Research Project Chapter Four Findings
Chapter Four
Leaders are shaped for transitional ministry through training and a community of practice with colleagues, mentors, and others who support them in their call…[And yet] it is increasingly difficult for mid council leaders to find pastors willing to serve in short-term transitional ministry contexts.
Over the past few months, I have shared the questions, events, and theological foundations of my project as well as the methods I used to develop and conduct my study. Now, I am delighted to share my findings for the primary research questions I sought to answer:
How likely are pastors with transitional ministry training to seek calls to serve as transitional pastors?
What draws leaders to transitional ministry in congregations?
How satisfied are they with transitional ministry training?
What, if anything, would they change about training?
Which type of post-training support is most beneficial, and what forms of support are difficult to find?
Chapter four tackles the questions one by one and incorporates direct quotes from the surveys and interviews I conducted. Various tables break down the coding I applied to identify themes and connections in the data. I had hoped grounded theory would reveal one or more storylines about the experiences and needs of short-term transitional pastors; I am gratified it did and to be able to share those storylines with you.
Practical Outcome Four: Find post-training support in the company of other change leaders and professionals.
Stay tuned: early in the new year I plan to share the concluding chapter of the project and make recommendations based on these findings.
LINK to Chapter Four Research Findings
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