Frequently it is said of some minister, who in his contacts conveys the impression that he is poorly paid and not appreciated as he should be, "Poor man! He is to pitied! Why do people not understand him better, and do more to help him?" Such remarks are not isolated, nor are such instances few. The question naturally arises, Is it healthful, spiritually speaking, for any minister thus to excite sympathy for himself, doing all in his power to gain special favors and consideration, either by talking "poverty" himself or by allowing his wife or friends to make this plea for him? Is it becoming for an ambassador from the court of heaven so to conduct himself socially and in the pulpit that he excites sympathy for himself rather than toward the kingdom that he is supposed to represent?
This is a reasonable question and deserves an honest answer. In its consideration we must take the minister's family as a part of himself; for while the minister might deny that either by word or look had he sought to excite sympathy, yet he might be represented by his wife, who could demand morn sympathy for her husband than he would seek to arouse for himself.
Christ was poor, but He was not ashamed of it. To a would-be follower He once said: "Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay His head." None can be poorer than that. Yet Christ lived to bless others, never asking that they contribute to His support or make gifts to Him. He bestowed favors, but He did not seek them.
The disciples were poor, following their Master's example of giving instead of receiving. During His ministry, we are told, it was the common people who followed Him and gladly listened to the words of life. The members of the early church were largely recruited from the same class. Like the apostles, they were poor, and their earthly goods were few. Those who had possessions sold them, and gave to those in greater need than themselves. While working ardently in public and in private to preach the gospel, the apostle Paul did not receive a salary. Moreover, he labored with his own hands that he might not only not be a burden to others, but have means to give to others. To the elders of Ephesus, gathered to bid him farewell, he said: "I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel. Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me." To Timothy he wrote a most carefully worded exhortation which is frequently used in the charge given to ministers at their ordination:
"Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many' foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, 0 man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and halt professed a good profession before many witnesses. I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession; that thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Tim. 6:6-14.
When a man permits the servants of God to lay their hands on his head in prayer, setting him apart from other men to follow the Master in sacrificial service, he enters into solemn covenant with God and man to obey the Lord in all things, and to renounce the world, its pleasures, honors, and riches. By example as well as precept the minister forsakes the pursuit of gains which to other men, not under such vows and charges, might be legitimate, but which to the consecrated minister would be blameworthy. A speculating minister, a rich minister, a minister who seeks to advantage himself in barter and trade, in buying and selling, in seeking gains even in ways that would be legitimate for other men, denies his Master, and is a menace to the profession of which he is a member.
The Wife's Responsibility
The minister's wife also has a responsibility in this matter. No woman should ever marry a gospel minister, nor should a married woman advise that her husband enter the ministry, unless she is willing to live within a limited income, and cheerfully accept the scale of living that must go with a true ambassador for Christ. Many a minister's home is made unhappy, and his work a comparative failure, because his wife constantly longs for "things," finery, and the pleasures of society.
Economy in the use of money is primary in the life of the minister as well as of his family if "the ministry be blamed." It is not enough for the minister to say that his wife "manages the family," and that he is therefore not responsible when he faces a deficit in the household expenses. Every minister ought to control his family in these matters. When, as is sometimes the case, the wife is a more efficient manager and a more thrifty buyer than her husband; when she understands the management of the household exchequer, and can feed and clothe the family on the budget that the minister cannot make cover the expenses, then why should not the wife be given oversight of the funds? Being ordained does not impart every gift to the minister.
Nearly every minister's family faces a continual shortage of funds. This has always been true. In every minister's home the feeding, clothing, and educating of growing children is a task staggering in its magnitutde. And it will be readily admitted that as much skill is required to compass the actual needs of a growing family on a preacher's salary as to handle the affairs of a large financial corporation having plenty of income.
Yet it goes without saying that many compass all this cheerfulness, and with seeming plenty. All have seen ministers who receive an ordinary ministerial salary such as their fellow ministers receive, living in a decent home with suitable furnishings, neatly clothing their children, and educating them in our denominational schools and colleges, and yet never asking for nor receiving a dollar in gifts from the brethren or conference in sickness or health. Others receiving an equal salary, and giving no more and often not so much to the cause of God, are continually soliciting financial aid, and are apparently un, able to support their families properly, or to educate their children in our schools.
Wherein Lies the Difference?
All will admit that the difference represents a- difference in management. One family may have a table loaded with expensive foods, carrying a bill at the grocery, and living in constant dread of the first of the month; the other studies food values, and without sacrificing what is essential to health, lives more simply. In the matter of food, cost and nourishment are not always equal. Order, cleanliness, and good taste go well with simple foods; and these, served with kindness and good cheer, are delicious portions. I like the plan I once heard given by a minister, who said, "We started out never to eat or wear what had not been paid for."
