Five Conversations for Pastoral Transitions

As I prepare to move from Susanna Wesley United Methodist Church to McPherson First United Methodist Church this summer, I’ve been thinking a lot about how important it is to have good conversations during these changes. Over the years, I’ve used different resources to help with pastoral transitions. Still, this time, I decided to make my own tool that I hope will be useful for me and others in similar situations.

I started with a helpful document from the Great Plains Conference staff team called the Pastor-to-Pastor Meeting for Creating a Healthy Transition (PDF). I took that, expanded and organized it into five main conversations:

1. Worship and Congregational Life
2. Spiritual Formation and Pastoral Care
3. Stewardship, Finance, and Administration
4. Staff, Technology, and Communications
5. Transitions and Looking Forward

Under each conversation, there are 12 essential questions to help the current and new pastors talk about things like worship styles, attendance, taking care of the congregation, money matters, staff, communication, and advice for a smooth transition. These conversations are designed to help incoming and outgoing pastors share, learn, see potential problems, and find opportunities for the church, pastors, and families.

I’m grateful for the Great Plains Conference staff team’s work in creating the original Pastor to Pastor Meetings document. There are other great resources from the Great Plains Conference on Pastoral Transitions here. I wanted to share my version in the hopes that it can be a practical and helpful tool for others dealing with pastoral changes.

Please feel free to use it, share it with others, and change it to fit your needs. I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences, so leave a comment below!