Senior Pastor Transitions

Recently, I was extended a call by another congregation in another state. After four weeks of prayer, frank discussion, and soul-searching, I decided to decline the call and remain at my current congregation.

Now that it's over and "the pressure's off", it's become a good time for my Board to consider, "How ready are we to handle a senior pastor transition?"

Here's some of our thoughts so far:

1. Every transition is unique and therefore, requires a unique transition plan. We cannot possibly plan ahead for every contingency. However, some things will be common to every senior pastor transition. We should try and be ready for those things that we know will happen. This includes items like:

A. Will we appoint one of other staff to serve as "interim senior pastor" or would we recruit an "interim senior pastor" from the outside? If so, how would we go about doing that?

B. Which ministries could we continue without a senior pastor and which would likely need to be put "on the back burner" during the transition?

2. Whenever a senior pastor announces he is leaving, there will be a temptation for many members to feel like "the sky is falling." Board members need to quickly and confidently communicate with the congregation that:

A. a transition plan is in place and

B. that God is in control of his church and promises He will see us through every challenge we face, including senior pastor transitions (see First Corinthians 3:6)

3. The departure of a beloved senior pastor creates a grieving process not unlike grieving the death of a loved one. All the traditional "stages of grief" will be present: denial, anger, sadness, acceptance. Members may need a forum where they can identify and work through these feelings with others.

What else has your church learned about preparing for senior pastor transitions?