The Bible encourages believers to honor the leaders of the local church. The apostle Paul encouraged the church in Ephesus by writing, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.” (1 Timothy 5:17 ESV) And in his letter to the church in Thessalonica Paul wrote, “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.” (1 Thess. 5:12-13) It is important to note that showing your appreciation for a pastor should never detract from a believer giving praise and glory to God for providing leadership for the church.
One way modern church families can show their gratitude to God for their pastors is by celebrating Pastor Appreciation Month. Starting in 1994, churches have been using the second Sunday in October as a special day to show their love and appreciation for members of the clergy. Focus on the Family is credited with initiating the tradition of celebrating pastors in a special way. Their goal was “that every pastor (including staff ministers) and his or her family would feel appreciated by those they serve.” Ideally, churches should be finding ways to show their appreciation to their leaders throughout the year.
Focus on the Family developed a guide to Pastor Appreciation Month that can be downloaded in English and Spanish at their website, https://www.focusonthefamily.com/church/celebrating-pastor-appreciation-month/. The guide includes some great ways to thoughtfully show your appreciation for those who serve the local church. I will use the rest of this article to mention some of the best ways to encourage your church leaders.
Praise God for good leadership
The main goal of pastor appreciation month should be to bring glory to God. He is the one who has created the church and he is the one who is guiding the leadership of the church to appoint pastors and elders. If a church chooses to announce pastor appreciation month, they should make sure that their praise is being directed to God. One way to maintain focus on God while thanking your pastors and elders is to say it in the context of giving glory to God. You can say, “We are grateful to God for calling you to serve our church family” or “We praise God for all the work that you do.” This will be a healthy safeguard against taking the focus away from God. James 1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” Praising God should be the primary aim of showing appreciation for pastors.
Communicate with your pastor
This is a basic point, but since we live in such a busy, fast-paced society, it is important to slow down long enough to think about your church leaders and find a way to tell them how much you appreciate the way they serve your community. A great way to do this is by praising God for using your pastor in the life of the church. Writing a personal note or sending a Thank You card is a great way to show your appreciation. If you don’t have time for that then a quick email, text message or phone call will go a long way. Some pastors save their encouraging text messages and look at them throughout the year.
Bless your pastor
This is what many people think of when they think about pastor appreciation month. This is a nice way to show you appreciate your pastor, but it should not be an expectation. Your love for those who serve in the church should not be measured by the amount of gift cards or financial gifts he or she receives. If the church gives a financial gift, they should not announce the dollar amount when it is given because the amount is not as important as the purpose of the gift. If more than one person preaches at your church then you should consider giving a gift to everyone who teaches so that extra pressure is not placed on one individual. If there is a team of elders, you might want to consider finding a way to show your appreciation to all the elders and the staff.
These are just a few of the ways that you can praise God and show appreciation for our church leaders.
