The Pastor's Personal Finances, Part 1
It's budget season around our church, and we're working on hashing out how much money it will take to address both the needs of the congregation and the dreams that the Lord has laid on our hearts for ministry and missions in 2010.
Our church's elders do a great job handling our staff salaries. They are very caring and pastoral, and the congregation as a whole is extremely generous, appreciative, and encouraging. So the approach to staff salaries is not based on what's fair, what other churches do, or what is the minimum they can get away with paying the staff. Instead, our elders spend time trying to understand the needs and challenges that each staff member and his family are facing so that the church can pay them accordingly. So one of our values is that long-term staff should be able to purchase a home in the area (not a small feat in Northern Virginia).
In order to assist the other elders in that process, I decided to provide them with a detailed 2010 monthly budget for our family, showing them where every penny of my salary goes. At first this felt weird, because when someone can see what you do with your money, they can see into your soul (Luke 12:34).
But I quickly realized that it was a great idea. Three reasons:
- I should have nothing to hide. What was I concerned about them seeing? Was I secretly ashamed of the way I handled my family's money?
- Jesus talked about money a lot. He taught that the way we handle money is a barometer for our spiritual health. I would be a fool not ask godly men to examine that aspect of my life and give me constructive feedback.
- I am always trying to cultivate a culture of transparency in the church and among its leaders. Transparency can be uncomfortable, but the pastor should take the lead.
A little later this week, I'll post some of the thoughts that I used to guide our family budgeting process.
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