Dr. Bob Bender was Lead Pastor of Cross Fellowship Church in Colorado Springs for 19 years. Dr. Matthew Morton succeeded him and has led Cross Fellowship for the past 2 years.
From Dr. Bob Bender
This month, the quadrennial summer Olympic Games begin in Paris, France. One of my favorite races to watch in track and field is the relay race where four runners each run a “leg” and then pass the baton on to the next runner. One of the things that Dr. Matthew Morton and I have in common is that we both ran track–more specifically the relay race. Now I was an “also ran” assigned the second of four positions while Matthew ran the anchor leg (obviously in different eras!).
The one aspect of that race that gives coaches the most angst and is most difficult for the runners is exchanging the baton from one runner to the next. The runner ending his leg must be willing to let go of the baton and the one in front of him must be ready to firmly receive it within a definite time/space allotted for the exchange. The success or failure of the race depends primarily upon a good handoff.
The same is true for transition of leadership primarily in the Lead Pastor position. The one retiring or moving on must be willing to “let go” within the allotted time frame assigned by the Father and the one taking the reins must be willing to firmly take the baton and carry it over the finish line. Our hearts sink when the runners drop the baton and our hearts rejoice when our team crosses over the line with the baton intact.
We are all interim pastors. Our time as Lead Pastors ends just as sure as it began. We must not take ourselves too seriously as if everything depends upon us.
Spiritually, more is at stake than a mere race between two athletes. The health and impact of the church and kingdom weighs in the balance when one pastor leaves and another comes to take his place. At no time in a church’s history is there more opportunity to drop the baton and kingdom enterprise compromised than in a time of leadership transition. The Chinese word for crisis is a combo of two words—danger and opportunity. Which will it be for our churches in transition?
We are all interim pastors. Our time as Lead Pastors ends just as sure as it began. We must not take ourselves too seriously as if everything depends upon us. After about 18 months after leaving my church in Oklahoma for Colorado Springs, I called back for some information and after I introduced myself to the new admin who answered the phone, she said, “Now this is BOB WHO?” I was tempted to say, “I am the immediate former pastor who pastored there for almost 15 years!”
In the words of our late Personnel Team chair concerning the transition of leadership at our church—“This is the natural progression of things in the kingdom.” One man’s ending is another’s beginning. “For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep” (Acts 13:33). We are all to serve God’s purpose in our own generation and then move on for “Solomon to take the throne.”
We are familiar with the Biblical models of leadership transition: Moses to Joshua; Elijah to Elisha; Paul to Timothy; David to Solomon and to a lesser extent Barnabas to John Mark. But how does it exactly work? When was it time for me to finish my leg in the race and pass the baton on? Obviously, the sovereignty of God rules over all of this: “For not from the east, nor from the west, nor from the desert comes exaltation; but God is the Judge; He puts down one and exalts another” (Ps. 75:6-7 NASB). However, I have found the following human elements began to become evident in my life leading up to God’s urging me to move on:
- Becoming tired OF the work rather than tired IN the work
- Beginning of a loss of passion and vision
- A sense of being in a rut
- Getting a little edgy with minor things bothering me that heretofore did not
- A feeling that I have led this church to as far as I can
- My wife and key leaders concurring that now may be the time
- One that did not apply to me but is a common one—when your staff no longer follows you
- When you have your potential successor prepared and ready to take the baton
- Having the church ask “Why now?” rather than “How long?” upon your announcement. Better to leave too soon than too late. Many a pastor lingers on too long.
A couple of don’ts: Do not let a few people “push you out.” You will always have naysayers. Listen to God and Godly counsel; not your critics. And if you are retiring, do not wait until another opportunity comes along before you do so. I had received no promise of another job and in fact had given a large chunk of my retirement to our last capital campaign, but God is faithful and He will take care of you.
The results of a healthy hand off as in the case of Cross Fellowship are: continued church health and exponential church growth; the bond of love and respect between former and current leadership; and the ability for the former pastor to let go and allow the next runner to take it home to victory knowing that as you run your own unique race, so will he.
From Dr. Matthew Morton
My favorite element of the relay race is the team aspect. An athlete could certainly run an open 100 meter dash void of any teammates, but no athlete can run a relay race alone. Dr. Bob Bender has been my teammate in ministry for 19 years and much (if not all) of what I have learned about being a Pastor has come from him.
