Next: Pastoral Succession that Works

Every pastor is an interim pastor. Every church and ministry goes through changes in leadership. Despite this truth, few churches are planning ahead for the day they will face a transition in leadership, and far too many handoffs in leadership end with a dropped ball. But the outcome doesn’t have to be that way. While there is no simple, one-size-fits-all solution to the puzzle of planning for a seamless pastoral succession, Next offers church leaders and pastors a guide to asking the right questions in order to plan for the future. Vanderbloemen, founder of a leading pastoral search firm, and Bird, an award-winning writer and researcher, share insider stories of succession failures and successes in dozens of churches, including some of the nation’s most influential. Through case studies, interviews, and real-time research, the authors demystify successful pastoral succession and help you prepare for an even brighter future for your ministry.