Years of serving faithfully can be tarnished by a poorly executed exit. In the first post of this series we discussed how we are all temporary youth pastors. At some point you will leave the ministry you lead. And when you do leave, you want to be sure it’s for the right reasons. Once you know God is moving you, how you exit will be how many remember you. We must be faithful in our exit.
Three weeks ago I said goodbye to students I had spent four years pouring my life into. It was a bittersweet Sunday that ended a month long transition process. When I knew God was moving me, I wanted to leave in a way that honored the church staff, youth ministry volunteers, and students. Even if you are leaving under tumultuous circumstances, how you leave a ministry says a lot about your character.
While leaving my former church was emotionally difficult (as I will miss the amazing students, families, and staff) the transition went as smooth as it possibly could! Below you will find the transition plan I put in place to ensure that God was honored in my transition.
Transition in Youth Ministry
Step Two: Leave Faithfully
Here’s the truth. Transitioning faithfully will be a LONG process. You will have the same “why are you leaving?” conversation a million times over. You will feel like a broken record, you will feel a little guilt, you will want to expedite the process…but don’t. How you exit a ministry will be how many people remember you. Leave faithfully. Follow these steps:
- Notify Senior Leaders ASAP – One-Month Prior
As soon as you know God is moving you, notify your senior and executive leadership. If you care about the students in your ministry, you will want the leadership of the church to have a head start in finding your replacement. In addition, discuss the transition process with your senior leaders and ask them what would honor them most as you transition out. As I spoke with my executive pastor, we agreed that a month would be sufficient time to transition the ministry in a healthy God/Parent/Leader/Student honoring way. In my opinion, a month long transition process is generous. Obviously you will have to discuss this with the church you are transition into, but they should also want you to transition faithfully.
As you speak with your departing leadership, come up with a communication strategy. When, where, and how will you notify the appropriate parties?
- Notify Key Staff – 3 Weeks Prior
After talking with senior leaders, you will want to equip key staff members with desired language pertaining to your departure. Most ministry heads will be asked about your departure. You want to make sure they feel comfortable explaining your transition process.
- Host a Volunteer Leader Meeting – 3 Weeks Prior
Along with key staff, you will want to prepare and honor the leaders in your ministry by letting them in on what’s happening in your life and their ministry. I balled like a baby when I told my leaders! The love and dedication of my leaders made this an emotional announcement.
Your goal for this meeting is to honor their dedication, equip the leaders to answer questions, and ask them to share the workload you are leaving.
- Tell your Disciples – 2.5-3 Weeks Prior
If you are personally discipling students (you should be, that’s your job!), then you will want to give them a heads up. These students will be greatly impacted by your transition and you don’t want them to find out when everyone else does. Telling them early will allow you to be extra intentional and savor your last few meetings together. Discuss with them what it looks like to find a new mentor and be straightforward with them. If they need a heavy-handed challenge, step up, if they need praise and encouragement, lavish on them how proud you are of their spiritual growth and maturity.
- Tell your Students & the Church – 2 Weeks Prior
This is when the texts, phone calls, and conversations will begin pouring in! Students and parents will experience a variation of emotions (sadness, confusion, shock, anger, etc.) so get ready to wear your pastoral hat. When you discuss your transition, take everything back to God’s will and calling on your life. Emphasize how you want to be faithful in the same way you would want them to be faithful when God calls. Explain how God has spoken to you through Scripture, prayer, wise counsel, the Holy Spirit, and opportunity.
When you tell the students and the church you will want to emphasize the following:
- The Student Ministry belongs to students…be the ministry, be the church
- The Small Group Leaders are the true youth pastors
- Explain who will be in charge and lead in the interim
- Exhort your student leaders/seniors to step up and lead
- Be specific about your timeline and destination
I’m not going to lie. This is a spiritually and emotionally draining process. But it should be! If you have been leading faithfully, it should be difficult to leave a ministry. If you have been giving your life to the expansion of the gospel among your students leaving will be hard.
However, being strategic in your transition will help ease this process. Have you transitioned out of a ministry? What made it smooth or difficult? Comment below!
Need a full transition strategy? Here ya go…
Part One: Question Everything
Part Three: Entering a Youth Ministry
Part Four: Communication Strategy
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David Hanson: Texas native, Texas Tech Red Raider, M.Div. at Truett Seminary, husband to Ashley, father to Ava & Ben, Student Pastor at LifePoint Church in Plano, Tx, table tennis (ping-pong) extraordinaire, addicted to coffee. For anything else…you’ll just have to ask.
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Great post David. When I was leaving, my prayer was God let me finish strong. I think its true that the way you leave one ministry will be how you start the next one.
I did do all the above, and I would also add a few things.
1- Buy a flash drive and put every file on their that pertains to that ministry. Logos, leader apps,policy manuals,videos, and etc. This will help your leaders that will carry on and will give the person who takes your place a head start.
2- I wrote out my transition plan. I gave the adult / student leaders responsibilities. The great thing is they were already doing them, I just wanted them to have a plan and ownership.
3- Always, Always point the students back to the church by casting vision for the future of the ministry. The students will not like the change, but it’s our job to point to the will of God and to point toward the excitement of change and newness for them. I always say I cant wait to see what God does in your lives and the life of that ministry. Excitement is contagious.
4- Some may disagree with me, but it’s ok to help kids walk through this process even if the new person is there. As long as you do it in a healthy life giving way. Don’t jump on their pity party buss. Build up the church and build up the new person. Become an ally to the new person , He or she will be thankful for you. If they have questions or concerns, here them out,but always point back to the leadership of the church. After a while those questions and concerns will become less and less and they will start to turn to their new leader.
Tony, Yes. Yes. Yes. Those are great tips! All of which would fit perfectly into the timeline above. Thanks for sharing!