Church Finances #4 - How Much Do You Pay a Guest Preacher?

Determining how much to pay a guest preacher is another one of those areas that they usually don't teach you in seminary. So, how do churches determine the size of the honorarium? In some churches, they simply give what they think sounds right. For example, some think like this: A guest preacher comes into the church and preaches during a 1 hour church service... so they assume $50 is very good for 1 hour's work. That sounds good, but most people don't realize that a solid preacher will put in 8-12 hours in sermon preparation, and that is after spending time in prayer to seek what it is that God wants him to preach. In addition, they don't consider the time driving, the fuel costs, accommodations, and food expenses. 1 Timothy 5:18 says, "...a workman is worthy of his hire." It shouldn't cost the preacher out of his own pocket to come preach at your church.

Most preachers will never worry about the amount of money they receive for preaching as a guest. Most feel honored just to be invited and to have the opportunity to proclaim God's Word. That's why most understand when a small country church offers a small gift. That simple act of appreciation goes a long way to encourage the heart of a preacher. BUT for those churches that do have full-time pastors, Art Rainer has come up with a good formula for determining honorariums in his article entitled, "How Much Should You Pay a Guest Preacher?" The summary of Art Rainer's article is that a church should cover the costs for travel, food, and accommodations. In addition to covering those costs, a church should pay a guest speaker .5% of the Pastor's gross salary (including housing allowance)for each service at which he speaks. Thom Rainer also has a similar article at "What Should a Guest Preacher be Paid?"

In addition to the Rainer's articles, others advise to consider factors such as the speaker's experience, expertise, skill level, number of times speaking, number of days away from family, etc. Others suggest that smaller churches guarantee a minimal amount and also receive a love-offering for the speaker. Whatever method your church decides to follow or however much the church decides to give, the bottom-line is that the church should be generous with God's man.