Succession: The Things You Need to Know but Others Won’t Tell You

By Jerry Harris

I’ve had to do a lot of difficult and deeply challenging things as a senior pastor. Growing a church from an average in-person attendance of 230 to over 8,000 in a rural area was a challenge. Building 11 separate campuses covering an area of over 10,000 square miles was challenging. Going from 8,000 square feet of space to over a half-million square feet of space with all the maintenance and expansion needs was challenging. Hiring and overseeing a staff that grew from two to over 200 with all their issues and needs with a budget that was 50 percent the size of other churches with the same attendance was challenging. Nonstop capital campaigns and generosity initiatives to fund this growth were challenging. Navigating staff issues, elder needs, and cultural and theological battles never felt like a vacation. But nothing, absolutely nothing, was as challenging as developing, implementing, and surviving the succession of that ministry to the next leader. 

I know that sounds pretty dark, but not for the reason you might think. In many ways, going through that challenge was incredibly rewarding and deeply spiritual, surprising in lots of ways and unexpected in almost every way. I’d like to say I was prepared for it. In lots of ways, I think I was more prepared than most. My wife and I spent hours sitting down with friends in similar circumstances who were on a succession timeline running a bit ahead or a bit behind our situation to learn from them. Those conversations were priceless, and the information shared provided much more insight than reading books or attending conferences. There’s a reason for that, and I could drop a lot of well-known and influential names to add credibility to these words, but it would violate the value of those relationships and private conversations. So, while the substance of those insights will be shared, many of the names will be protected. 

That’s why I titled this article as I did. The topic is not something leaders will be transparent about in public settings, particularly in the areas of pinch points and pain that come with the process. That’s the motivation that caused me to start writing about this. I also publish Christian Standard and decided to explore the issue of succession in this issue; but when it came to the critical topics that required transparency, we couldn’t find writers to accept the assignment. I get it. People like to project the best version of themselves, their church, and their leadership. They also don’t want to say or write anything that would cast a negative light on their successor or the church into which they invested so much. I respect that, but there must be a resource that tackles the hard things and an environment where they can be voiced and addressed. 

We don’t talk about Bruno. 

I love watching my grandchildren’s favorite movies with them. One of their recent favorites has been Encanto and my favorite character in the movie is Bruno. Encanto is the Spanish word for enchantment and each member except for one (Mirabel) had a special gift along with the house in which they lived. However, one member of the family had disappeared, and no one talked about him, hence the song. When we meet this character, we find that he lives behind the walls of the house in self-exile because his gift, knowing people’s futures, is negative and hurtful. So, unaware that he is still there, the family refuses to bring him up. But just because some future event will have some pain associated with it, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be aware of it and prepared for it. 

That couldn’t be truer than with succession. We all know that it’s coming but when we’re in the middle of our ministry time, maybe our most fruitful time, we would rather not talk about Bruno . . . no, no, no. Maybe so much of our identity is tied up in what we do that we wouldn’t know who we were without it. Maybe we’re not in a financial position to even consider the prospect of it. Maybe we push this idea away because, as one great leader shared with me, “I think I have more gas in my tank.” Maybe the best thing to do would be to ignore it until it can’t be ignored anymore. I don’t think there could be a worse strategy for a church leader, even if it forces us into some difficult places that we would rather stay out of. Why? 

First, there is the biblical mandate in 2 Timothy 2:2. “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (New International Version). 

While that Scripture could be applied generically, we must remember that Paul was sharing it with Timothy, handing his ministry baton to him. It comes just two chapters before the charge that was read to us at our ordinations and considered Paul’s last and most important words. 

Second, we are church leaders who are not only committed to evangelism, but to discipleship, and the discipleship of leadership carries exponential gravity compared to non-leadership discipleship. When we hand off ministry, the discipleship of it is reproduced 100, 1,000, even 10,000 times, and yet it seems to be one of the most neglected areas of deep discipleship. 

