The Center for Congregational Health has always consulted with congregations to gain clarity for strategic planning and visioning, helping churches through conflict, etc. But a critical portion of our work has always been quality, research and experience-based training for those working with congregations. We have been serving congregations and training others to do so for thirty-three years. Each training is led by experienced trainers who are actively doing this work with congregations. At the end of each training, you will be equipped to begin consulting with other congregations in the specific area of your training and will have the continued support of The Center for Congregational Health staff.
Transition Consultant Training
February 23-26, 2026 – Raleigh, NC
August 18-21, 2026 – Location TBD
Connecting to a history of working with congregations in transition, we see a growing need for congregations to have consultants specifically trained to help them navigate the unique challenges they are facing in the transition process right now. The period of transition after the departure of a minister is an incredibly important and vulnerable time for a congregation. Today, more than ever, this period is filled with questions about the future of the congregation and its staffing needs and desires. Finances, attendance, facilities, beliefs are all topics that have to be addressed during a time with no ministerial leadership. As churches needs increase during this transition period, organizations and denominations that previously provided support are no longer able to do so at the level required by congregations.
Transition Consultant training will provide you with concrete tools to use with congregations, an awareness of how to navigate conflict that may arise, and a framework for how to walk alongside a congregation in transition. This framework helps a congregation to clarify its mission, strategize for the future, and navigate the details of the search process. Transition consultants would not also serve as the interim minister for a congregation and will gain the skills to create a process unique to each congregation they work with.
The Art of Consulting with Faith Communities
May 12-15, 2026- Location TBD
Faith communities are looking for assistance in meeting the increasingly complex challenges of mission, ministry and congregational life. The programmatic, cookie-cutter answers once offered by denominations and traditional consultants are now often inadequate to meet these challenges. The need is growing for consultants who can provide more personalized, context-specific help to faith communities.
To meet this growing need for qualified consultants, the Center for Congregational Health is offering a process to train and develop consultants to work with faith communities. Participants will learn how to develop a process to consult congregations through strategic conversations, work with a leadership team to create next steps for the congregation, work with congregations and staff in times of conflict through research-based training. The training consists of a 4-day classroom experience, followed by individual fieldwork and participation in a series of teleconferences.
Virtual Intentional Interim Ministry Training
This 5-day course combines what was formerly known as the Interim Ministry 1 (the work of the leader) and the Interim Ministry 2 (the work of the congregation) courses. It is designed for those individuals who have already discerned God’s call to interim ministry. Interim Ministry Training focuses on the work of the interim minister as he/she leads a congregation through the time of transition, as well as on the work of the congregation during this journey.
Participants are trained to serve a congregation as an interim while leading through an intentional process of self-reflection of their history, leadership, mission and take hold of a vision for their future so they are ready to move forward with the search process. The intentional interim is trained to work with a transition team that is usually different from the search team formed at the end of the process. The intentional interim serves as the interim pastor while leading the congregation through a specific process designed to help them be ready for the search for a new pastor.
At this time, we do not have an intentional interim training scheduled. If your denomination or institution is interested in sponsoring one, please reach out.
If you still have questions about the differences of these trainings and which may be a fit for you, please contact us for further conversation. We also do these trainings in partnership with denominations and institutions. Please reach out to learn more about those possibilities.