March is Pastor’s Wife Appreciation Month. Pastor’s wives are all different and are at different stages in their lives and have different personalities and spiritual gifts. Your pastor’s wife may still be newly married and new to this role, or maybe she is busy with children at home or possibly she is enjoying her grandchildren or retirement. No matter what life stage she is in or what ministry roles she takes on in your church, if any, the one thing you can count on is that she walks through all of the ups and downs of ministry with her husband. It’s oftentimes a lonely place to be and a difficult role to be in, even in the healthiest of churches. So, we encourage you to take the opportunity this month to show her how much she is valued. Here are some ideas for how you can do that:

• Ask people to contribute gift cards for a mani/pedi, massage, hair dresser, movie theater, a fancy restaurant, her favorite place to shop, a local bed & breakfast, etc. Then put them all together in a pretty package for her.
• Put together a gift basket for her with things like candles, hand towels, spa products, comfy robe, slippers, a plant, a book, grocery store gift card, essential oils & diffuser, etc.
• If she has young children, plan a time with her to babysit or take her children on an outing so she can have some time for herself.
• Hire a house cleaning service to do some spring cleaning for her. (Please make sure this would be something she would like before making arrangements, then set up a time that would work best for her.)
• Ask if there are any home improvement projects that she would like done (painting, repairs, new applicance, etc.) and complete one for her.
• Please keep in mind that what you do for her should be something that you know she would love and be blessed by. This is a list of just a few ideas, maybe you have something completely different in mind that you know she would enjoy. And, if you don’t know what she would like, don’t be afraid to ask her. Your pastor’s wife may be happy just having a meal with you so you both can get to know each other better. Your friendship may be the best gift of all.