Wednesday, January 05, 2011

9Marks articles on transition

My friend Adam recently forwarded an e-mail of the most recent (January/February 2011) 9Marks eJournal, from the 9Marks folks (they take their name from Mark Dever's 9 Marks of a Healthy Church). Knowing my interest in pastoral transition, he knew I would be interested in these articles.

They are all very good. Here's a run-down of the articles included:

Pastors Leaving
Leaving Your Church Well: An Interview with Michael Lawrence. This is an informative interview, offering one pastor's reflections on his experience with transition. (I think it's important to keep in mind the fact that this is one guy's experience.)

Prepare the Church for the Next Guy by Matt Schmucker. A good list of things to do that will accomplish what the title suggests. This particular list is written from a Baptist perspective, and will have less application in other contexts.

Book Review: Handle That New Call With Care by David Campbell (reviewed by Bobby Jamieson). This is a helpful review; there are a lot of good books on this topic, and I appreciate the objectivity in this review.

Pastors Coming
What's Wrong With Search Committees? Part 1 of 2 on Finding a Pastor by Mark Dever. This is standard Mark Dever fare: good insights and sound wisdom, served up with a slightly abrasive tone. If committee members can read through the abrasiveness, they'll find some good warnings here.

What's Right About Elders? Part 2 of 2 on Finding a Pastor by Mark Dever and Bobby Jamieson. A very interesting counter-point to the previous article, here arguing for Elders (instead of more broadly-based Search Committees) conducting pastoral searches. He makes some strong points, though I question how practicable this approach is, especially for larger congregations.

What Not To Do When You're The New Guy by Walter Price. Very solid advice from a seasoned pastor, useful in pretty much every transition. Definitely worth reading.

You Might Have The Wrong Candidate If... by Dennis Newkirk. Skip the opening half of this article; the real meat is in the last half (and especially the last third). But the stuff there is really good stuff. Committees, please take note!

Tips For An Interim Pastor by Jonathan Leeman. Generally some good advice here. The writer's points of reference were fairly short interims, and those with a longer interim tenure (six months or more) might take much of this with a grain of salt.

Pastors Staying
Staying To The Glory Of God: One Preacher's Death Wish by Jeramie Rinne. This piece is a good challenge to consider long-tenure pastorates, which I agree is not seriously considered often enough in today's pastoral climate.

Staying For The Glory Of God: The Sibbes, Simeon, And Stott Model by Mark Dever. Another good challenge to consider staying longer.


Click over to the 9Marks site through any of the links above and check out some of these articles. Thanks, Adam for pointing these out to me!

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