Pastors work hard to serve and minister to their congregations all year long. The stresses of the job include long hours, low pay and complaining members. However, many churches honor their pastor at least once a year in special ways. A pastor's appreciation luncheon provides an opportunity for the staff, leadership and congregation to celebrate all the pastor does for the church. You can create a lovely invitation for an event of this scope by choosing your words carefully.

Work with one or two other people who can help provide input on the invitation. The wording will depend on the formality of the event and the number of people invited.

Choose a format for the invitation after the details are decided. The details will help determine if the format is plain or fancy. If you send out only a few invitations, someone might make them by hand. For large numbers of invitations, keep it simple. For a medium crowd, opt for a style between simple and complex. You want to include as much information as possible on the invitation, but at the bare minimum, include the basics of who, what, where and when.

Choose to do a very basic traditional format if you want, such as a card or elegant parchment paper, which states "You're Invited" on the front or top. Include the following words with colons after each and the appropriate information: Who, What, Where, When, Why and R.S.V.P. (including to whom and by what date). Guests can see the event information at a glance.

Choose instead to write a letter inviting guests to the lunch. The letter might be worded similar to the following:

Dear Friend, With all the blessings we have from attending Community Church, we want to take time to honor those who lead us. We invite you to attend the Pastor's Appreciation Lunch at noon on Wednesday, February 23, 2011.

During his time here at Community Church, Pastor Smith has served our members and represented our congregation well. He welcomes new members, hugs the children and offers a smile to all. From sermons to hospital visits to counseling sessions to community outreach events, his service encourages many who know him.

Please join us in the Life Center for a lunch in his honor. RSVP to 111-111-1111. We hope to see you there.

Blessings, Church Secretary or Board Member

Include an R.S.V.P. card for more formal invitations. Make sure the card contains standard information, such as name, number of people attending, phone numbers and email addresses.