Introducing FaithStreet Finance for Pastors
As FaithStreet begins 2023, we are setting our focus on pastoral health. One of the areas that causes the most stress and confusion for pastors is finance, specifically around issues like retirement, succession, housing, protecting your legacy and compensation.
Our goal with this FaithStreet Finance series is to improve pastors’ financial health through education, assessment, and services.
As FaithStreet’s CEO, I have spent thousands of hours talking to pastors, so time and time again, I’ve heard the phrase “they didn’t teach us this in seminary”. After getting to know the experts at Guardian Financial, I learned that what I had heard was just the tip of a very large and precarious iceberg when it comes to pastor finance. Sadly, published national studies show:
- 90% of pastors feel financial stress in family and church work.
- 92% of pastors rank lack of retirement savings as a top financial concern.
- 76% of pastors know other pastors who left ministry due to financial pressures.
We could not have a better partner than the world class experts at Guardian Financial, led by Jerry Whitley. Jerry has been in bi-vocational ministry for nearly 30 years, building two churches alongside his wife and a wealth of financial services knowledge over that span. At the end of a five-year battle with cancer, Jerry’s wife passed away in his arms. After this watershed event, his calling changed: the Lord called him to bring his deep financial services expertise to ministry leaders. In service of that call, Jerry has put 300,000 miles on his Prius driving around the country helping pastors and building Guardian.
You can learn more about Jerry and Guardian Financial Group here.
We look forward to learning from Jerry and the experts at Guardian along with you over the next few months. We’ll cover topics like:
- Common financial mistakes pastors make;
- Pastoral succession planning;
- How to find a good financial advisor;
- Maximizing your housing allowances;
- Why a pastor might NOT want to pay off their house;
- Why Dave Ramsey gives great advice, EXCEPT when it comes to pastoral finance;
- How not to disinherit your spouse; and
- What’s a 403(b) and how to use it
If there are specific questions or topics you’d like to learn more about, you can let us know here, as well. Please help us to help you!