A Closed Door...

A few months ago, I received a call about the Intentional Interim Ministry (IIM) from a church in a town around 2 hours from my home. They had been given my name by the state director (from another state) who trained me in IIM. They church had recently terminated their pastor and they thought that the IIM might be appropriate for them. So they asked me to come out on a Wednesday night and share with the church the Intentional Interim Process.

I visited with the deacons and they described a fairly bleak picture. Their pastor had been there for twelve years and church attendance had decreased over that time period. The average church member is in their sixties and the pastor (according to the deacons) did little to address the serious issues facing the church. I asked the chairman of the deacons why he thought that they needed an Intentional Interim Minister. He replied “I can look out from the choir and see the congregation seated in the pews. Everyone is sitting where they’ve always sat. But people are beginning to die off. Now I see the holes in the congregation where people used to sit. There’s no one to replace them and the holes in the congregation are growing.”

They thanked me and asked me to come back a few weeks later to preach to the church on a Sunday morning and to attend a fellowship afterwards. The deacons expressed one bit of concern. They were unsure whether they needed someone full time or part time. In a follow up phone call, the deacon chairman quizzed me in some detail about the necessity of the minister being either full time or part time.

When I returned a few weeks later, I led in worship and then went to the lunch fellowship. Following the fellowship the church called a business meeting. I was asked to address the congregation and give another brief summary of the IIM. At the business meeting, the deacons recommended to the church that the church undertake the IIM. After a brief time of discussion, the church unanimously agreed that the IIM would be the best option. They expressed an excitement and a joy at what God might do.

They then turned to the question of full or part time. After much discussion, the church voted to call an intentional interim minister to lead the church full time through the process. They would try to find someone willing to relocate to their community (of around 8,000). As I prepared to leave, the deacon chairman patted me on the back and thanked me for visiting with them. I told him I’d keep the church in prayer and I asked him to stay in touch.

I haven’t heard from them in months.

One amusing occurrence. After finishing my lunch I went back to get some pecan pie. Right after I stood up, a lady approached me and said “We don’t have any church by-laws. Isn’t that strange?” I confessed that it seemed unusual for a Baptist church not to have any by-laws. When I reached the dessert table I was about to select the largest slice of pie I could find and another lady gently caught my arm in her hand. “Preacher, don’t you think it's important that a church should have by-laws?” I replied “Since you are the second person to ask me that question between the dinner table and the dessert table, yes I think it’s important that you have some by-laws.”