Review & Expositor

No longer does the interim period between pastors need to be a lull or a valley. Now trained interim pastors can lead a church to prepare for its future. Daehnert describes this exciting new ministry from his thirty-three years of experience in ministry. In addition to traditional interim ministry, a new program called Intentional Interim Minsitry has emerged. Intentional Interim Ministers are trained and experienced to lead congregations to use the interim to reflect on its history, to examine its organizational structure and leadership, and to redefine its purpose and vision. In this manner, rather than “down” time, the interim period can enable the laity to plan for and prepare for the arrival of a new pastor.

Preaching is vital to the life of the church at all times. Carter states that in some ways preaching is especially important in the interim period. For many church members preaching is the primary point of encounter with the interim pastor. The interim pastor needs to know the congregation as well as possible to be able better to communicate biblical truth to them. The preaching during the interim will lead the congregation to prepare for its new phase of ministry. Carter emphasizes the importance of preaching crafted to the needs and unique situation of the particular congregation.

Pastoral care—caregiving—is probably the most important of all the ministries of a pastor. Every pastor knows the vital importance of care provided in times of crisis, serious illness or injury, and death. Such care, according to McGehee, is even more crucial in the interim situation. In addition to crisis ministry, the interim pastor is the primary care giver in the ordinary situations of ministry. He or she is to be the encourager, the enabler, the empowerer for the congregation.

All life is interim. Moseley speaks from his personal experience of grief when he lost his wife of 31 years. Using his own grief and recovery as his model, he draws parallels for churches and interim pastors to use in dealing with the church's grief over losing a pastor. Whether the former pastor was deeply loved or left under engative circumstances, there is still a sense of loss and grief. Congregations may experience anger or fear of building a relationship with a new pastor. One key to working through grief is remembering the past and looking to the future based on the realization of God's presence in the present—God with us.

The interim period is a time of change, transition anad transformation. A new approach to interim ministry has been developed over the past 30 years, Intentional Interim Ministry. Intentional Interim Ministers are required to undergo training prior to being certified and evaluation after serving as an interim pastor. The future of Intentional Interim Ministry appears bright as more churches seek to be intentional during an interim, and as more Intentional Interim Pastors are trained and certified.

Should a church seek an Intentional Interim Minister? Brown suggests it should following a long term pastorate of over 7 years, a forced termination, church conflict, or a series of short term pastorates (2–3 years). How does a church find an Intentional Interim Minister? The church should contact its Director of Missions, the Church/Minister Relations office of its Baptist state convention, or the Interim Ministry Network. The church and Intentional Interim Minister should negotiate their mutual responsibilities and expectations.