What to Expect if You’re a Church’s First Millennial Pastor

A big wave is coming towards the church. It’s the swell of retiring Boomer pastors. Most Boomer pastors are currently between the ages of 50 and 68. They won’t all retire at once, so this wave won’t crash into the church like a tsunami. However, I don’t believe the North American church is prepared to replace these pastors. My father gives a few implications of retiring Boomer pastors over at his blog:

• There will be more pastoral vacancies than qualified candidates.
• Few churches are giving any thought to pastoral succession.
• There will be an abundance of qualified pastors for interim and bi-vocational positions.
• Some Boomer pastors will stay at their current positions into their late 60s and 70s.
• Some Boomer pastors will lead their churches to merge.

I want to focus on what will happen when these pastors are inevitably replaced—more importantly, who will replace them. A new generation of leaders—Millennials—will inherit these church positions. I’m the oldest of the Millennial generation. Most date the birth of Millennials between 1980 and 2000. I barely make the cut as a February 1980 baby, but I connect with Millennials more than any other generation.

As Millennials begin to become senior pastors, their churches will have many Gen Xers, Boomers, and Builders. Of course, the percentages will eventually shift to churches full of older Millennials, but such a shift will take decades. Read more

Photo: UMNS/Mike DuBose