Interim Ministry and the Marine Corps

As a Marine officer in Vietnam, I have experienced war, seen death, and grieved over the loss of men. I don't wish combat on anyone, but greater battles are in the spiritual realm, for the fight for "soul survival" is constant and will continue until the appearance of Christ. It is also more fearful than physical combat, for Jesus said not to be afraid of those who kill the body, but fear the One who could cast the soul into hell.[1] The battle rages, for Satan loves to disrupt Christian ministry by poking his nose into the affairs of churches. Although he cannot destroy the soul that belongs to Christ, he certainly can make believers ineffective witnesses for the kingdom. He therefore establishes a foothold in the church, breeds conflict, and destroys unity.

The job of an interim pastor is very much like the objectives of a Marine battalion taking a beachhead. The Marines are landed on the shore by the Navy, sometimes under heavy gunfire by the enemy. They endure the incoming barrage of artillery fire and persevere through mine fields in order to secure the beachhead for the Army who will occupy it. In church work, the interim pastor prepares the beachhead (i.e., the church), takes the flak (i.e., the criticism from opposition), and perseveres the mine fields (i.e., plods through the issues and conflict) in order for the Army (the new Senior Pastor) to occupy the beachhead. Interims are to make the job easier for the new pastor by redeeming any conflict to the glory of God, by training elders in the way of Scripture, by managing church staff for unity and effectiveness, and by tending the sheep so that they can be easily cared for by the new pastor.

Standing in the gap for another pastor is a high calling. An interim pastor is a special breed of marine, for he has to love and fight for people that he will eventually leave in the hands of another. His orders are from the Lord; his objective clear – make ready the congregation for the new shepherd. He is to confront the obstacles, reconcile the conflict, and bring peace to the congregation so that the ministry of the new pastor will start out on the right foot without having to deal with problematic people or consuming issues.

True interim pastors are transitional shepherds who are not candidates for the vacant position of senior pastor.[2] An interim will become beloved by many in the congregation who will want him to stay on, but he must make it abundantly clear that his task is to prepare the church for a new man. Those who waffle and say they will be a candidate cause further conflict in the church and put the pastoral search committee in a difficult situation. Although he is to be enthusiastic in his ministry, he must be subservient to his objective. Once a new man is selected for the church, the interim must decrease and the new man elevated in the remaining time the interim has to serve.

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[1] Luke 12:4-5

[2] An interim pastor should have a clause in their contract that states he is not nor will be a candidate for the vacant position of Senior Pastor. See the Appendix A2 for a sample of an Interim Pastor’s contract.

The Ailing Church

Statistics do not lie; and what they tell us about the Church is that God’s ecclesia is ailing and in need of doctoring. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research claims that 59% of all Protestant churches average between 7 and 99 attendees and 35% average between 100 and 499.[1] Size, however, doesn’t matter when it comes to controversy, for the American Congregations Study of 2008 reported that conflict held steady from 2000 to 2008 in that approximately 75% of all churches had conflict within the previous five years over matters of money, worship, and leadership.[2]

Conflict invariably leads to disgruntled people who either leave the church or withhold their giving, resulting in ineffective ministry and damaging church vibrancy. Ed Stetzer, in his book, Planting New Churches in a Postmodern Age,[3] claims that 80 % of North American churches are stagnant or declining. This is the same statistic found in Harry Reeder’s book, From Embers to a Flame[4] when he quotes from Win Arn’s The Pastor’s Manual for Effective Ministry.[5] Dr. Reeder lists a number of indicators that represent a church in decline to include falling attendance, drop in giving, living in the past, reliance on dominant personalities, a mentality of maintenance in keeping the status quo, a bad reputation in the community, and the lack of gospel centrality.

Most ailing churches, however, do not believe they are in decline. Leaders have a difficult time hearing that they lead dead or dying churches, for it is a reflection on their leadership. But such a mentality proves my point. The problem in the church, the main disease that depletes its energy and vitality, is failed leadership. Many leaders refuse to face the facts and so their churches will remain ineffective in promoting the gospel of Christ. Rather than look at themselves and ask what God would have them do in promoting the gospel and shepherding his flock, they remain tied to the past by refusing to repent of their negligence or malfeasance and humbling themselves to seek help and direction. They contribute to church stagnation by not nourishing the sheep and asking a “doctor” to make a house call. They refuse to seek counsel with those who understand the dynamics of the church, for they might not like the “doctor’s diagnosis.” Even more so, they might not like the “doctor’s opinion,” which could include radical surgery to root out the cancerous disease affecting God’s sheep. And so they mask the symptoms and rationalize that the problems were caused by events or people outside of their control.

