Cultivating An Attitude
Of Gratitude For Our Clergy
Most any thoughtful counselor, advisor, or mentor, and probably even any parent or therapist would tell you in times of great stress, anxiety, and chaos that one of the best ways to relax and recenter yourself is to think about those things for which you are grateful. Likewise, they might also invite you to offer a word of appreciation to those in your life from whom their gifts you benefit.
We are certainly living in extraordinarily anxious and chaotic times right now, and so perhaps this word of advice might be good for all of us to consider on a communal as well as individual basis. Whether we are talking about our personal or family life, our political world, or our churches, it seems uncertainty abounds, and tensions are only rising.
I do believe gratitude is one part of the antidote to stress and fear. I can personally verify that this is true and a very successful technique in my own life! I have a gratitude journal (using one of those ever-present journals given out as assemblies and conferences) in which to write down my thanksgivings when they come to me. The problem I find is that after I have been reminded how healing and renewing an attitude of gratitude is, it seems to slip my mind, and I forget about it in the midst of the storms of life. That is why we need to build into our lives, rhythms of thankfulness and gratitude.
Next month is Thanksgiving, a holiday, which helps us every year to enjoy thoughtful introspection about the gifts that we’ve been given and finding ways to offer gratitude to God and to those around us. I’m glad we have that set on the calendar for the fourth Thursday of every November.
And this month, October, has been designated as Clergy Appreciation Month and October 12-19 named as Week of the Ministry. Both commemorations are a chance for us to share the gratitude we have for the clergy in our lives and their spiritual care. Whether they are a local church pastor, a chaplain, a professor or campus minister, a non-profit leader, or a retired clergy person, it is true that those who have been trained and who have set aside part of their lives to focus on ministry in Christ’s name give us abundant gifts in the leadership they offer.
Please take a moment to offer a word of gratitude to the clergy in your lives and, if they have family, their family members. Think about putting a card in the mail to them or have a special celebration in or after worship. Talk to your finance team about making sure your pastor has a Cost-of-Living increase and merit raise in their salary for 2026. Hold your pastor and clergy from around the Christian Church in Ohio in prayer daily during the month. You’ll see many more ideas below, some from the Pension Fund of the Christian Church, and others from my previous years’ articles.
And may this focus on gratitude for the clergy in our lives invite us to have a deeper and enduring sense of thankfulness for all of God’s gifts.
Here is a link to the Pension Fund’s Week of the Ministry resources: https://pensionfund.org/learn/resources/week-of-ministry
Here are links to my past years’ reflections on Clergy Appreciation Month:
Ever Gratefully Yours,
Allen