Why I've Decided to Monetize My YouTube Channel

Why I’ve Decided to Monetize My YouTube Channel

Hello, ladies and gentlemen, my name is Justin Peters. I hope that you and your family are doing well today. I want to thank you so much for joining me for this podcast. And I'm doing this podcast to let you know why I've decided to monetize my YouTube channel.

Up until and including this point it has not been monetized. I plan on starting that process probably next week once I get back home from a upcoming preaching engagement I have in California, but I've decided to go ahead and monetize it.

Why I Resisted Monetization at First

But let me let me first tell you Why up until this point I've decided not to do that I've resisted that many people have encouraged me to monetize my YouTube channel. And I've not done so for a couple of reasons one I knew that I would not have control over what kind of advertisements are shown on my YouTube channel so I've talked and so obviously I didn't want to An ad to pop up for something with which I would strongly disagree, you know, I wouldn't want to an Advertisement for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to show up on one of my videos and give them free advertising.

You know, so that's why that's one of the main reasons. I've not done it. The other reason is that I did not want to open myself up to criticism. Oh Justin's just does he just does his YouTube channel to make money?

That has not stopped some people from criticizing me. Anyway, they think I do my YouTube channel for money, even though I have not made one red cent off of my YouTube channel. But at any rate that that's the other thing, you know.

Oh Justin criticize and especially dealing with the nature of that for which I'm most well known Engaging the word of faith movement the health and wealth prosperity gospel. I didn't want people to call Justin criticizes the prosperity gospel on YouTube and yet here he is making money off of his YouTube channel.

Well a couple things about that. Number one the great majority of my Videos on my YouTube channel don't even deal with word of faith issues some do but most of them don't so it's uh I've kind of been theologically typecast in a certain sense.

People think all I care is about is word of faith or false prophets. It's not true. My first love is expository preaching, but Anyway, that was just it seemed to me to be too easy of a criticism that people would raise and so I resisted it so let me tell you now why I've decided to Shift course and monetize my YouTube channel after all.

How Ad Revenue and Monthly Support Will Be Used

All right regarding the Advertisements as Best I understand and I've talked to people who are far more knowledgeable about this than am I but they have said you have some control Over the kind of advertisements that are put on your channel.

To what degree I'm not exactly sure at this point, but I've also been told by these folks who know more than I that The biggest determining factor and what kind of ads pop up on a YouTube video that you're watching.

It depends largely on what kind of videos you tend to watch on YouTube. So if you watch a lot of say if you're an outdoorsman and you watch a lot of hunting videos. Chances are you'll probably get an advertisement for um You know a Honda four-wheeler or something like that pop up if you watch a lot of religious videos, you know.

You might get you'll probably get some kind of religious Advertising or something like that. So Anyway, obviously I have no control over kind of the kind of videos that you're watching at home. So but anyway to whatever degree I can I will restrict what kind of Advertisements pop pop up the other thing dealing with the money.

Here's what many people have told me is that YouTube is making money off of my YouTube channel in any channel. But especially the ones that have at least some kind of a sizable following YouTube is making money off of those channels regardless.

Regardless of whether or not my channel is monetized YouTube is making money off of it. So why not have that money instead of going to YouTube? Why not have that money go to a worthy cause and The people with whom I've spoken they've encouraged me to do this.

Of course, they're thinking my ministry, you know have that money go in to be a support to your ministry so here If they're gonna make money anyway, may as well go to a good good cause. But here's what I've decided to do in talking with my wife Kathy and talking with the board of directors whatever Money that my YouTube channel generates in a month.

And honestly, I have absolutely no idea what to expect. I don't know if it's gonna be $100 $500 if I have no idea what's gonna come in, but whatever it is. None of it is going to go to Justin Peters ministries.

None of it 100 of it will go to either doctrinally sound ministries doctrinally sound churches or doctrinally sound missionaries. Churches ministries missionaries that I know that are out there doing the Lord's work.

Maybe if for example, it's a it's a church plant. It's a relatively young church. It's a good church led by good qualified biblically qualified men, but they're young and they're you know. They're they're kind of struggling.

Whatever money I make in a month for that particular month. I'll send it to them or a doctrinally sound ministry. That I know I will send it to them or a missionary and I know some missionaries that are out there doing the Lord's work.

One month I'll send it to them. So every month in other words every month. It'll it'll change and In the description of my videos I will put for whatever month that is whatever month it appears I'll let you know in the description where that money's going to.

Fair enough. So that that's what I want to do. So that will alleviate. At least with any reasonable Reasonably minded people that will alleviate those concerns and I'm just doing this to enrich my own ministry.

Not the case never been my motivation at all on any level. So since we're talking about Finances a little bit. I thought I would take this opportunity to give you kind of a bird's-eye view of My ministry and how it operates.

Ministry Finances, 501(c)(3) Status, and Board Oversight

Because some of you have asked with varying degrees of sincerity Must say but in any right? Here's here's a bird's-eye view My ministry is a 501c3 Nonprofit, so in other words, whatever money is donated to this ministry It's it can be written off on your taxes and I know some have Criticized they they don't like the 501c3 because they think somehow if your ministry is a 501c3 It makes you beholden to the federal government friends, let me tell you If the day ever comes it probably will but if the day ever comes Where the federal government tells me?