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[1] Hartford Institute for Religion Research, Hartford Seminary website (© 2000 – 2006) quoting the National Congregations Study of 2009 done by Duke University.

[2] Hartford Institute for Religion Research, quoting from their American Congregations Report of 2008.

[3] Ed Stetzer, Planting New Churches in a Postmodern Age (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2003), 10.

[4] Harry L. Reeder, III, From Embers to a Flame; How God Can Revitalize Your Church (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing Co, 2008), 7.

[5] Win Arn, The Pastor’s Manual for Effective Ministry (Monrovia, CA: Church Growth, Inc., 1988), 16.

A Palladin is Worth his Hire

Paladin, Palidin, where do you roam?

Paladin, Palidin, far, far from home.[1]

A paladin was a knight known for heroism and chivalry. The idea of a knight in the frontier West called Paladin was the creation of Sam Rolfe and Herb Meadow, which became one of the top five TV shows in the 1950s. In the first verse of the theme song, which also became a hit single, Paladin was described as a “knight without armor in a savage land.” On the surface, the black clad Paladin was just a high-priced gun-for-hire, but in reality he was a dapper and sophisticated private lawman-for-hire.

His business card read, “Have Gun, Will Travel.” The calling card of an interim pastor should read, “Have Guts, Will Travel.” He too is God’s knight without physical armor sent to various lands to settle disputes and correct wrongs. Like Paladin, the interim is a literate, moral, and courageous man.

Although interim pastors are willing to travel and make house calls, in many cases church leadership considers them too expensive. Money frequently seems to be a problem when a church loses its pastor, especially due to conflict. People, discontented with the old pastor or the present leadership, normally withhold their tithes as a sign of displeasure; some leave the church all together. Hiring an interim is seen as an obstacle to saving funds for the new pastor’s salary and benefit package. And if the old pastor was given a severance, finances become even more of an issue.

Such thinking is wrong, for money should not drive ministry. In fact, money follows ministry and resources are the result of relationships. An interim pastor provides the oversight needed in a hurting church; and his presence normally stops the depletion of funds by solidifying the base and unifying the congregation. When leadership allows finances to defer the need for a paladin, then they demonstrate a low concern for the sheep and allow mammon to control the direction of the church. They also foolishly convince themselves that the church is not that sick; that their struggles are like a winter cold, which will soon go away. Paying a paladin (i.e., a doctor making a house call) is thought too expensive and homeopathic remedies will be applied to the detriment of the health of the congregation.

Jesus said that we cannot serve God and mammon;[2] and God desires shepherds for his sheep, for woe to them who leave the flock unprotected.[3] As Jesus felt compassion for the distressed and downcast, like sheep without a shepherd,[4] leaders should be immediately concerned that their sheep have no lead pastor to tend to their fitness. Refusal to hire a paladin to protect the flock because finances are low and savings must be garnered for the new pastor makes mammon the determining factor in the care of anxious and distraught sheep.

Such a decision does not bode well for the health of the church, for a flock without the lead shepherd will wander and that scattering is laid on the heads of the elders.[5] When the flock is dispersed as a result of conflict or otherwise, they may become prey to others because of a lack of protection. In other words, they may end up sitting under false teachers and absorbing bad doctrine. And when elders do not seek to find them and bring reconciliation to the flock, they will be judged by the Lord.[6] Protecting the sheep is too important to allow the passage of time and the worries of money prevent the hiring of a palladin to shepherd the flock and care for the immediate needs of sheep.

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[1] Ballad of Paladin, written by Johnny Western, Richard Boone, & Sam Rolfe; sung by Johnny Western for the TV show, Have Gun Will Travel, which ran from 1957 – 1963 on CBS.

[2] Matthew 6:24

[3] Zechariah 11:17

[4] Matthew 9:36

[5] Jeremiah 23:1

[6] Ezekiel 34:7-11