When a pastor is looking for a job in a local church, one of the most frustrating things he might experience is how poorly churches communicate with those they are considering for the position. That was true for me as I looked for a job. But I don’t just know this from personal experience. I also know this because I’ve spent the last 3 years studying the best practices for pastoral transitions, researching the literature on the job-search process, and interviewing over 50 local church pastors.

While many books have been written about helping a church to form a pastoral search team if their pastor leaves, nothing has been published in the last 10 years to actually help the pastor in the job-search process. I hope to change that with my book, Don’t Just Send a Resume: How to Find the Right Job in a Local Church.

In the coming months, I’ll tell you more about the book. I’ll even be doing a Kickstarter campaign to give you the opportunity to help launch the book.

For now, I wanted to share about several of the people who have agreed to contribute to the book. I’m asking 10 published authors to share what they’ve learned during the job-search process. These are people who know both the fear and the euphoria involved in a transition from one church to another. Each short contribution will be included at the end of a chapter in my book.

I hope to be able to announce the complete list of contributors in May. Here are a few of them:

Jared C. Wilson
Long-time local church pastor, author of over 15 books, content strategist for Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and one of my favorite authors.

William Vanderbloemen
An expert in the job-search field, runs the largest church-staffing firm, and has written extensively on the topic of transitions.

Chris Brauns
Local church pastor, author of several books, including a go-to book for churches who are looking for a pastor, When the Word Leads Your Pastoral Search.

Jeremy Writebol
Local church pastor, author, and the Executive Director for Gospel-Centered Discipleship.

Cara Croft
Coauthor of The Pastor’s Family, wife of pastor Brian Croft, and mother of four.

Sam Rainer
Local church pastor, author, cohost of the Established Church podcast, and co-owner of Rainer Publishing.

Kristen Wetherell
Author, content manager for Unlocking the Bible, and wife of pastor Brad Wetherell.

Again, I need your help to launch this book and to get it into the hands of those who need it. Look for those details about how you can help next month.

Let me close by saying this: This book isn’t about me. I believe that when churches are healthier, the gospel of Jesus Christ shines brighter. And I hope that in some small way this book will improve the health of pastors and churches, causing the good news of Jesus to shine even brighter.