Then, too, caring for things is as important as choosing them and paying for them in the first place. A minister once told me that in his family they never debated about buying new things for himself or his wife, but about what to do with old things that still had wear in them.
By His frugal life and at least one outstanding example, the Saviour taught the sinfulness of waste. The multitude had been fed. Five thousand men besides women and children had eaten till they were satisfied after a long fast. The disciples gloried in the fact that their Master could multiply food till not one soul in that great company was hungry. Having eaten, they would have left the fragments to be wasted, as is so often done today; but Jesus said: "Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost."
It is a part of every minister's duty to care for the fragments, not only of what belongs to the church, but of what belongs to himself personally. What makes the difference between families is often not a difference in the amount of money received, but in the way it is used. One man may buy and wear out two suits of clothes to another's one. Why? Either he buys poor material, or he fails to care for his clothes properly. One woman wears a hat and coat for years, while another must have a new suit and hat each season. What makes the difference?
The Sin of Waste
Waste makes many a family poor. The neglect to gather up the fragments, to conserve and care for what appears of little value in these spendthrift days, has brought many workers to the border line of need and dependency. The stitch in time is neglected, and the garment ruined; the heel is worn down till a new shoe is demanded. The best clothing is worn in heat or storm, and hung away soiled and uncared for.
Such people are not poor because they are workers in the cause of God. If they received much more, they would still be crippled, living ever "on the ragged edge," because they have not learned to care for what they have. "Gather up the fragments, that nothing be lost," is an important injunction. It ought to be heeded.
A few examples will illustrate some of the leaks that consume the minister's salary, and cause him to reach in some cases a condition of actual want. I knew one such family well. They were always in need. Children, rent, and often doctor's bills taxed the fixed income to the limit. On one occasion rain had fallen all night. In the morning the twelve-year-old girl could not find her shoes. Her mother suggested that she might have left them in the yard the night before, so out she dashed in a new dress into the storm—and returned with the dripping shoes. They were soaked, and would never again be as good as if they had been properly cared for.
In another case a pair of good shoes, nearly new, were found chewed by the pet puppy till they could be worn no more. The minister to whom they belonged said, "I have no others; what shall I do?" The wife replied. "You will have to run in debt for a new pair that is all." Who was at fault?
A minister once showed me an overcoat that had mildewed till it was ruined. He explained that he had bought it in the spring, and worn it only a few weeks. Now that cold weather had come, it was worthless. Since he did not have another, one must be bought, or he must go cold. The wife wept, and said it was just their luck. In fact, the whole family seemed in this same mildewed condition. But whose was the fault? When I told them that I knew a minister who was wearing an overcoat that he had worn for fourteen years, and was still using a "best" suit that he had had even longer, they said that it seemed impossible.
Another sister, the wife of a minister, showed me a pretty rug that had been eaten by moths. She, too, wept at the loss. When reminded that woolen things must be cleaned and carefully wrapped up with moth balls, if put away for the summer, she said, "I know all that; but who would have thought that my new rug would be ruined in this way while we were working for the Lord?" She seemed oblivious to the fact that moths and mildew are not too careful to inquire for whom we work, but help themselves to whatever is not cared for.
As already stated, the difference in the scale of living maintained by two families under the same conditions on the same wage is largely a matter of management. The one cares for the fragments, and maintains economy without niggardliness; the other does not watch the leaks, and often fails to care for what is bought. The children in the one case are taught to respect what might be called the rights of the house; in the other they look upon furniture and furnishings as "toys," and use them. accordingly.
Our Present Responsibility
While our ministers should not, as has been said, accumulate riches, they should seek to live with dignity, maintaining Christian standards within the home and in the community. Never should they allow themselves to plead personal poverty as a means of personal gain! If they find themselves in danger of overspending, they should call a halt, and care for the fragments, ever remembering that there is no merit, in and of itself, in being poor. It is a real attainment to live in comfort within limited means, without shiftlessness or carelessness.
These are days of retrenchment. Already salaries have been reduced, and it may not be long before they will have to undergo a still further reduction. Some will be able to meet the conditions entailed by the cut; and while having less money they will still live properly, and contribute to the needs of the cause of God. Others will suffer keenly. What will make the difference? One large factor is the management of the household, and the earing for the fragments. To eliminate waste is as important in the household as in the factory. In the factory, when costs mount, the management calls in experts to investigate, and to indicate where savings can be effected. Many a household would do well to consult with others as to how they can live and give and save on what they are receiving.
The fragments count. Save them in this time of distress.
I. H. E.
