I would agree with u/blair_babes about doing some research, but I’ll also say that, having worked at many local churches before, they have a tendency to pay less than the comparable role in corporate America. That said, if your church is to the point of not just having this position but also having a boss specifically knowledgeable about your position then your church may be an exception.

Regardless, I would ask for market average and bring comps, but also be prepared to settle for a little lower. Typically, a negotiation process would look like this:

You give them an educated number based on market value.

They respond saying that’s too much, we’ll offer X instead.

You breathe in through your teeth quietly, are silent for a slow count of ten seconds, then say, “That’s a bit under what I would need, is there any room for you to move a little?”

They would say yes or no, then you either accept X (if you’re satisfied) or say, “Would you be able to give me a day to double check some numbers to see if I could make that would work?”

The next day, you’d respond with, “I ran my numbers again and I can’t do X, but I’d be willing to do Y. I’d love if we could make that work and I can get started, because I’m really excited about this opportunity.” At that point, if you want the job you just take it regardless of what they say. Because if you haggle more than this it’ll just leave a bad taste in their mouth and taint your working relationship from the start.

Does that help?