Leaders are readers. In light of that, I want to share a few insights from a book I’ve found very timely for the work we do with churches in transition.

The book is called, Metanoia: How God Radically Transforms People, Churches, and Organizations from the Inside Out and is written by Alan Hirsch with Rob Kelly. 

This is not a complete summary of the book but rather a few of my initial take aways as I make my way through it. The reason I’m reading the book is because I had the privilege of hearing Alan Hirsch speak about this idea at a workshop I attended while at Exponential (a global church multiplication conference in Orlando, Florida in March). 

My hope is that these ideas will whet your appetite to possibly pick up the book or at the very least, consider the implications of the ideas I’m wrestling with myself. 

Five Ideas from the School of Alan Hirsch*

 1. We must properly define metanoia  

 The Greek term metanoia—traditionally and inadequately translated as “repentance”—m...

by Hugh Fraser

Who better than the Apostle Paul to enhance our practice of ministry?  To the church at Corinth, Paul commended his life and service to Christ as a worthy model to follow. He said simply, “Follow my example” (1 Cor. 11:1). 

In this article, I offer proven principles for transitional leaders who want to learn from Paul’s example. After all, he did serve as an external shepherd intentionally intervening in a disrupted congregation.   

 Paul’s Four Proven Principles Applied to Today’s Transitional Leader

 Consider these four leadership lessons from Paul based upon the first four chapters of 1 Corinthians. 

 1.  Initiate Thorough Assessment 

  “My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you” (1 Cor. 1:11).  

 How can anyone discern their suitability for a ministry assignment without knowing in advance the current state of a church?  Additionally, a transitional leader seeking to design and communicate an effective work plan...

By Garth Borthistle

A key principle in resolution work (aka transition ministry) is that 90 percent of what makes a gathering (meeting, conflict-resolution process, etc.) successful is put in place before hand.  

Priya Parker in her book, The Art of Gathering, refers to this rule in a story about work done in complex Middle East dialogue situations. Before bringing leaders together for dialogue, there were two years of preparation work and trust building with delegates. The work consisted of building relational trust, having tea with individuals, listening, meeting family members and hours of pre-dialogue. This is where 90 percent of the gathering’s success is set in motion. 

Time Spent Listening Sets the Course

For transitional leaders or pastors, the level of conflict in a church gives us guidance for this pre-work. I’ve been in a few very tense situations with churches and have found that spending time listening and fact finding does set the course for much of the work ahead.  T...

By Keith Shields

I began my training with the Transitional Leadership Network (TLN) in 2018 when I was Interim Lead Pastor of a Calgary, Alberta church. I had been Executive Pastor beside a great Lead Pastor who shepherded for 41 years—21 as Lead Pastor and 20 as an Associate. After almost 50 years of continuity, this shift would be a shock to the congregation. The congregation was healthy but needed a transitional period to determine next steps. I was a leader and elder for about 20 years, so the congregation had comfort with me in an interim role. Wanting to serve them well, I sought additional training to strengthen my skills.

Transitional Leaders - More than a Place Holder

Through the TLN training, I realized transitional leaders are more than interim leaders holding a place until a new Lead Pastor is hired. Being a Transitional Pastor is challenging because you must do everything a Lead Pastor does (preaching, administration, pastoral care, evangelism, etc.) and guide the churc...

There continues to be a need for more harvest hands needs in all areas of God's kingdom harvest work. That includes the need for more quality transitional pastors. Where do you fit into helping to meet that need?

The Transitional Leader (TL) Designation program equips and supports both transitional leaders and their sponsoring agencies. Transitional leaders receive training and support for ongoing development and ministry effectiveness. Denominational leaders and other sponsors receive support and resources to find, train and designate transitional leaders for the harvest field.