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October is Pastor Appreciation Month

Thank you for celebrating and appreciating your pastoral staff

WHAT IS PASTOR APPRECIATION MONTH?

Is it important to set aside time each year to give recognition and affirmation to our clergy and their families. The role of a pastor can be strenuous, demanding, and busy. Between caring for the spiritual well-being of The Lord’s flock, for the needs of a community, and for the expectations of those around, pastors can often feel spread thin in their role. This is what makes Pastor Appreciation Month so important.

When a pastor becomes weary, the very spiritual health of his or her church community can be endangered.

Financially, Pastors typically make substantially less each year than their own board members and deacons. It is important to also understand the financial sacrifice many Pastors make to serve their church.

This October, churches across our state will be celebrating Pastor Appreciation Day & Month! This year Sunday, October 13th has been designated as Pastor Appreciation Day. We are excited to join with Minnesota boards and churches in praying for our lead pastors and pastoral leadership teams across the state.

In addition to showing appreciation, we encourage you to pray daily for blessing, favor, anointing, vision and stamina for your pastors. They will be encouraged to know that their board and their church is behind them, praying for them, and supporting them! Like Paul says in I Thes 5:12 (MSG VERSION), “overwhelm” your pastors with appreciation and love.

We encourage your church board to set aside a special day to honor the pastors at your church. Thank you for partnering with us as we do our best to bless the pastors of Minnesota!

HOW CAN YOU SHOW APPRECIATION?

“Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.” 1 Thess. 5:12-13

Appreciation & Celebration Ideas:

We hope that some of the following ideas may work for your congregation or may inspire you to create your own.

  • Create a “Thank you, pastor” video featuring members of your community. You can create a simple setup in your church building to record these messages or ask your church members to make a quick recording on their mobile devices to send to your team. Compile and edit these snippets to create a personal and heartwarming video.
  • Host a card shower at which members and friends present purchased or homemade greeting cards to each pastor’s family. Or distribute blank thank-you notes to express appreciation. Encourage those participating in these events to be as specific as possible in their praise, revisiting favorite sermons or moments when the pastor’s ministry made a difference.
  • Plan a fabulous night out for your pastor and their significant other—certificates for a dinner at their favorite restaurant, movie tickets, or tickets to a concert or special event—anything so they can enjoy a special evening together. If your pastor has little ones at home, don’t forget to arrange for a babysitter!
  • A full-scale recognition plan might include a banquet, a special ceremony during a worship service, special guests or speakers, a church family reunion of present and former members, gifts, plaques, flowers or an open letter of appreciation in the local newspaper. A more casual approach might involve a moment of recognition during a morning service.
  • Have a super text event. Choose a day and have people text the pastor hourly with a heartfelt message about how he has touched their lives.
  • Provide a testimony time during a worship service for those involved in the church’s various ministries to share the joy they experience in serving the church. Have them emphasize the blessing one receives in using God-given gifts for the benefit of the body.
  • Plan a special banquet in honor of your pastor. Have guest speakers and an entertaining program that highlights the accomplishments of the church under the pastor’s leadership. Prepare a “This is Your Life” show or celebrity roast. If such an event is not possible, arrange for several congregation members to take the pastoral staff and their families to lunch or dinner.
  • Schedule a “thank you flash mob.” Have various groups of people stand up during the service and shout out, “We love you, pastor!” or “Thank you, pastor, you are great!” (preferably not during the sermon).
  • Remember to include the pastor’s spouse and children or any other close family members in any of the ideas above as these family members most likely give of themselves to their spouse and the church just as much as your Pastor does. These people are your Pastor’s personal support network and so should also be included and celebrated with as much enthusiasm as your Pastor receives.

By the Numbers

  • 72% of the pastors report working between 55 to 75 hours per week.
  • 84% of pastors feel they are on call 24/7.
  • 80% believe pastoral ministry has negatively affected their families.
  • Many pastor’s children do not attend church now because of what the church has done to their parents.
  • 23% of pastors report being distant to their family.
  • 78% of pastors report having their vacation and personal time interrupted with ministry duties or expectations.
  • 65% of pastors feel they have not taken enough vacation time with their family over the last 5 years.
  • 28% of pastors report having feelings of guilt for taking personal time off and not telling the church.
  • 66% of church members expect a minister and family to live at a higher moral standard than themselves. Moral values of a Christian is no different than those who consider themselves as non-Christians.
  • 53% of pastors report that the seminary did not prepare them for the ministry.
  • 90% of pastors report the ministry was completely different than what they thought it would be like before they entered the ministry.
  • 45% of pastors spend 10-15 hours a week on sermon preparation.
  • 85% of pastors report the use of the internet and other resources have improved their study time compared to when they first started their ministry.
  • 95% of pastors report not praying daily or regularly with their spouse.
  • 57% of pastors believe they do not receive a livable wage.
  • 57% of pastors being unable to pay their bills.
  • 53% of pastors are concerned about their future family financial security.
  • 75% of pastors report significant stress-related crisis at least once in their ministry.
  • 80% of pastors and 84% of their spouses have felt unqualified and discouraged as role of pastors at least one or more times in their ministry.
  • 35% of pastors report the demands of the church denies them from spending time with their family.
  • 52% of pastors feel overworked and cannot meet their church’s unrealistic expectations.
  • 54% of pastors find the role of a pastor overwhelming.
  • 40% report serious conflict with a parishioner at least once in the last year.
  • 80% of pastors expect conflict within their church.
  • 35% of pastors battle depression or fear of inadequacy.
  • 26% of pastors report being over fatigued.
  • 28% of pastors report they are spiritually undernourished.
  • 70% of pastors report they have a lower self-image now than when they first started.
  • 57% of pastors feel fulfilled but yet discouraged, stressed, and fatigued.
  • 71% of churches have no plan for a pastor to receive a periodic sabbatical.
  • 66% of churches have no lay counseling support.
  • 1 out of every 10 pastors will actually retire as a pastor.

Statistics provided by The Fuller Institute, George Barna, Lifeway, Schaeffer Institute of Leadership Development, and Pastoral Care Inc.

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