“Interim” sounds like a pregnant pause anticipating something down the road.
So when you put the adjective in front of “pastor” or “church,” it just feels like less than ideal.
It does not have to be that way. The interim period between two pastors can be a time of great benefit for churches. It is for that reason I encourage churches not to make mistakes common during this interim time.
Here are seven of them:
1. The church moves into a maintenance mode.
To be sure, there are decisions and actions that need to be postponed until the new pastor gets on board. But neither the Great Commission nor the Great Commandment takes a vacation. There is still much work to be done.
2. The church allows the interim pastor to be a candidate for pastor.
I know. I will get some pushback here. But I have seen so many disasters befall a church when the person in the interim pulpit gets favored status. The downside outweighs the benefits.
3. The process of finding a pastor becomes a “beauty contest.”
Several candidates are paraded before the church or key groups in the church. Factions decide their favorite candidate. Tensions grow. Consider instead dealing with one or a very few candidates at a time.
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SOURCE: ThomRainer.com
Dr. Thom Rainer is president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.
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