Third, the best leaders were disciplers of leaders. The Bible gives us great examples with leadership being handed off from Moses to Joshua, from David to Solomon, from Elijah to Elisha, and from Paul to Timothy. However, the best example is from Jesus himself, who reproduced his leadership into 12 men who changed the face and faith of the world! This is not a short process, not even a yearlong process. Jesus spent three years, day and night, investing in these men and no one is better at discipling than him. If it took Jesus that long, it would surely take us longer. 

We need to start thinking and planning for succession earlier rather than later, knowing that the stakes are high, the process takes time, and that we are following a biblical mandate. Although it’s a bit out of context, 1 Timothy 5:8 has challenged me in the area of succession: “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” 

I know this Scripture refers to our biological families, but as senior leaders who take on a pastoring role we see church as family ,and this is a critical need to present and future stability. This flies in the face of a common practice to use a “headhunter” to find candidates and go through a process that way. Even though a book written by a headhunting agency has been used as a reference for this process, I think there would be self-interest in it as it would motivate the use of their agency or another one. I’ve seen theological and cultural values compromised for personality or speaking ability. That’s not a good trad. It can and has been a precursor to a disastrous transition, mostly for the congregation. Just because you have a good matchmaker doesn’t mean you’ll have a great marriage! 

One of the most successful ministers I know, if not the most successful, gave me this advice, “It all depends on you. You are in the power position to make the transition smooth. If it doesn’t work out, it’s your fault.” I took that advice seriously and did my best, but for all of my effort in trying to do the right things, there were some issues I didn’t see in front of me. Here are a few of them: 

He was done, but I wasn’t. 

Ministry is a major part of the ethos of my marriage. We’re not just life partners; we’re ministry partners. I know that doesn’t describe every ministry marriage, but it describes ours. While we sought counsel from other ministry couples as to how to prepare for it, succession had a much harder impact on my wife than it did on me. Since churches tend to see retirement as a package deal, my wife was on the transition train whether she wanted to be or not. The clarity we needed came from Randy Frazee who was preparing for his succession at the time and was attending an informal gathering of ministry friends. When I told him that my wife was having a much more difficult time in the transition, his attention shifted to her, probing into her feelings about it. Two other wives began to share some of the same feelings, sometimes in tears. After listening, Randy summed it up with the statement, “So, all your life, your husband created a context for you to do ministry in and then he just took it away.” It was like all the preparation and talking paled in comparison to that one simple statement. I’m not sure beyond the knowledge of it what could have been done to alleviate it, but it’s true that I didn’t see that one coming. 

Prepare for a Viking funeral. 

I can’t remember where I got the idea, but I remember a scene where a dead Viking king was placed on a pyre constructed on a raft. After drifting a sufficient distance, an archer shot a flaming arrow to set the pyre ablaze. However, in my memory, attendants, slaves, wives, and family members were killed and their bodies placed on the raft to burn with the king. I don’t know how often this scenario took place in history, but I know it tends to be true in the succession of senior pastors whose families have salaried roles in the church and are expected to move on with the former leader. With the exception of succession of the senior pastor to a son or immediate family member, I don’t know of a circumstance where it doesn’t happen. Nepotism is an understandable reality in ministry, subject to the higher highs and lower lows that come with it. One senior pastor remarked, “There are a lot of things ministry takes from you. This is one thing it can give back.” I hear that and have experienced it personally, but it usually isn’t something that either the family member or the next leader will find comfortable. I wasn’t prepared for that one. 

I’m learning just to be a child of God. 

My friend Tim Harlow shared those words in the context of transition on a podcast, and when he said it, it hit me like a freight train. I was nominal Christian before feeling the call to full-time ministry. I was two weeks from entering my junior year at Indiana University when it happened, and literally everything in my life changed overnight. I transferred to Ozark Bible College, left home, left a job, a serious girlfriend, my friends, my familiar surroundings, and my church to go somewhere I’d never been before, to do something I’d never even considered. I started looking for preaching opportunities immediately and threw myself into this new reality. Now, here on the other end of that calling and after hearing Tim’s words, it occurred to me that I had never lived out what it meant to be a child of God outside the context of a paid ministry. Frankly, I had no idea what it meant to “just be a child of God” and I still can’t say that I know outside the context of full-time ministry. This part of the journey is ongoing for me, but I believe the same God who has been faithful every day up to this point will continue to be just that and fill the gaps in my soul. However, in no way did I ever see that one coming. 

