From wikipedia

Tentmaking, in general, refers to the activities of any Christian who, while functioning as a minister, receives little or no pay for his or her church work, and supports him or herself by additional, unrelated work. Specifically, tentmaking can also refer to a method of international Christian evangelism in which missionaries support themselves by working full time in the marketplace with their skills and education, instead of receiving financial support from a church. The term comes from the fact that the apostle Paul supported himself by making tents while living and preaching in Corinth (Acts 18:3).

Unlike Peter and other apostles in the early Christian church, who devoted themselves entirely to their religious ministry and lived off the money donated by church members,(Acts 6:2) Paul frequently performed outside work, not desiring to be a financial burden to the young churches he founded. In Thessaloniki, Paul states that he and his companions "worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you" (2 Thessalonians 3:8). Paul's purpose in working was to set an example for the Christians, desiring that they not become idle in their expectation of the return of Christ, but that they would work to support themselves. He also hoped that his refusal to accept financial support would build his credibility among non-Christians, thus giving him the chance to win over more of them (See 1 Corinthians 9, particularly verse 12). For additional glimpses into the Apostle Paul's tentmaking ministry see Acts 18:1-3; 20:33-35; Philippians 4:14-16.

In addition to the example of Paul, many other famous people from the Bible supported themselves during their ministry. For example, Abraham raised livestock, Joseph was a government official, Joshua was a war general, Nehemiah was cupbearer to the King, Esther was a great ruler of her people, and Luke was a physician. Even Jesus himself worked as a carpenter (see Mark 6:3).
Financial support is not the only essence of tentmaking. Instead the vocational identity coupled with excellence of work and lifestyle influences colleagues to follow Jesus Christ.
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Pastor Fanco asked me last week if I would be tentmaking or if I would be a full-time pastor.  I wasn't sure of what tentmaking was but when Pastor Fanco told me the short definition I still didn't fully understand so I thought I would be a full-time pastor.  But now that I think of it, tentmaking is actually a very probable option for when I go to Montreal... we'll see.