Pastoral Ministry: The Economic Squeeze

But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. —2 Timothy 4:5

A number of factors contribute to bad spiritual leadership....

The economic squeeze. The Protestant ministry is notoriously underpaid and the pastor's family is often large. Put these two facts together and you have a situation ready-made to bring trouble and temptation to the man of God. The ability of the congregation to turn off the flow of money to the church when the man in the pulpit gets on their toes is well known. The average pastor lives from year to year barely making ends meet. To give vigorous moral leadership to the church is often to invite economic strangulation, so such leadership is withheld. But the evil thing is that leadership withheld is in fact a kind of inverted leadership. The man who will not lead his flock up the mountainside leads it down without knowing it. God Tells the Man Who Cares, 61-62.

"Lord, again I pray for any pastor who may be facing this economic squeeze today. Help him to be faithful and give strong leadership no matter the cost. Then, Lord, I pray that even today You would grant one of Your special, generous provisions as a powerful reminder of Your great faithfulness. Amen."