim. It begins with a process that is spiritual and strategic in nature. It provides a framework for the next seven years in the life and ministry of the church. It projects what the church could look like with God’s empowering leadership.
Likely only one out of three churches will do this. Churches are too often in a hurry to get the next pastor. Lay leaders who want to control the church are afraid this longer process will derail their efforts. Such a process takes deep trust in the association.
Yet when this process is used, churches often make more informed and inspiring decisions about both their Kingdom direction and their choice of pastor.
EDITOR’S NOTE — George Bullard spent 45 years in denominational ministry. He served on the staff of three associations, was a key staff person working with associations in two state conventions and served on the association missions division staff of the former Home Mission Board of the SBC. He retired in June 2022 as director of Columbia Metro Baptist Association in South Carolina. He has led strategic planning processes in more than 100 associations and has written extensively in this area. Bullard now serves as a strategic thinking mentor for Christian leaders through his ForthTelling Innovation ministry and a correspondent for The Baptist Paper.
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