“The success or failure of the race depends primarily upon a good handoff.” I would submit that a handoff only becomes good after hours of disciplined practice. Dr. Bender and I have been practicing our handoff since December of 2007 (although I do not believe either one of us were fully aware of it). It was that year that I was first ordained and Dr. Bender preached my ordination service. He then took seriously his duty to disciple, train, and mentor me. I did my best to take my duty seriously of learning and listening first before I asked questions.
The number of instances in which Dr. Bender espoused leadership wisdom in the everyday moments of ministry are countless and I find myself every day employing them now as lead pastor. Dr. Bender led with an open door – meaning he let me watch not just what he was doing but how he was doing it. Whether it was personnel moves, capital campaigns, or sermon preparations, Dr. Bender would let me watch. All of these instances amount to disciplined practice of passing a baton.
As Dr. Bender mentioned, the outgoing pastor must not take himself too seriously. The same holds true for the incoming pastor. The health and “exponential church growth” have nothing to do with me. The person receiving the baton can take no credit for what position he is in when his leg begins. I stand on the shoulders of a spiritual giant who has been faithful to serve and has been faithful and so used by God. However, and to that same end, I know I am now responsible for this leg of the race and I too must be faithful so when my time comes to handoff I will set up my successor for success (notice the similarity of those two words).
The person receiving the baton can take no credit for what position he is in when his leg begins. I stand on the shoulders of a spiritual giant who has been faithful to serve and has been faithful and so used by God.
In humility, and more importantly–all to God’s glory–the transition from Dr. Bob Bender to myself has been a successful and healthy one. I believe many of the following elements have been essential to that success:
- I requested on the day I was announced as the candidate for Lead Pastor that Dr. Bob Bender be named Pastor Emeritus in perpetuity in the life of Cross Fellowship Church. He has been my pastor for the last 19 years and continues to be so.
- I asked Pastor Bender to stay on paid staff (although I paid him under minimum wage) as an advisor to me because there is no one who has more history or knows more about the church than him. Every time I have called, he has picked up the phone. Additionally, there are many in the congregation who have a deep love for Pastor Bender and throughout the years he has had the opportunity to still minister to them (in the last 18 months he has officiated 5 funerals and made several hospital visits).
- I have pushed against any notion that it was Dr. Bender’s church and now it is my church – it is God’s church, always has been and always will be. We are just runners in a part of a race that Jesus has already won. Ownership over that which belongs to God wreaks of the pride God will oppose.
- I have made a special effort to include Pastor Bob in key decisions of the church, even if that inclusion meant only notification. I desire and respect his wisdom and he has become my biggest cheerleader. I made a hard decision early on that he might have made differently but I told him before I did so. When a congregant came seeking him out about that decision he was well-informed and was also able to provide his support to my decision.
Drawing back to the analogy at hand, runners must never run with their heads down and doing so in a relay would be disastrous. If one is not looking for who they will hand off to, they will not be prepared when that time inevitably comes.
Drawing back to the analogy at hand, runners must never run with their heads down and doing so in a relay would be disastrous. If one is not looking for who they will hand off to, they will not be prepared when that time inevitably comes. Pending the second coming of Jesus or another act of His sovereignty, I will not be the final leg of Cross Fellowship Church. While I have just started running my leg I am already looking for my successor. Dr. Bender modeled so well what it means to teach, train, disciple, and mentor pastors and I must certainly do the same.
The transition of leadership between two pastors can bring about a myriad of difficult emotions in congregants – much of that difficulty can be eased when the fear of the unknown is reduced by dealing with known entities. In short and if possible, handing off the baton to a pastor who is already on staff is ideal. Not every church is financially able to maintain multiple vocational pastors but a disciplined budgetary approach of setting aside a small amount of money every year can garner the funds needed to employ two pastors over the period of a transition year.
Whether you are the outgoing pastor or the incoming one, we owe it to those in our care to be disciplined and intentional in our transition planning – there is just too much at stake.
Dr. Bob Bender, Pastor of Emeritus of Cross Fellowship Church
Dr. Matthew Morton, Lead Pastor of Cross Fellowship Church
