In my role at Richland Ave Financial, I have the privilege of meeting regularly with pastoral leaders. During these conversations, we often discuss the importance of preparing for their financial future, particularly retirement. The steps I lay out for retirement planning are frequently met with a genuine willingness to make strides in the right direction. That is, until they are faced with the need to discuss options with church leadership.
Many pastors feel uncomfortable raising the topic of financial support related to retirement, especially when their employer does not introduce the topic in discussions surrounding compensation, both initially and annually. As a result, pastors often feel incapable of preparing for future financial needs on their own, and a lifelong career in ministry can end with nothing available for retirement.
In most secular employment settings, new employees meet with a human resources or payroll representative to complete important documents. These representatives not only lay out their expectations for the employee, but they also show how they intend to provide benefits that add value to the new position. Most often, this includes retirement options to fill out, or the company auto-enrolls you in a plan to save toward retirement.
In churches, that important part of employment regularly gets overlooked for pastors. Often, this is simply because no one has considered making it part of the process. Secular employers offer retirement plans to encourage employees to remain (or because the government mandates retirement options). For pastors, retention is usually not an issue because they answer a calling to minister.
However, we — the people to whom they minister — also have a calling. We are mandated to care and provide for our pastors, but often we don’t know what to do beyond a salary. The unfortunate reality is many pastors simply do not have the opportunity to prepare adequately for retirement because their churches failed to make it a priority or integrate it into their employment practices. Not due to malice, but more often because it’s never been part of the conversation.
As a congregation, we must collectively care for the one who ministers to us and the community around us. The problem is, unless you work in human resources or payroll for a company, you probably don’t know what should be offered. So, we default to, “Since I don’t know what to do, I won’t do anything.” This is detrimental for pastors who fall further and further behind in their retirement needs.
I challenge our churches to prayerfully consider what we are doing for pastors and compare it to what your own employer provides for you. If you own or run your own business, what do you provide for your employees?
Have your deacons and trustees compile a list at your quarterly or annual business meeting of the church. Then, start working through what should be provided to your pastor. Look at church finances to see what your church can do currently and what will require further work and growth to become a reality. We must look beyond salary to the possibility of benefits and how the pastor might want his salary divided.
As the congregation, as we care for our shepherd, it takes our collective experience to ensure we are doing all we can to provide for the one God has called to serve us. The second Sunday in October is Clergy Appreciation Day. This year, why not do something for your pastor that doesn’t only make a difference today, but also impacts the future, both for him and for his family.
The Richland Ave office is here to help and wants to assist in any way possible. We regularly provide guidance to congregations around our denomination through in-person informational meetings, conference calls with church leadership, or calls from churches that want to take better care of the pastor. We want to help and stand ready to equip.
About the Writer: John Brummitt became director of Richland Ave Financial in January 2016. He graduated in 2011 with an MBA from Tennessee Tech University. A 2004 graduate of Welch College, John has served with Richland Ave Financial since spring 2006.
