Intentional Interims Needed
The Region's further development of strategies for ministering to churches in transition requires a steady supply of Intentional Interim Ministers. "Intentional" means that each interim pastor will work with church leaders and the Consultant for Transitional Ministries to help the congregation explore who they are and how they can become healthier and better equipped to reach their full kingdom potential. We are seeking people who feel called to ministering to congregations in transition and are trained to do so in line with our vision in Michigan of "Growing Healthy Churches".
In transitional ministry we are constantly learning and growing as we explore better ways to serve our churches. Therefore we are looking for interims to join our team who desire to learn and grow. We are also seeking interims who can be trusted with a high level of responsibility and authority, while being held accountable to our vision and the Consultant for Transitional Ministries.
As an Intentional Interim, you must be able to travel and at times be away from your home for 3-4 days per week. This is one of the challenges of being an interim, as the opportunities for interim ministry are rarely in your "back yard." We prefer Interim candidates who have a proven track record in some form of ministerial leadership; but will be open to those new to ministry upon a recommendation from an ABC pastor or Region staff. In addition, anyone who desires to serve as an interim must go through our training, and/or be approved by the Consultant for Transitional Ministries. Our next "Introduction to Interim Ministry" training event will take place on Thursday, March 13, 2008 at the Region office from 9am-3pm. If you would like more information or wish to register for this training, please contact Rev. Tucker J. Gunneman at tgunneman@abc-mi.org, cell phone 586.219.3392; or Debbie Hart at the Region office at 800.632.2953 ext.221, or dhart@abc-mi.org.
While each congregation is different and has different health issues, we are developing ways in which the interim can "seize the day" to help our churches:
Discover how to move maintenance focused ministry to missional focused ministry
Discover for themselves health issues to be addressed in preparation for calling new pastoral leadership
Empower the leadership to address those health issues
Prepare the congregation for new pastoral leadership
Provide a caring ministry of healing for congregations who have said goodbye to their pastor
If these concepts excite you and you would be interested in joining our team or learning more, please contact the Consultant for Transitional Ministries, Rev. Tucker J. Gunneman at tgunneman@abc-mi.org, cell phone 586.219.3392.