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Author: Brian Thorstad

Interim Pastor-Proof Your Church

Leaving your church is probably okay; leaving a mess behind for an interim pastor or somebody else to try to clean up is not okay. While I love what I do, I don’t want to have to come to your church.

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Leadership

When Good People Do Bad Things, Part Three

(Note: This is the third of three articles on the subject of “When Good People Do Bad Things.”)  A wise individual once said that “Renewing your church is like remodeling your house…”  If you’ve ever remodeled or attempted to remodel a house you can guess what’s coming…  “Renewing your church is like remodeling your house: it will…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

“When Good People Do Bad Things, Part Two”

   Note: Elsewhere on this website is an article called, “When Good People Do Bad Things.”  The following is part two (to be followed by a part three).   I was in the sixth grade and it was my eleventh birthday, November 22, 1963.  As we were ending our physical education class, the next roomful…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

When Good People Do Bad Things

Over the past few years, several television networks have broadcast reality shows with names like, “When good pets go bad,” “When animals attack,” or “When nice dogs bite.”  The common denominator in these shows is the perplexing problem of seeing normally docile, loveable animals turn mean and ugly.    In my work as a redevelopment…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

Joy In The Journey

(Unexpected fringe benefits for the interim pastor or “Guys, have your wife read this!”)    “Ohhhhh yukkkkk!  That sounds awful!  That’s the last thing I’d want to do!  Oh man, you can have that ministry!”  Those words were the actual reaction of a fellow pastor upon hearing the basics of my strategic interim pastor ministry…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

Working Yourself Out Of A Job

(How interim pastors can help their church’s pastoral search committees)   Of the many projects I’ve undertaken as an interim pastor in several churches, helping these church’s long-term pastor search committees has been among the most satisfying.  The help I have given has been greatly appreciated, the task of leading these groups has been comparatively…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring, Pastoral Search Teams, Pastoral Transitions

Do We Have To Have These Business Meetings?

Many  pastors enjoy church business meetings as much as root canals.  A trip to a proctologist or a funeral for a thither is a more welcome event on the calendar.  “Do we have to have these business meetings?” they groan to no one in particular. Far too often these necessary-but-evil events turn out too long, too boring…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Church Structure, Leadership

Traditions or Trends: Which Should We Follow?

 Most of the readers of this blog know about the dangers of traditionalism.  Yale University professor Jaraslov Jan Pelikan has been credited with saying that “Tradition is the living faith of those now departed.  Traditionalism is the dead faith of those now living” [emphasis mine].  A “dead faith,” I’m sure Pelikan meant, because the traditionalist…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Strategic Planning

Metaphorically Speaking…

The new paradigms in interim pastoring can be hard for people to understand. The “new wave” interim pastor isn’t an intern, a fill in, a substitute or something less than a “real” pastor; I’m thinking of the visitor who heard me a couple of Sundays and then told me that I was good enough to…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

The Surgical Model Compared To Ten Developmental Tasks Of The Interim Congregation

The surgical model involves three stages and as many as ten redevelopment tasks: 1. There's a DIAGNOSIS STAGE that takes about 2-6 months.  The interim pastor will major on getting to know people and getting to know the congregation.   During this time the church may need to get real regarding its history.  Some churches…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

Determining The Level Of Intentionality Needed In An Interim Pastor

Brian's note: Dr. Ken Moberg designed this grid to help church leaders determine the type of interim pastor their church needs.  A "high level of intentionality" is another way of saying, a transitional or transformational (or interventionist) interim pastor, as opposed to a traditional or "maintenance model" interim pastor (or none at all).     

Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

When Church Members Leave

For many of us, the very mention of the subject of church members leaving knots up our stomachs faster than a phone call from the IRS. Painful memories flood my mind as I sit down to write – and I thought I’d gotten “good at” letting people go. Not that we really want to get…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Leadership, Seriously Troubled Churches

Gaining Restoration Authority

Where do strategic (or “restoration” or “redevelopment”) interim pastors get the authority to change so much so fast in the churches they lead? A church-health expert once told me that “all an interim pastor can do is to give a church a good slap in the face.” As one who has been doing interim pastoring…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Interim Pastoring, Leadership, Seriously Troubled Churches

Letter To a Hurting Church

The following is a letter (with names removed) I sent to a church which was on the brink of splitting in two. I’m sorry to say that I think the letter probably has application to many other situations. I wrote it – and am placing it here – in hopes that God will use it…

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Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

Putting Two Dollar Plants In Ten Dollar Holes

Or, “How an intentional interim pastor can help your pastor-less church prepare for its future.” Like Moses before him, Episcopal Bishop, Loren Mead received some of the best advice he ever heard from his father-in-law, a skilled and experienced gardener: “It’s better to put a two dollar plant in a ten dollar hole than a…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

Types of Interim Pastoring

At one time there were only two types of interim pastoring – or, at least only two types had been identified and labeled. There was intentional interim pastoring, wherein the pastor lets it be known that he is not a candidate for the long-term pastorate of the church, and trial interim pastoring, wherein the pastor…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

