Being a Minister....

[JKmadu619]

Recently my family has brought up the fact they thought I might be a good Christian preacher, or minister. I do think I am... well spoken for lack of a better term, and I do think I am good at mediation and giving advice. However, I have several questions, any answers apreciated:
- What kind of schooling would a minister need?
- What kind of life restricitons would being a minister have? (For example, would you have to be married to be a minister, must you keep your hair/facial hair a certain way? I would like to know about the catches first.)
- How much would bieng a minister pay? This may sound greedy, but if my future family would be struggling it wouldn't be worth it.

Thanks in advance.

- Justin

[Of Mike and Men]

Depending on where you live and what type of church you're looking into, the answer varies. Typically you will need a double masters. A masters of theology and a masters of divinity. Most go onto.a doctorate of theology. Biblically, you shouldnt be getting paid as a minister, but of course, Protestants often ignore this. You can typically make between nothing and 1 million dollars annually. Depending on how well you lie. But, on average, probably around 30,000$ a year.

I recommend not going into ministry. You will be held accountable for every soul before G-D, that you preach to. And the fact that you're concerned about money, goes against the teachings of Christ and the Apostles for those who.labor for the kingdom. But, if you're serious about it, read the book Follow Me to Freedom. In fact, read it regardless.

[JKmadu619]

Thank you Of Mike and Men. First, I am a branch of Protestant. Secondly, although preaching should be reward in itself, realistically taking on a full-time job and education that pays zero is an idiotic move. Student loans and interest would be enough to sink the ship, nevermind additional bills.

$30,000 a year isn't a realistic life-goal for me, so I'll have to further look into publishing or psychology. Thank you for your time.

- Justin

[Of Mike and Men]

You can always teach bible studies, and teach others to give to the poor, conserve energy, avoid sweatshops, etc. You can still be a Christian leader. I really recommend that book. If you want a copy, I can send you one. School isn't mandatory according to the Bible. But if you want to follow the Pharisaical conservative standard, it is. I would advise you to look more into schooling and psychology if it is worth it at all. It's my personal conviction that it is an entire waste of money. But, thats me. For others, maybe not. But if im called to love my brothers, and many are starving, or dying due to strict work labor, then my 100K + can be spent better than on gaining knowledge which Solomon says is vanity, a chasing after the wind.

[Youth Pastor]

As a pastor myself here's what I can tell you. I'm at a Baptist church. As far as schooling goes I have a Bachelor's in Youth Ministry from an accredited Christian university. Being married isn't a requirement but it does help. Sometimes I may skip a day and not shave for whatever reason and I haven't heard a complaint yet. The pay packages can vary. I have a comfortable salary, nothing big, but I have some extras that are included in a salary package. My healthcare is taken care of through the package, otherwise it would cost me $330/month.

I also have a reimbursement allowance that I use for mileage to drive to church related events like youth events, conferences, etc. Also included are out of pocket expenses that are church related like lunches with people, items for the youth room/dept, and others like that. All that included comes be over $30,000/yr.

The truth of it is if you truly feel like God is calling you to be a minister then do it. This isn't anything to be taken lightly. Consider this. You only have one life and God has created you for a purpose. His calling for your life could be to be a pastor. You only have one shot at doing His will. I hope you prayerfully consider the seriousness of His calling for your life. PM me if you want to know more.

[Megan1]

It depends on what kind of ministering you want to do and what kind of church you want to do it at. With some churches, as long as you are already saved and have been for a decent amount of time, they don't even require any kind of degree. The ministers at my church don't have any kind of degrees and they are all amazing teachers. Some churches will require it though- it depends on the church.

With a biblically sound church (a church that goes completely by the bible without adding anything extra), a minister wouldn't have any more "restrictions" than any other Christians have.

Money also depends on what church you go to, how big/financially stable it is, and how many days a week you are preaching. In most cases, you will probably need another job in addition to being a minister. But again, it depends on the church.

But please don't do this just because your family thinks you would be good at it. Pray about it and only do it if you are lead by God.

[JKmadu619]

Megan and Youth Pastor: Again, great advice. I'm happy to know that if I should still choose to follow this path I wouldn't have any major life restrictions.

Also to Megan, I wouldn't do it because they told me to, but because I felt it was a good idea once I heard it.

- Justin

[BigBL87]

Originally Posted by Youth Pastor

As a pastor myself here's what I can tell you. I'm at a Baptist church. As far as schooling goes I have a Bachelor's in Youth Ministry from an accredited Christian university. Being married isn't a requirement but it does help. Sometimes I may skip a day and not shave for whatever reason and I haven't heard a complaint yet. The pay packages can vary. I have a comfortable salary, nothing big, but I have some extras that are included in a salary package. My healthcare is taken care of through the package, otherwise it would cost me $330/month.

I also have a reimbursement allowance that I use for mileage to drive to church related events like youth events, conferences, etc. Also included are out of pocket expenses that are church related like lunches with people, items for the youth room/dept, and others like that. All that included comes be over $30,000/yr.

The truth of it is if you truly feel like God is calling you to be a minister then do it. This isn't anything to be taken lightly. Consider this. You only have one life and God has created you for a purpose. His calling for your life could be to be a pastor. You only have one shot at doing His will. I hope you prayerfully consider the seriousness of His calling for your life. PM me if you want to know more.

Growing up as a preacher's kid and being a current seminary student, Youth Pastor pretty much hit the nail on the head.

FWIW, with my father being a minister and my mother a teacher's aid and later a teacher, they were able to raise my sisters and I in what many would consider an average middle class life. All told, over my childhood my parents' combined take home income was from $30k to $50k. Not a whole lot, but if you are prudent with your money it's enough.

In addition to take home pay, in many cases you will live in a parsonage which means you don't have a mortgage to pay, property taxes, etc.. Add in health insurance at some churches too. My father's take home pay, working at a church of 50 people or so, is under $20k but the benefits he has really put his job over $30k in real value.

Also, FWIW, I don't know what you're looking at as far as psychology but $30k is about what you expect for alot of entry level counseling jobs. Maybe a bit more, but the average counselor won't make more than $45k or so a year. I'll honestly be happy to make $35k when I graduate with my Masters degree in the field, and I can live fine off of that.

[Xujhan]

Originally Posted by Of Mike and Men

You can always teach bible studies, and teach others to give to the poor, conserve energy, avoid sweatshops, etc. You can still be a Christian leader. I really recommend that book. If you want a copy, I can send you one. School isn't mandatory according to the Bible. But if you want to follow the Pharisaical conservative standard, it is. I would advise you to look more into schooling and psychology if it is worth it at all. It's my personal conviction that it is an entire waste of money. But, thats me. For others, maybe not. But if im called to love my brothers, and many are starving, or dying due to strict work labor, then my 100K + can be spent better than on gaining knowledge which Solomon says is vanity, a chasing after the wind.

But were everyone to think like this, who would be left with the knowledge needed to help others? Money doesn't solve problems on its own. Money spent on education I think is always well spent; the money itself, after all, it not lost.