These are just three lessons of what has been revelation after revelation to me. And without the transparency of those who have gone before me, I’d be stuck stumbling through them and making things up as I go. I don’t think that’s a very good plan for success. 

It all depends on you . . . until it doesn’t! 

Earlier in this article, I shared advice from one of the best leadership voices I know. This person said that since the senior pastor has all the power in the process of succession, the burden of making it successful falls on him. As I walked this out in real time, I would make one amendment to that rule: “It all depends on you . . . until it doesn’t!” Once the staff was made aware of the change, there was an immediate shift of loyalty and communication. When the congregation was informed, they followed suit. That is the absolute best outcome a leader and a church can have. It Minimizes disruptions and capitalizes on positives for the wellbeing of the church body. 

However, once the shift has been made, so has the responsibility for the outcome because the power has moved to a new leader. From this point on, the succeeded leader is merely along for the ride. This is probably why many leaders leave the area for a time, or maybe for good, because it can be very hard. One of my ministry friends who has recently transitioned from a huge megachurch was being mentored by an older retired senior pastor of a megachurch. His advice to my friend was this, “Prepare to get hurt every day.” Now don’t misunderstand. This doesn’t and usually isn’t anybody’s fault. It’s just that a new leader is going to approach the ministry you’ve released with different priorities and passions. Staff that you hired and discipled will leave, ministry spaces will be updated, ministries and titles will be replaced or overhauled, and it will feel like death from a thousand paper cuts. The reason is that each one of those changes has significance and a sense of ownership to the one who has been succeeded. This is why many choose to move on; it’s just too hard. My wife and I have chosen to stay put and we strive to be an encouragement to the successor and the congregation, but my wife describes it as feeling like being haunted. These are memories that feel like ghosts and they are everywhere, reminding us of significant things that no longer have the form they once had. How do we manage that? We do it through the law of the bigger “yes.” When we see the church growing, younger people taking notes and making commitments to Christ, and records being broken, the kingdom is winning. It may hurt our pride and ego, but it’s worth it! 

There is no “one size fits all” approach. 

It would take a book instead of an article to explore the issues I’m just touching on here, and just to let you know, I’m working on one. But suffice it to say that every church, every leader, every context, every history, and every successor is different. There are hundreds of variables that go into this complicated equation in order to have kingdom success in succession. There is a lot of self-interest that must be dealt with through the process. What does the retiring or previous leader need in order to be as comfortable as possible? What does the successor need to have the best platform possible? Is the former leader going to be a ghost that haunts him? Does the former leader have his financial circumstances well thought out? Will the staff gravitate to the new leader, or will they hold on to the former one? What about the eldership and their allegiance? How will the congregation respond? Will they accept the new leader or vote with their feet? 

Not all succession happens in the context of successful ministry. The successor may be standing on strong shoulders or digging out of a hole. The truth is that in some ways they will probably be doing both simultaneously. Truly, it can all be a minefield. Beware of those who give advice in absolutes. It’s okay to listen to them, but hold them as ideas or suggestions regardless of how they might be given to you. Don’t expect that elders will do this well or even know how to do it. A deeper look here could really avoid a lot of potential pain and loss. Finally, master the art of honor and celebration when it is due. This is critical to the health and wellbeing of the church and its future. Remember that our legacy is not held in the hands of man, but in the hands of God. Let Paul’s words in Colossians 3:17 temper our actions: “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” 

Jerry Harris is retired senior pastor of The Crossing in Quincy, Illinois and publisher of Christian Standard.