Long Pastorates: An Alternative View

By Rev. John Herman, Former Executive Director, Evangelical Free Church of America Pastoral Care Ministries This article originally appeared in EFCA TODAY magazine, Summer, 2004, Volume 78, Issue 2. I think brother Herman has something very important to say here about an extremely relevant topic for church health: pastoral tenure. BAT ……………………………………. The long pastorate…

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Filed Under: Healthy Pastors, Pastoral Transitions

Top Ten Reasons For Calling An Interim Pastor

10. He helps keep the giving up. His steady presence sends the message that things are “okay” and his full-time status keeps the need for giving up! “Saving money” during the interim time can often result in diminished giving by the time the new pastor is called. 9. He helps keep the attendance up. When…

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Filed Under: Interim Pastoring

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Testimonials

Elder Jim I wanted to let you know that we have really made some huge changes in the last few months.  We are seeing new people every week and we had a leadership meeting with 23 in attendance. Pastor ______ is doing well and God is doing amazing things.  Thanks for your support, prayers and love for the church!
Elder Jim
A New Church-Goer ...thank you for your messages at [our church] over the past weeks.  I just started going to _____________ while you were there and hadn't been to church in decades.  Your messages kept me coming back...  Thank you for helping me find my way back to God.
A New Church-Goer
Pastor Trey Turner "Brian is an experienced and insightful investigator of church systems.  He has real skill in looking at and diagnosing some areas needing attention.  I benefited greatly from his insight.  As a result, our church is benefiting greatly.  The process Brian took us through gave it the encouragement it needed to begin coming out of the 2020 difficulties.  We will work on the insights Brian provided as a roadmap back to better health."
Pastor Trey Turner
Pastor Greg Lund I've appreciated so much Brian's very practical coaching as he's guided me and the leadership of our church as we've sought to become more effective for God's kingdom. His extensive experience in assisting churches navigate a variety of issues makes him highly qualified to help lead churches through congregational change.
Pastor Greg Lund
Pastor Bruce Jahnke
"Our church is extremely grateful for the insight, adaptability and wisdom Brian so graciously contributed to our needs as we transitioned.  Our pastor transition was from Father to Son, which is by definition, difficult.  Yet Brian was able to foresee issues, feelings and responses with high accuracy.  Brian is personable, yet can direct when he needs to help us be reasonable and vision-oriented."

Pastor Bruce Jahnke
Andy Shanholtz I had the privilege of co leading a pastor’s training group with Brian. Brian’s wealth of knowledge and practical experience was an asset to all of us. The interaction with the group and the relationships built was a great value. I highly recommend having Brian facilitate a group to provide invaluable resources and practical knowledge.
Andy Shanholtz
Pastor Jed Manders
Leadership development within cohorts and peer groups has become increasingly popular, and rightfully so. Being involved in Brian’s leadership training group allowed me the opportunity to work through challenges, develop strengths and learn from both reading and peer development.


Pastor Jed Manders
Pastor Mark Pitroff "I have been so privileged and encouraged to be ministered to by Brian Thorstad as I have served as an Interim Pastor here in central Wisconsin.  He has been such a help and encouragement to me and especially, to this church I have served - Faith Community Church of Waupaca.  His leadership in helping us develop the “Journey Wall” enabled us to look back on the church’s history, the high points as well as the difficulties faced, especially in recent years.   Brian has helped FCC recover from a very difficult time…  Brian was such an encouragement to us, especially in the early months of recovery and preparation."
Pastor Mark Pitroff
Pastor Dan Norman “I enjoyed getting to know the guys in the group [and] I appreciated the thought, mind and spiritual challenges presented… I found many things that I was able to immediately apply, and I am still developing next steps that much of the discussion and training of this class helped to build a foundation for. [The handouts on strategic planning] will continue to be helpful in trying to guide our church to being more intentional. This [was] exactly what I was looking for at exactly the time I needed it.”
Pastor Dan Norman
Pastor Steven Boyd  "This course showed me that I, as a solo pastor, have to do things that don’t come naturally to me and has given me some tools to do the hard things.”
Pastor Steven Boyd 
Pastor Brian Schley “I found value in our meetings and am grateful you invited me to be part of it as a ‘future senior pastor.’ I enjoyed being able to be part of the conversations and glean from those beyond me. Thanks for your leadership with the group and your heart for pastors!”
Pastor Brian Schley
Pastor Todd Sauve "It was a privilege to have been a part of a pastors group led by Brian Thorstad. It's always great to learn from other pastors, and someone needs to provide leadership to make that happen. I'm thankful that Brian was willing to do that, and to share from both his successes and failures in ministry. He's honest, humble, and cares about people."
Pastor Todd Sauve

Brian A. Thorstad

Call: 651-319-1953

Email: churchwhisperer@gmail.com

1931 Cook Avenue
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494

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