For Ministers & Families

You carry the flock. Let someone carry you for a while.

A word to every apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher who has quietly wondered how they will make it through the month, and to the husbands, wives and children who walk that road with them.

See if you qualify How applications work

A letter to you

Dear minister,

We know you rarely say it out loud. You stand before your people every week with a steady voice, and they lean on you as though you had no needs of your own. Some of them have never once wondered whether you have eaten, whether the rent is paid, or how you will find your children’s fees this term.

Perhaps you have learned to say “God will provide” so often that you have stopped telling anyone how hard the waiting is. We believe He will provide. We also believe He often provides through His people, and that is why this Foundation exists.

You are not a burden for having needs. You are a servant of God who has given your life to His flock, and it is right that someone should stand behind you.

What Paul taught

Supporting the minister was never a new idea.

Again and again, the apostle reminded the churches that those who labour in the Word should be cared for by those they serve.

“Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.”

1 Corinthians 9:14

“Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.”

Galatians 6:6

“Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.”

1 Timothy 5:18

“For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity.”

Philippians 4:16

When the flock cannot

Faithful service in places that cannot pay for it.

The principle is clear, yet the reality is uneven. If you have been sent to a prosperous city congregation, your members may care for you well. If you have been sent to a small town, a farming community or a new church plant, your members may love you deeply and still have almost nothing to give.

We have seen what that gap can cost. We know of ministers who were turned out of their homes because the rent could not be found. We know of shepherds who lost their lives to illnesses that money, at the right time, could have treated. Those losses did not have to happen, and we do not intend to stand by while they happen again.

Shepherds Only Foundation exists to be a partner to those called to serve, wherever the call has placed them.

Everything we have comes from people who are themselves called to the ministry. When you receive support from the Foundation, you are being held up by fellow shepherds who understand.

What membership offers you

Care that does not stop at money.

Once you are verified and onboarded, you are a member for life. Here is what that opens to you.

Monthly support

You may apply for financial support once a month for twelve months. Limits are reviewed from time to time and applied fairly to every household.

Someone to talk to

Confidential counselling for you and your spouse, with people who understand pastoral life and will not repeat what you say.

Rest and renewal

Automatic consideration for seminars and retreats, for you alone or for your whole family, paid for by the Foundation.

People praying with you

Prayer meetings online, and in some cases in person, so that your support reaches beyond material needs to your spirit.

Something to read

Weekly articles and Christian books in digital form, because the one who feeds others needs feeding too.

Complete privacy

Your name and circumstances are never published. Your congregation does not need to know, unless you choose to tell them.

Your household matters to us

The calling is lived at home, so our care goes home too.

A minister and his or her household are considered as one applicant. That is deliberate. Your spouse and your children are not an afterthought to your ministry; in many ways they are its first congregation.

For your spouse

Ministry spouses give years of unseen service, often setting aside their own ambitions. We want to invest in them directly.

Development opportunities that build skills, confidence and earning potential.
Confidential counselling, separately or together.
Places at Foundation seminars and family retreats.

For your children

No child should lose a term of school because a parent said yes to God. We give particular attention to education.

Scholarships for children of member ministers.
Tuition support during difficult seasons.
Inclusion in family programmes and retreats.

An honest word

This is for those who are truly in need.

We say this gently, as fellow servants. The Foundation’s resources are held for ministers whose need is genuine. If the Lord has provided for you well, we rejoice with you, and we ask you to leave room for a brother or sister who has less.

If you do apply, please apply with complete honesty. Every application is verified, sometimes in person, and decisions rest entirely on legitimacy. A rejection is final, so it is far better to wait and apply carefully than to rush and apply carelessly.

Priority is given to families in genuine need of support.

Where to go next

God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love.
Hebrews 6:10