Are you moving to a new appointment? Is your church getting a new pastor? Use these resources to help make a successful transition for you, your church, and your family.
The Right Start: Beginning Ministry in a New Setting
This video-based training resource is for clergy preparing to begin ministry in a new setting; the Pastor’s Version is designed for individual use and self-study. The current version has been revised and enhanced with new material on the relational aspect of transition, such as how to handle social media and issues of concern to single clergy and associate pastors.
Your Best Move: Effective Leadership Transition for the Local Church by Robert Kaylor
Whether you are the pastor making the move or part of a congregation receiving a new pastor, this book will help pastors and congregations develop an intentional transition plan for those first critical months of ministry together.
Leadership Directions from Moses: On the Way to a Promised Land by Olu Brown
United Methodist Pastor Olu Brown offers this helpful perspective on what to do when members and church leaders depart your congregation. Using principles from the story of Moses, Brown helps leaders keep their focus on where God is leading no matter what happens.
Good Moves: Seven Questions for Clergy to Ask Upon Leaving and Entering Positions of Leadership: A Systems Perspective by Phillip S. Washburn
Clergy contemplating or facing a move face three “how to” issues: first, how to assess a potential new congregation to which they feel called; second, how to disengage from their current position once a new one has been found; and third, how to engage the new setting.
Next: Surviving a Leadership Transition by Marvin Anthony Moss
United Methodist Pastor Marvin Anthony Moss helped transform a small, dying congregation, and later transitioned into leadership at a nationally recognized, historic congregation. He draws from these experiences and biblical examples to focus on practical principles, empowering the new leader to build a solid foundation.
Almost There: Searching for Home in a Life on the Move by Bekah DiFelice
DiFelice is a military wife who invites us to build a home that resides in the privacy of our hearts and to put roots down in a God who is unchangeable. United Methodist families can relate to this unpredictability of life.
After the Boxes Are Unpacked: Moving On After Moving In by Susan Miller
Miller helps recent movers focus on letting go of their past, starting over, and moving ahead while discerning God’s will for their family. This evergreen book has been a staple for movers for 20 years and has been extensively refreshed with additional content for today’s movers.
Part-Time is Plenty: Thriving without Full-Time Clergy by G. Jeffrey MacDonald
Is your church moving from a full-time to a part-time pastor? Are you moving to a part-time appointment? Learn to stop viewing part-time as a problem to be eradicated and to instead embrace it as a divine gift that facilitates a higher level of lay engagement, responsibility, playfulness, and creativity.
Leading from the Second Chair: Serving Your Church, Fulfilling Your Role, and Realizing Your Dreams by Mike Bonem and Roger Patterson
Are you moving to an associate or other subordinate position? This book raises awareness of the need for strong leaders in secondary positions. It will describe the value they can bring to their church and to primary leaders when they are serving at their full potential. It will reshape the way they view their role, with an emphasis on their own responsibility as leaders.
Nothing is Permanent Except Change: Learning to Manage Transition in Your Life by James E. Miller
This beautiful video uses evocative photography of autumn, winter and spring to illustrate the concept that all human transitions naturally go through a three-phase process. Specific suggestions are included for negotiating one’s way through each phase.
Online Resources
The Lewis Center for Church Leadership at Wesley Theological Seminary offers many helpful articles, podcasts, and resources for Pastoral Transitions.
Resource UMC offers a A guide to pastoral transitions for pastors and When you have a new pastor … for congregations.
Additional Resources
For more resources to help you begin your new appointment effectively, view our Effective Leadership pathfinder. It includes books and DVDs on leadership in general, church leadership specifically, and lay leadership within churches.