We care about the church.
We care about pastors and their families.

Who are we?

 

Pastoral Transitions is a ministry that exists to help churches love and support their outgoing pastors and their families. We provide transition services to help them continue their life ministry for building God's Kingdom.

Our goal is to help pastors and their families heal from any wounds and to identify their next calling as quickly as possible. We believe that when a church blesses its outgoing pastor and his or her family, the Kingdom of God wins.

William (Bill) Tom

CEO, Chief Ministry Officer

Bill has been in marketplace ministry for over 35 years, serving the Lord in his vocational roles, ranging from design engineer for HP to Sr VP leadership roles in Silicon Valley to CEO and business owner. In parallel to his journey, he has established lay ministries and Christian communities within all the firms he has been part of. He later established FUSION Leaders, a marketplace community that connects marketplace Christians to build Christ-centered relationships to support each other in their marketplace vocations.

Bill also established a professional services firm performing leadership coaching and executive search serving privately held mid-market businesses. In connection to these services, he was often referred various executives as well as pastors who have been displaced to help them through their transition. It was in hearing the painful stories from these displaced pastors and their families that established his compassion for these walking wounded who have been oftentimes unceremoniously transitioned out of their church. Pastoral Transitions is an outgrowth of that compassion.

Bill has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley, an MS in Engineering Management from Santa Clara University, and an MBA from Golden Gate University. He is married to his wife, Linda, and is father to 3 adult daughters, and a son in college, all wonderfully gifted in the arts. 

Speaking Topics:

  • Strategic Transitions: Planning for Your Ministry Team's Future

  • The Ripple Effect: The Real Cost of Poor Ministry Transitions

  • The Unseen Impact: How Staff Transitions Affect Remaining Team Members

  • Navigating New Waters: Challenges for Outgoing Pastors in Job Searches

  • The Art of Career Calling Assessment in Ministry

  • Rebranding for a New Mission: Resume and Social Media Makeovers

Matt Davis

President, Chief Pastoral Officer

Matt Davis served as a Teaching and Executive Pastor for more than two decades in Orange County, California. He is a graduate of Biola University and Talbot School of Theology.

After going through his own pastoral transition out of ministry, Matt learned the difficulty of this season. After a time of wandering and figuring out what was next, he started a new venture as a brand strategist with Donald Miller at StoryBrand, working primarily with nonprofits and small businesses on telling their story and fine-tuning their messaging. He also started a nonprofit called The Jewish Road with his dad, where they help Christians make sense of the roots of their faith and help the Jewish people make sense of Jesus.

Matt is thankful for the opportunity to help others tell their story - something that has been so instrumental in his own life journey. But he is most grateful to be doing life with his wife of more than 20 years, Marilee, and their amazing three teenagers, Noah, Jed, and Karis. They now live in Lexington, Kentucky, and have dreams of life on a farm, surrounded by horses, beauty, and a connected community.

Speaking Topics:

  • Restoring The Church’s Original Mission Statement: x NOT ÷

  • Beyond Severance: 3 Must-Have Resources for Ministry Transitions

  • A Roadmap To Figuring Out Life After Ministry

  • What’s The Actual Cost Of A Poor Ministry Transition?

  • Building A Lasting Culture Through Gracious Goodbyes

  • 5 Reasons Why You Cannot Effectively DIY Staff Terminations

  • Letting Your Pastor Go (without destroying the pastor or your church)

  • Messaging Leadership Transition From The Pulpit

  • A Community That Puts On Love: Colossians 3

Noe Rivera

Chief Counseling Officer

Noe Rivera has been in the people business for over 20 years, serving the church body through his work in ministry, missions, and the marketplace. He served as a short-term missionary leader to more than 20 countries and became the co-founder of a long-term missionary base in Guatemala. In his current work as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Noe continues to serve the church by providing therapy for pastors, ministry leaders, and their families.

Along with his missionary and therapy work, Noe grew up as a worship pastor’s kid who served across many different denominations where he intimately experienced the ins and outs of churches, leadership dynamics, and the impact of both helpful and hurtful pastoral transitions. Having experienced his own hurt, and seeing it in his family, he is passionate about seeing healthy pastoral transitions happen for as many pastors and their families as possible.

Noe has a BA in Business Administration from Azusa Pacific University, a graduate certificate in Human Resources Management from UCLA, and an MS in Marriage and Family Therapy from Fuller Seminary Graduate School of Psychology. He resides in Southern California where he enjoys family, friends, and all things nature and sunshine; quietly pushing his limits, summiting Mt. Whitney, and running the LA Marathon.

Speaking Topics:

  • The Healing Shepherds: Why Pastors Need Counseling Too

  • Nurturing the Shepherd: Supporting Pastoral Mental Health

  • Breaking the Silence: Confronting Pastoral Loneliness

  • Navigating Uncharted Waters: The Challenges of Pastoral Transitions

  • From Turmoil to Tranquility: Understanding Pastoral Pain and Peace Cycles

  • Finding Peace in Change: Pastors Transitioning from Pain to Peace

  • The Pastor's Family: Navigating the Unique Challenges Together

Rebekah Lee

Director of Operations

Rebekah brings over 20 years of experience mentoring, teaching, and equipping the local church, and specializes in leadership and organizational development and training in the marketplace. As a "1.5 Generation" immigrant she has intimate experience and passion for reconciliation of generations, cultures, and relationships, with mutual honor and compassion.

Having personally experienced both ministry and career transitions, Rebekah firmly believes that a holistic and healthy transition is not an isolated, solo process. An intentional council of godly, wise, and loving advisors and friends was key to solidifying her transitional journeys. Hence, she sees Pastoral Transitions as a godsend in helping pastors and their families advance towards clarity, healing, and new beginnings.

Rebekah holds a BS in Chemistry from the University of Washington, an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary, and is Certified with TTISI Multi-Science Assessments. Her hobbies include wedding & event planning, cooking, and singing. Rebekah is devoted to her supportive and loving husband, Frank, her two young children, Jackson and Haddison, and her dogs, Bear and Kong Kong.