My path into bi-vocational ministry wasn't a normal path:

I used to look down on bi-vocational ministry...

Early in my ministry, my wife and I were looking for a church to minister in as a "youth pastor." Several churches contacted us looking for our help that we would have loved to work in, but we declined because they were not "full time" positions.

When I became a "senior pastor" I was paid full time for the first eight years. I never had any intention of being a bi-vocational pastor and if I was being 100% honest with myself, I probably looked down the ones that I knew.

But I had a hobby of developing software and that hobby (combined with some ignorant decisions) left me in debt I wasn't going to be able to repay on a small church pastor's salary. So I started doing software projects for business clients. One thing led to another, and before long, I was being paid for full time work, and not long after that, I was co-owner of a profitable and growing software development agency.

At the same time, my family was growing. My church desperately needed to save for a new building, and I wanted to bring on more help at the church. I went to our deacon board and asked them to stop paying me. They declined. The compromise we came up with was that the church would pay $1,000 per month to me and any other staff member who worked on a bi-vocational basis.

And so I became a bi-vocational pastor and have been now for three years. In that time my church has grown both spiritually and numerically. We have bought more property (debt free). We've been able to take on interns. I feel like our church is much healthier today than when I was "full time."

Bi-vocational ministry is not without it's drawbacks:
- I am, just preaching two-three times a week, at the limits of my capacity. - Sometimes I'm not available and have to reschedule with people. - When a new ministry starts at my church - I CANNOT lead it.
- Sometimes I get overwhelmed and exhausted. - I'm not out knocking doors and I rarely have time to go to preacher meetings.

But on the whole, I feel like bi-vocational ministry has been good for me and my church. So I wanted to write about the benefits of bi-vocational ministry and give you some tips I've used to make it work.

The benefits of bi-vocational ministry

The first benefit is an obvious one: freedom. Because my salary isn't tied to the church, it completely changes my relationship to the church.

When you are "full time" there may be some people who feel like they own you and own your time. That isn't the case when you are bi-vocational. People understand you have to work.

But I'm also free to make more money. I have five children. We homeschool. We have family that lives across the country that need to be visited with some regularity. My kids do sports. They are going to go to college soon. Living on a full-time small church salary is really hard.

It frees me from worrying about whether I'm going to offend a big giver. (Not that I even know who they are.) It frees me to know that my salary isn't dependent on keeping the church growing. It frees me from having to choose between a raise I know I need and something my church needs.

The second benefit is giving. Because I'm free to make money, I'm also free to give more. It's been a joy over the last few years to be able to personally give to help people I know are struggling, instead of just giving the church's money away.

Being bi-vocational also helps me stay and minister in a smaller church context. Without bi-vocational ministry, I could see myself moving on to a bigger church not because of the call of God, but because of financial pressure. My church is very debt-averse and needs to build (our auditorium barely holds 100 people) but it would likely never happen if 60% of our offerings were going to pay my salary.

But being bi-vocational has also enabled me to give the gift of bi-vocational ministry to other gifted ministers in our church. We have a youth pastor and a music pastor and are able to pay both of them the same thing the church pays me. They both work and minister in our church just as I do. We are praying about taking on interns for a year or two after college, helping them find employment locally and paying them the same. None of this would be possible without bi-vocational ministry.

The third benefit is respect. As a bi-vocational pastor my church knows why I am here - and it's not for money. They know I'm here to give and not to get.

I also feel like I command more respect from successful people. When I was "just a pastor" I felt awkward talking to successful men. Like I was somehow inferior. (I know this is wrong, I'm just being honest.) That is no longer there.

A final benefit is insight. I know what it's like to come to church after a long day of work because I do it. I know how hard it is to do work, church, and family time because I do it. I have so much more appreciation for my church member's time than I did before, and I have so much gratitude for those who voluntarily give of their time every week to help in the church.

Tips for bi-vocational ministry

Bi-vocational ministry is HARD. But most things in life worth doing are hard. I'm still figuring it out, but here are some of the things we do to make it work:

First, it's absolutely essential that you have good study and writing habits. It's incredibly hard to preach to the same people week in and week out, multiple times a week. You have to learn to be efficient and disciplined in your study and to carve out time for it every day. I would suggest that, if possible, you master this BEFORE you try to take on bi-vocational ministry.

Second, you need a job that is flexible. I have an ideal job - I work remotely and I set my own schedule. If you are trying to pastor and be a doctor on call at the hospital, or a you have to work construction and your boss expects you to stay late six days a week - you are going to struggle. While it's not easy - it's probably best to find work that you own, either in some freelance capacity or by starting your own business.

Third, you need a team. As I've already said, at our church we have a bi-vocational team. Everyone gets a $1,000 per month stipend. We also couldn't do it without a lot of volunteers. Our deacons are deacons indeed and they really help serve our church and allow me to use my small amount of time to minister.

Fourth, you have to drop the hero complex. Some pastors want to do everything themselves. The slides. Mowing the grass. Folding the bulletins. You won't be able to pull that off in bi-vocational ministry. Give those blessings to others and relax your standards a bit.

Finally, you need a personal sabbath. You have to take time to rest and recharge your batteries. For me, that is Friday from about 7pm to Saturday at about 7pm. (Which happens to correspond with the jewish sabbath.) I'm not doing anything during that period of time besides resting and spending time with my family. I usually go for a hike with my kids or teach my son something in the wood shop. My church family knows that time is sacred and with rare exceptions (like weddings and funerals) that I'm not available during that time.

When I was running marathons I learned that resting was as important as running. Bi-vocational pastoring is a marathon - and you need to prioritize rest.