You've got to change or alter in any way What you're teaching in order to keep your 501c3 nonprofit status? That is the day that Justin Peters ministries ceases to be a nonprofit 501c3 Ministry, I will not countenance that so if it ever comes to that Then I'll lose my nonprofit status.

So be it. But anyway, the nonprofit status It's just a way to make it easier for people and be a little help to them who who support the ministry and make it You know write that off on their tax Just like you would to any any church the church that you go to that.

I hope that I hope you go to so anyway that's one thing my Ministry is governed by a board of directors. I have two pastors and one deacon on my board of directors. So my entire board is four of us. I'm one of them, of course.

But three others and these are men that that I know that I that know me who know me very very well and I have great respect for them their character and They oversee everything on the board or everything Financially related to the ministry.

In other words, my board of directors Sets my salary. I don't even I Don't have any part of that the board of directors Sets my salary these other three men and I can tell you by the way that it is a five-figure Salary and by five figures.

I don't mean it's ninety nine thousand nine hundred ninety nine dollars. It's well south of six figures, so I'm not out there shopping for a private jet or a Rolls-Royce or anything like that. So it is it is a modest modest salary.

But I am Grateful for for what it is. I'm very grateful. The ministry is a 501c3. So it is supported by a Few things when I go to a church. Some churches give me a love offering some churches do an honorarium.

Of course that goes Straight into the ministry. It does not go into my pocket. It goes right back into the ministry. I Have however a policy. This is my philosophy of ministry. Whenever I get an invitation to go to a church and preach.

And I've been I think in 46, maybe 47 46 46 states 46 out of 50 states. So I've preached in 46 out of 50 states. I've preached in 27 different countries some of the many of those countries multiple times 27 different countries whenever I get an invitation to preach.

My philosophy is this first come first serve. Whoever invites me to come I will go. I do not base my decisions on which invitations I accept. I do not base those decisions on the size of the church on how Much or how little money the church has that does not factor into Into my calculus at all basically.

As long as it will fit into my schedule I will go and you can ask any pastor who has had me come into his church and preach. I Don't inquire about money. I do not have a minimum Set fee to come and preach.

I don't say okay. I'll come if you can if you'll guarantee me X number of dollars. I don't do that. I know some do but that's not me. I don't I don't do that. So I don't even ask about what the church will do many most of the time Pastors will ask me, you know, what do you need from us?

What do you require? And I'll say I don't require anything Other than if you'll take care of my travel expenses and a place to stay while I'm with you and your folks. That's all I'm I really ask for. So anything other than that, it's completely leave it up to the church.

I don't even inquire about it. But for my overseas trips my international trips. Many of those trips are to poor countries many of them are to third-world countries and for those kinds of trips I do that at the ministry's own expense.

I Do not charge them for anything. If I'm going to a third-world country where it's going to be harder for me to get around. You know that just the logistics of it. The state of the you know, the infrastructure there and and if I'm gonna be in In some pretty rundown hotels, which I've been in In my fair share of those.

But anyway, if it's gonna be a difficult trip for me physically I will usually take someone with me. To get to go in and help me. And so all of those expenses my ticket his ticket Hotel Motel, whatever we can find tell.

Food all of that stuff. Maybe we have to rent out an area to set up for a pastor's conference. We have to rent out a you know, town square or something like that or some venue. All of that is taken care of by my ministry.

I do not charge those precious folks anything at all so If you think about all that goes into an international trip trip. Most of my international trips or one to two weeks one week is really on the short end.

But one to two weeks and so that is multiple multiple thousands of dollars. And so There I do have some people who support my ministry on a monthly basis which is a huge help and it enables me to do these kinds of trips if it were not for support from Some like-minded believers.

I could not do these kinds of things. So that enables me to do what I'm doing and of course all the other Expenses that go along with the ministry Equipment that I need to do to do these YouTube videos stuff like that our resources that I need research.

Going to Benny Hinn crusades from time to time Kenneth Copeland stuff, you know kind of theological field trips I guess you could say I go to these things and do research and talk to people and get into the to the Trenches and and talk to them because I want to do that.

So anyway all the people who support my ministry. That that goes and funds all of this stuff. So oh, I also have a policy Dealing with my resources that you know, I sell DVDs Flash drives of a lot of my teaching have some t-shirts bumper stickers a book I've written some books at Jim Osmond's written also I sell my so I have if you go to my website in the store.

I have a number of resources there. I do sell those and some people have criticized me for selling those. You should give away all your stuff and my response is okay. Well, if you'll pay for them all if you'll pay that to have them all reproduced edited.

You know multiple multiple thousands of copies made if you want if you want to do all that sure I'll give everything away for free, but these things don't make themselves. They do cost to produce and so I do sell them.

I think the prices are very reasonable, but I do sell them, but I also have a policy. If anyone needs my resources and cannot afford them. Then I give them away in any one of you who is watching you if you've seen me teach in person.

You know, I say this bring my resources with me. I say if you cannot afford them Don't let the cost be prohibitive to you. I want people to be equipped. So Anyway, that's that's kind of a bird's-eye view of my ministry.

How I do what I do my philosophy of it how I choose where to go. Basically if it fits into my calendar I go. And the finances so I hope this helps some hope it explains to you. Why you might be seeing some advertisements on my videos in the future.

Okay. Does that cover everything. I Guess it does. All right. Well, thank you very much dear ones until our next time together. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the love of God and the fellowship of his Holy Spirit be with you all.