![\"appreciate](\"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/appreciate-your-pastor-1024x537.png\")
Ten Ways to Appreciate\nYour Pastor<\/h1>\n
Ten Ways to AppreciateBy Shane Bennett<\/p>\n
How are your plans coming together for Pastor Appreciation Month in October? You have a pastor or two, right? And you appreciate them? So, what are you waiting for?<\/p>\n
Missions mobilizers ask a lot of our pastors…<\/p>\n
I think we can agree: it\u2019s time to give back a little.<\/p>\n
Paul, in 1 Timothy 5:17, encourages us in this. \u201cLet the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.\u201d<\/p>\n
Likewise, the author of Hebrew advises, \u201cRemember your leaders who have spoken God\u2019s Word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith\u201d (Hebrews 13:7).<\/p>\n
Maybe you think pastors should be appreciated all year long and Pastor Appreciation Month is simply a retail gimmick designed to pad the coffers of greeting card companies and Christian book sellers. You may be right. It seems to have originated with Focus on the Family in 1992, and they clearly sell Christian books.<\/p>\n
But personally, I can use a little reminder, a focal point for expressing gratitude to my spiritual leaders. And Lifeway<\/a>, more of a stuff-selling company than Focus, doesn\u2019t mention buying stuff until halfway down their list of gift ideas<\/a> for Pastor Appreciation month.<\/p>\n If this little reminder has caught you flat-footed, don\u2019t worry. I have a list of ideas for you to consider for your pastor.<\/p>\n Paul\u2019s no dummy! On the tail of his admonishment to the Thessalonians to hold their leaders in high regard, he tells them to \u201clive in peace with each other\u201d! Hands down this is the best thing we can give our pastors!<\/p>\n Collect pen and paper, envelope, and stamp. You\u2019ll feel quaint and nostalgic, but the effect will be intense. Thank your leaders in general for the time they spend, the effort they make. Thank them specifically for ways their lives have blessed you. The more specific, the better.<\/p>\n This might not work if your local paper is the LA Times, but if you have neighborhood rag, a big, splashy Thank You! might be cool. If you submit artwork consisting of everyone\u2019s signatures, even better.<\/p>\n Oh, yeah, this is a thing<\/a>.<\/p>\n Google \u201cpastor\u2019s conference\u201d or ask around. Let them choose from a selection of three or four, then take care of the details. If you send their spouse along, you\u2019ll get triple the effect for double the price!<\/p>\n A gift certificate to a local ax throwing venue, like the one owned by my friend in lovely Bluffton, Indiana<\/a>. can be a great stress reliever! If you\u2019re feeling cheeky, include a copy of the church photo directory with your presentation.<\/p>\n Whether your pastor\u2019s date night preferences run to the latest Kendrick Brothers film<\/a>, food adventures, or getting fresh ink, someone probably needs to watch the kids. Or perhaps stay with an elderly parent. A thank-you card bearing a promise of a free night of babysitting might be a home run.<\/p>\n Give some kind words in a simple card. A fistful of Kohl\u2019s Cash<\/a>. Jerky of the Month<\/a> subscription. Whatever works. Many pastors could only hope for half their productivity if it weren\u2019t for their spouses. Appreciate the pastor by appreciating their partner.<\/p>\n N.T. Wright, the most popular British Christian scholar (double-initialed or otherwise) since C.S. Lewis, has begun to offer courses online<\/a>! Nothing says thank you like a gift of time with Tom. If your pastor doesn\u2019t care for Dr. Wright, you may want to look for another pastor. (Just kidding. Mostly.)<\/p>\n I\u2019d like to camp on this one for a bit. Praying for your pastor has some distinct hidden benefits. It\u2019s free, for instance. And as long as you do it privately, there\u2019s no concern for whether they liked the gift or not!<\/p>\n Seriously though, there may not be a better gift to give your pastor, unless it\u2019s #1 above. Ed Stetzer put this way<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u201cWhat better way is there for you to uplift your pastors and church leaders than through approaching the throne of grace with confidence?<\/p>\n \u201cThe Lord hears the prayers of his people, and the Lord cares for the leaders of his people. Take time regularly, each day even, to pray for the men and women on your church staff. Pray for their emotional well-being, their physical strength, their spiritual wellness, and any specific needs you know. This is definitely the simplest and perhaps most impactful way you can support your church leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n A pastor friend of mine says this is what he\u2019d like his church to be continually praying for him:<\/p>\n You likely know additional, specific ways to pray for your pastor and church staff. Sometimes the trick is actually doing it.<\/p>\n This October I plan to ask for some Sunday morning platform time in which we\u2019ll invite the church to gather around our pastor and his wife to pray for them. Our relatively diminutive size is an advantage in this context. We\u2019ll actually pass a mic around and let whoever wishes to lift up a prayer of blessing and thanksgiving. The size of your fellowship might prevent that.<\/p>\n I also love this prayer wall hanging at the back of one of the coolest churches<\/a> in Southern California, a region replete with cool churches.<\/p>\n I\u2019d love to see this on the wall of my church, filled with handwritten prayers for our pastor from fellow parishioners. Can you see your pastor and staff encouraged as they pull out and read the prayers of their people?<\/p>\n Finally, I\u2019d like to offer you this simple prayer calendar<\/a> for our pastors and their families this October. I\u2019m planning to make it available to my friends at church and invite you to print it out, slip in it the bulletin, post it around your fellowship, and share it as widely as you find useful.<\/p>\n Paul\u2019s admonishes in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, \u201cI urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people\u2014for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.\u201d<\/p>\n Our obedience to this scripture will bring blessing to our pastors. And really, they\u2019re probably only going to go to Pakistan with you if they\u2019re doing pretty good at home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ten Ways to Appreciate Your Pastor By Shane Bennett How are your plans coming together for Pastor Appreciation Month in October? You have a pastor or two, right? And you appreciate them? So, what are you waiting for? Missions mobilizers ask a lot of our pastors… Preach about the Great Commission. Read these missions books. … Continue reading Ten Ways to Appreciate Your Pastor | Practical Mobilization<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-practical-mobilization"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8788"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8795,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8788\/revisions\/8795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Top Ten Pastor Appreciation Gifts<\/h3>\n
1. Live peacefully with each other.<\/h4>\n
2. Write a thank-you letter.<\/h4>\n
3. Take out a thank-you ad in the local paper.<\/h4>\n
4. Give them a custom bobble-head doll.<\/h4>\n
5. Send them to a conference.<\/h4>\n
6. Give them a shot at ax throwing.<\/h4>\n
7. Offer them baby sitting or elder care.<\/h4>\n
8. Appreciate their spouse.<\/h4>\n
9. Give them time with Tom.<\/h4>\n
10. Pray for them.<\/h4>\n
What to Pray<\/h3>\n
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Wall of Prayer<\/h3>\n
![\"prayer](\"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/prayer-board.png\")
<\/h3>\nPrayer Calendar<\/h3>\n