About The Honest Pastor’s Wife (HPW)
I’m just starting my journey as a pastor’s wife and your writing has really encouraged me. Keep it up.
–Justina
Hi there, I’m Kristy Lynn!
I grew up in a parsonage.
I know (+ generally despise) every joke about PKs.
My mom is a pastor’s wife. So was my grandma + great-grandma.
As if I hadn’t already had enough, I fell in love with a senior at Bible college when I was 19 years old. Jeremy + I married + have served together in vocational ministry since 2004.
I can honestly say that pastoral ministry is our mutual calling.
Since childhood, writing has been my passion; I’ve been blogging since 2007 + began writing for ministry wives in 2014.
My most important job is being the insanely busy mom of three teens + two young sons. I homeschool my four younger kids + graduated our oldest daughter in May 2021 (that was a big deal!).
I dream of someday taking over traveling the world, but content myself with piles of books, occasional road trips + British movies for now.
I know that ministry life has its challenges.
The stats below are my “why” when it comes to writing content for pastor’s wives.
Stats About Pastor’s Wife Life
The pastor’s wife
- 54% are under 40 years old
- 41% are between the ages of 40 + 60
- 41% have been in ministry less than 10 years
- 32% enjoy teaching in the church
- 22% said their gift is being a good listener
- 4% said they feel fulfilled + confident in their roles
- 60% expressed the desire for more training
Ministry in 2022
- in-person church attendance has declined 60% since the pandemic
- only 52% of church-goers want primarily in-person services again
- 29% of pastors considered a career change in 2020
Her family
- 58% said that supporting + encouraging their husbands is their most important role
- 94% said their kids never or seldom complain about being PKs
- 17% feel like ministry pressure affects their kids
- 65% of pastors say they have not taken a family vacation in the past 5 years
Her personal life
- nearly 37% are college graduates
- 56% do not have close friends in the church
- 21% would like more privacy in their personal lives
- 13% would prefer to choose their roles in the church, rather than being a jack-of-all-trades
- 25% admit that their husband’s busy schedule is a source of conflict
Statistics were gathered from LEADERSHIP journal, Christianity Today, George Barna + The Fuller Institute.
Any of that ring a bell for you?
Yeah, me too.
Especially the part about only 4% of us feeling fulfilled + confident in our roles as pastor’s wives.
That keeps me up at night + gets me going in the morning.
I’m here to convince you that you totally have what it takes to thrive as a pastor’s wife. And it actually has nothing to do with being “good enough” (whatever that means).
Thriving as a pastor’s wife is all about growing into who you were created to be.
And that, my friend, is a growth mindset. Not a performance.
Let’s Connect
When I’m not blogging about pastor’s wife life, you’ll find me over at my lifestyle blog, SimplyKristyLynn.
You can also connect with me at:
Facebook @thehonestpastorswife
Instagram @thehonestpastorswife
the HPW online ministry wives support group
Drop your name + email below to join the tribe!
I look forward to getting to know you better.
