When I took my first church music role, I never planned to stay in church music long. Almost twenty-eight years later, here I am. This Sunday, I will finish my fourth interim worship role in 27 years of ministry. This interim was altogether different because I had no previous connection with the church or anyone in it. There is a real need for interim worship leadership, and a greater need for it to be done well. What does doing it well look like?
Effective interim worship leadership works best when the leader is not in the running for the position. I would say that goes well for any type of interim ministry. I am not saying that God won’t transition a person from interim to permanent, but it must be a God-thing. When you aren’t in the running for the permanent role, there is really a lot of freedom in it. I never felt like I had to perform in such a way to keep the job. Any way you look at it, I was temporary. I did not solicit the role to start with. God directed me to this, and I knew I had a purpose to help the church during the transition. While a few tried to convince me to stay, I knew my mission was clear. Had I solicited the full-time permanent role, there would have been tremendous potential for awkward moments, and I had made up my mind that I would not put myself nor the church in that place. Rather than put a church in an awkward place, stick with the reason why you went there to start with and fulfill your purpose.
Go in with a clear understanding of where the church has been. In most of my interim worship roles, there had been tumultuous times in the church’s music ministry. Let’s face it! Music is one of the biggest battlegrounds in the church. People fight over styles, personalities, and opinions about the level of a person’s talent, leaving someone hurt in the crossfire. It is good to know the issues in the music ministry that led them to where they are.
Know where the church wants to go. This can be more confusing than it sounds. In three of my four interim worship roles, I led during a time of pastoral transition. It’s sensitive enough when your the interim worship leader, but it’s even more confusing when you’re working with an interim pastor (especially if the interim pastor does not know how to lead like one or does not choose to do so). Someone has to chart the course for where the church is headed. In these cases, I have had a deacon, committee, or an interim pastor give me guidance. The confusing part is when you come in with one type of direction, and the new pastor comes in requesting you do a 180 and go the opposite direction. Then you as interim worship leader get caught in the crossfire. (Thankfully, I wasn’t asked to do a 180 this time.) You need to know who is charting the course, and you must act wisely in helping guide things.
Help steer the ship, but don’t make huge changes. You can cast vision as an interim worship leader, but keep it simple so that you are not guiding the worship ministry in a direction that could contradict the direction that will be set by the next permanent leader. If a need drives the change, then change it with the guidance of church leadership (specifically the lead pastor in the case one is present).
Make prayer a first resort during the transition. Have concentrated times of prayer over the search team, pastor, and the process. Set aside rehearsal time for it. This gives the team a chance to see God work through their prayers.
Work in concert with the pastor and/or team that will call the next worship leader. I give caution with this one. Don’t force yourself upon the search team, but offer support as needed or asked. One of the choirs I inherited wanted to use books for everything. I told the team that most any candidate they would talk to would want the choir to ditch them. It was a mountain I would not be able to move while I was there, but I was able to drop hints in conjunction with the search team chairperson to pave the way for it. As the church got closer to calling the new worship leader, I was able to work with him and give pep talks to the choir in support of the good work done by the search team. Beautiful momentum is built when the baton is passed well.
Leave well! This is as important as, if not more than, everything done during your tenure, whether you stay for months or even a few years. Speak words of encouragement and blessing over the worship ministry, the church, and the incoming leadership. Be excited about where the church is headed. Build momentum so you make it easy for the next person. And don’t lurk in the shadows! Ease into your next place of service and be a blessing there.
A good interim/transitional worship leader really can be a blessing to a church. If this individual understands his role, specifically that he is more than a “fill-in”, he can unify, stabilize, and even energize toward the next level of ministry for the church.
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