Pastor Appreciation Advice

I know a lot of people who read this are serving in ministry. This article isn't for you. This article is for those who read who are members and attenders of churches. I want to give you some advice on what you can do this year for your pastor for Pastor Appreciation Month. October is traditionally the month where churches recognize and appreciate the work that pastors do. Paul talks about blessing God's ministers with a "double honor" which is a good thing to do. Pastors labor behind the scenes and carry the weight of the church on their shoulders. Compound that with the toxic political climate and the pandemic, 2020 is a year to really honor the work pastors do.

The first thing I'll say is not to get your pastor a Bible. Or a tie. But especially not a Bible. It's not that a gift Bible isn't a gracious thing to consider. But your pastor has (or at least should have) a number of Bibles. They might even have some very nice ones. Another Bible, no matter how well intentioned, is likely to end up on a shelf and won't be as fully appreciated as you'd like.

But what can you get or do for your pastor this month? I want to suggest a few options.

1) A gift card - Surely your pastor has a favorite restaurant, coffee place, or home improvement store. They can certainly use that card for a treat, an upcoming project, or to feed their coffee needs.

2) Remember their spouse - Ministry spouses are many times forgotten. It's not intentional. They're just not usually the ones in the public eye. They're taking care of the kids, they're working in their job during the week, and they may not be comfortable being in front of everyone. Like the gift card, find out what they like and see if you can do something to care for them.

3) Getaway - Some churches are blessed with having people who own vacation property or have access to a beach house or something like that. Consider giving your pastor and their spouse a weekend away at that property. Get their Sunday responsibility covered so they don't have that on them while they're away. Let them recharge, rest, and reconnect with one another.

4) Date Night - Sponsor a date night for your pastor and spouse. One of the hardest things for pastors with families to do is arrange childcare. Babysitters can be cost prohibitive for some couples. Take care of that for them so they can have an evening out.

5) Day trip - COVID has really messed up a lot of family plans. Many had to cancel vacation plans this summer, and with kids doing NTI and remote learning the fall break calendar is messed up. Consider gifting your pastor and family a day trip. It could be an amusement park, zoo, state park, or some other attraction. Most of us live close enough to something neat like that that a day trip is possible.

6) Extra vacation - Finances in your church may be tough. COVID hit some churches hard and really limited their budget. You might not be able to financially give anything to your pastor this year. Giving an extra week of vacation is another way of appreciating their work and thanking them for what they've done.

7) A conference - Conferences can be a really helpful thing for a pastor to recharge, fellowship, grow, and be sharpened for ministry. Whenever we can have them again, consider this as a possibility for your pastor. Several years ago this was a gift someone in a church did for me, and it was so encouraging to get away and grow. If possible, see if you can arrange to send their spouse as well.

Whatever you do, I hope you'll do something. Don't do what some churches do to their pastors and send them a note that says "Appreciate that you have a job." (This has really happened) Ministry is hard. Doing something to show your appreciation for your pastor can be a boost for them, and encourage them in a year where things have been even harder than normal.