The Open Door

Thankful that the stock market is performing better these days has made me think more about investments. It’s funny, when the market is doing poorly, I am fairly disinterested in checking on my investments, knowing that, not only are they not growing, they are decreasing. On the other hand, when the stock market is on the rise, I get enthused about getting on my computer to check my retirement account with GuideStone and anticipate seeing growth.

There were times that only the wealthy spoke of the stock market and investing. Not so in our day, however. These are common subjects of great interest to most Americans. Enough books have been written on the subject of investing to fill most libraries. Television and radio provide daily programming focused solely upon the subject of investing.

The older I get the more grateful I am for the investments my churches made in me across the years. I began making contributions to my retirement account when I began serving as a church staff minister at 26 years of age. My personal contributions were small in those days as were the contributions made by my church. Those dollars invested at an early age, however, were the most valuable because they have had a long time to grow.

As I proceeded in my pastoral experience, my churches made greater contributions, and so did I. How blessed I was to have a wise pastor-father who counseled me to invest for my retirement years, even though I was a young man. I encouraged my churches to do the best they could in contributing to the retirement accounts of all of our staff. I didn’t have to do much convincing. Our business folks already knew how important this was, and in most cases, they were ahead of me, encouraging me to make investments in my retirement and committing to do the same as a church.

I am particularly thankful for Tabernacle Baptist Church in Carrollton, First Baptist of Paducah, Kentucky, and the Georgia Baptist Convention for investing in my future and the future of my family. I am thankful for caring laymen who did not want a former pastor and family from their church suffering for lack of support in the years of retirement. These visionary leaders made an incredible impact upon my future.

The investments that I made and those made on my behalf were by no means sufficient to make me a wealthy person, but by the time I retire several years from now, they will have been sufficient to insure that my retirement will provide for my needs and the needs of my wife until the Lord calls us home. What a wonderful peace that provides. I am so grateful!

I have shared these personal thoughts with you because you need to be mindful of the retirement of those who minister to you. There is a real spiritual obligation to minister to the needs of those whose ministry serves your congregation. The time for their retirement will come some day when both they and you should be able to be at peace about their financial security. Those who literally pour themselves out in ministry to others should be cared for as well.

If your church has not been involved in providing for the retirement needs of your staff, may I encourage you to call the Georgia Baptist Convention at (800) RING-GBC and ask for Dr. Keith Hamilton, specialist, or Tony Neal, consultant, in Church Financial Services. They will be anxious to provide all of the information you need to begin effectively ministering to those who minister to you. It’s the right thing to do.