There’s an old saying, “Once a preacher, always a preacher,” and many retired Alabama Baptist pastors find that their skills and experience are still needed in churches that are between permanent pastors.
The word “interim” means “in the meantime,” and it is the term used in Baptist churches to describe both the time period between pastors and the pastor serving the church during that period.
Though sometimes seen as a Sunday-only preacher, an interim pastor can and should serve a greater purpose in the life of the church, according to Dale Huff.
As director of the office of LeaderCare and church administration for the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions, Huff works with churches that need ministers and ministers who need a place to serve.
He said that an interim pastor meets a church’s need for stability and constancy of leadership.
“When a pastor leaves, there is initial excitement about the different preachers that supply the pulpit — new faces, new sermons, new stories,” Huff said.
“But after about six to eight weeks of this, there begins to be a desire for regularity,” he added.
Part of this need, Huff said, is a desire on the part of church members to know who will be preaching and to build a relationship with that person.
An interim pastor provides the comfort of consistency in the pulpit, and retired pastors bring both their preaching experience and people skills to the role of interim pastor.
Don Carroll, retired director of missions for Calhoun Baptist Association and a pastor for more than 30 years, said that churches, both big and small, benefit from the ministry of an interim pastor.
Carroll, whose most recent interim position was with Oak Grove Baptist Church, Glencoe, said one of the greatest strengths a retired pastor brings to the role of interim pastor is people skills.
“Experience has taught us that you’ve got to love people, you’ve got to communicate with them and you’ve got to be compassionate,” he said. “When you’ve been in the ministry a long time, you learn those things.”
In addition to affirming members of the church, an interim pastor should be someone who can point out ministry strengths, while addressing tensions and problems that may exist.
Such abilities are probably best met by an experienced, retired pastor who doesn’t have to fear losing his job or benefits, Huff noted.
“Furthermore ministers who have spent years learning how to effectively work with people are less apt to overreact to things,” he said.
“They know that if one gets reactive and defensive, it will make things worse, so they tend to relieve tension rather than create it.”
Jerry Keese, who retired from the full-time pastorate in 2001 after serving First Baptist Church, Flomaton, for 20 years, has served four churches as interim pastor since his retirement.
Currently serving as interim pastor of Alco Baptist Church, Brewton, Keese said as an interim pastor, he tries to be positive and help the church look toward the future.
“When a church is without a pastor, it’s a very critical time in the life of the church,” Keese said. “I don’t go in just to fill the pulpit. I try to go in and pastor the church temporarily so attendance doesn’t go down and the church retains its strength.”
He said each church he has served has wanted an interim pastor who could do more than simply preach on Sundays and lead Wednesday night Bible study.
As an interim pastor, Keese has visited the homebound and those in the hospital, performed weddings and funerals and worked with the deacons and church committees as necessary.
In carrying out these pastoral duties, he said he hopes to show church members that the life of the church continues in the interim period.
“If the interim pastor is really committed, he’s going to be there to help them, not just to show up,” Keese said.
“What I tell people when I go to a church as interim is that I have not come to just preach or to float along with you. I have come to engage in ministry, to help you at a critical time when you are between pastors and hopefully to help the church get stronger.”
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