I should note that these five developmental tasks are separated only as a heuristic device. They each overlap and a church would not necessarily work through them in any particular sequence.
The second task in the Intentional Interim (II)
program process is examining church leadership and decision making. These are two areas that are often obscured in SBC churches. Since there is not any set polity governing all Baptist Churches, it can oftentimes be unclear how decisions are reached. In some instances, the pastor is king and makes all of the decisions. In others, the deacons lead the church while a council of elders that govern things in other circumstances. Other churches operate by committees. And then there are aberrant situations. I knew of one church where the music minister had been there for decades and effectively controlled all of the new young pastors who cycled through the church over the years.
This second task explicitly brings to the surface and sets down on paper the way that decisions are reached in the church. Covenants and policies are updated and committee structures are created if necessary. A goal of this step is to make sure that there is an explicit, organized, consistent structure to how the church operates. This can allow for fully disclosed expectations when the new pastor arrives.
2 comments:
Taran,
This is good stuff! The church I now pastor went through a lengthy period of self-examination with an intentional interim prior to my arrival. I think that it really set us up to succeed. I am a big believer in the intentional interim process. A whole lot of our churches, whether healthy or not, could benefit from this process prior to calling a new pastor. Press on!
Dave,
Thanks for the information. I am glad that your church has worked out so well. Please add any comments or make any suggestions from your expereience as one who came in after the Intentional Interim time.
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