Five Ways to Encourage Your Pastor

(Photo by Michael Dìaz)

Edher Cavero

The Lord has put us under shepherds who care for our souls and guard us from our own devices by praying for us and by ministering to us with the Word of God. According to 1 Timothy 3, these men must be qualified. Although they must exemplify Christian maturity to do the work of a pastor, we must never forget that these brothers are also sheep of the Great Shepherd.

Just as any form of work, shepherding can get tiring and be very demanding. Considering this, I want to offer five ways that you can encourage your pastors in your local churches as they do the work of ministry.

Pray for Them (Heb. 13:7)

The work of a pastor is impossible without the Lord’s intervention in the minister’s work — to lead sheep to the Great Shepherd, and to bring sinners to life by the power of the Word. God must go before them in their preaching, their teaching and their evangelism. We must pray for our pastors’ endeavors as they do the regular tasks within the ministry of the church. But we must also pray for wisdom for them as they lead the church.

I would suggest praying by giving thanks for them, for Scripture says in Ephesians 4:11-12 that pastors are a gift to the church to equip us for the work of the ministry. So they are handpicked for us in the sovereignty of God for our growth and care in the likeness of Jesus.

We must present them to the throne of grace to plead for them — so that the Lord goes before them, so that they receive wisdom as we give thanks for them.

Acknowledge and Encourage Them (1 Thess. 5:11, Heb. 13:7)

Maybe your pastor is not famous and he never wrote a book, but you can testify that he is a faithful shepherd. We will be surprised in heaven when we see the ministers of the Word who never wrote a book or never were famous, but they were faithful because God was their audience and He will acknowledge them by name.

Be specific and punctual in ways that they are encouraging you and how they are ministering to you. Point them to something in their sermon that was helpful for you, maybe the outreach idea they had was a huge blessing to you and the congregation. Be vocal and say these things in public. Send them a text saying that you are praying for them. You never know when would be a timely word of encouragement to a struggling pastor who needs to hear from other saints.

Serve Them (Gal. 6:9)

One of the greatest encouragements for pastors is to have people who are ready to serve and use their gifts and talents in different aspects of the Christian life. One does not necessarily have to be leadership or get the spotlight. Sometimes background service does a lot for the local church.

Be early at church and ask how you can help, or text your pastors during the week and ask them in which areas they could use some hands. Maybe they are wanting to record the sermons and you are a skilled videographer. Maybe they have been wanting to do a Bible study of a sermon series and you are an amazing editor. Work with what skill you have and use it for the good of the local church. Your pastors will appreciate it.

Spend Time with Them (1 Tim. 3)

It’s very common to see our pastors as walking theological dictionaries or like a counseling vending machine that we use only when we feel that we are in trouble. But I would highly encourage you to spend time with them and get to know them. Ask them how they are doing. Maybe you can do an activity together like fishing, playing soccer or anything that you both enjoy.

Seek to spend time with them as friends, as co-workers in the gospel and brothers in Christ. This can take many forms, and the goal is to strengthen the relationship with them and their families. If your pastor is single, invite them to your family table and let your family see  how he can be exemplifying Jesus in His singleness as he lives well before others.

Give Them Gifts (1 Tim. 5:17)

I do not think that there is a set way of showing appreciation materially, but there are things that will come naturally as you get to know your pastor better. Maybe he likes premium Bibles, or he likes to have books. Or maybe you can give a gift card that he can use on his next vacation with his family. The purpose of this shouldn’t be just to give them things but to show them love.

Be intentional with these things. The longevity of our local body will have a lot to do with the healthiness of our leaders, and we will have healthy leaders if we take our part in guarding their hearts and encouraging them.

May the Lord use you to remind your pastor that his work is not in vain.

— Edher Cavero graduated from the Evangelical Institute of Greenville and serves as a pastoral assistant leading the Hispanic ministry at Christ Fellowship Cherrydale. He previously served at Del Ray Baptist Church in Alexandria, Va., and Park Baptist Church in Rock Hill, S.C.