If you’ve arrived at the VitalChurch Ministry website, it may be because you are part of a church that is experiencing some sort of transition or crisis and are need of the help of an interim pastor. If this is you, we’re glad you’re here! To be clear, we’re not glad that your church is going through a difficult time, but we’re glad you’ve taken an important first step in realizing that your church could benefit from outside help from someone like an experienced interim pastor.
Experience is vital with interim pastoring. Many of our interim pastors at VitalChurch Ministry have been pastoring churches for decades. They have led congregations—large and small—through good times and tough times. They’ve also received extensive training specifically in interim pastoring. But maybe even more importantly, they have a heart for interim ministry. They have a love for the church and want to see churches revitalized.
What sets VitalChurch Ministry apart from some of the other organizations that specialize in interim pastor ministry is that our work is rooted in heart change first and foremost. Yes, we help churches with things like reforming their governance models or creating clear and effective policies and procedures, but these things are not our main focus. In our vision statement, we say, “Our vision is to see many more churches large and small operating in unity and effectiveness and changing the spiritual landscape for good.” At the core of this type of church is a congregation that is experiencing intimacy with Christ, so getting churches to—or back to—a place of intimacy is our primary goal.
VitalChurch Interim Pastor Referenced in Article about Churches in Transition
Recently, VitalChurch founder and Director of our Intentional Interim Pastor Division Dave Miles was quoted in an article by Rev. Jack Damian of Interim Ministry Network titled “When Bridges Collapse.” This article talked about why attempts at healthy transitions in churches sometimes fail and how church leaders, including interim pastors, should deal with the fallout. A portion of the article is dedicated to discussing the need for transparency when things start to break down. In this section, Damian references a blog post that Miles wrote during the COVID-19 pandemic, when church leaders were facing unprecedented challenges. In this post, Miles talks about nine key leadership principles that pastors should hold to in times of crisis. Principle #2 is the one that Damian quotes in his article, which says, “Tell the truth…period! Don’t lie. And don’t pretend you know what is going on when you really don’t know what’s going on. Leaders who regularly lie, fudge on the truth, or mislead out of ignorance will find it increasingly difficult to lead in times of crisis. When crisis hits, the line between civility and barbarity is thinner than most of us think.”
The intentional interim pastors at VitalChurch Ministry know better than most what it’s like to lead during crises. For more than 20 years prior to the pandemic, our pastors were brought in to lead churches that were dealing with various struggles. Some churches we worked with were on the verge of a split, while others were dealing with the sudden loss of their lead pastor. Still others had seen an unexplained decline in attendance and/or vitality.
When we work with churches in transition or crisis, we do so as pastors, not consultants. We care for the church and lead congregations and leaders through the changes that need to be made in order to bring them to a place of healing, wholeness, and vitality.
If you’d like to learn more about working with an interim pastor from VitalChurch Ministry, contact us today.