Making Service Happen (Before Sunday)
Photo by Marten Bjork on Unsplash
It was a really busy week. I was bi-vocational and had a hundred different things pulling away my time and attention. Sunday morning was here and in about an hour I’d have 20 kids show up looking to learn about Jesus.
The problem was that I didn’t have anything prepared. No big idea, memory verse, Bible story, worship songs. Nothing. I was in a panic trying to think of something, anything, to do before those kids walked in. Thankfully, I made it through. It’s a good thing that while every service matters, also no service matters.
I determined that this wouldn’t happen again. I needed to have a sustainable plan that worked around my schedule. It needed to be ready before Sunday to give me and my volunteers peace of mind.
Over the years, I developed a good system to make sure that I never have a panicked Sunday again. Granted things do happen and you need to pivot. But I’d rather have a Plan A than no plan at all. So here is what I do.
1. Four to Six weeks out
Part of my problem that fateful Sunday is that I had the bad habit of planning for that Sunday the week of. It’s easy to fall into this trap. You get busy doing all the things ministry has you do, and Sunday service falls further down the list.
So, I decided to start planning ahead. It was weird at first. Planning just a week ahead, I found I lacked the passion for the message I had when I was planning on Thursdays or later. However, over time, I adjusted. I found ways to rekindle that passion leading into Sunday even if I’d planned the message weeks before. I’ll talk about how in a minute.
If you’re planning week to week, getting to four or six weeks can be tough. I suggest you start planning two weeks in the time you normally plan one. After doing this for 4 weeks in a row, you’ll be way ahead and can switch back to planning one service a week. Except now you’re planning the service in 4-6 weeks not 4-6 days.
I decided on 4-6 weeks because of my curriculum. Some curricula have a new theme every 4 weeks and others 6. My goal was to have each week planned out before the first one started.
What that means is that I have all the service schedules made, the songs, games, memory verse, and videos picked out. It also means all my volunteers are scheduled. I send out the entire month’s schedule at the beginning of the month and then send reminders the week of. Planning Center Services is a huge help for this.
This does not include, however, printing everything out, collecting props, creating presentation slides, etc. I don’t want my office or kidmin closet to be overrun with stuff I’m not going to use in 6 weeks. I save those tasks for later.
2. Week of the service
As I talked about in this post, I like to theme my days throughout the week. It helps me focus on what needs to be done that day. When I’m full-time Thursdays are service prep days. When I’m bi-vocational it may be Friday or even Saturday. This is when I’ll gather props, practice my songs, read over the service elements, practice the message, and more.
I make sure everything is put out in an easy place for me or my volunteers to find. You don’t want to scramble to find something during service. Before I started prepping on Thursdays, I did this all the time. That’s a good way to lose the attention of your kids. Learn from me. Don’t do it.
Sometimes I’ll make my presentation slides weeks in advance like I prepare my lessons. But things change, I need to adjust or start over. Service prep day is the day to fix all this. Tech problems are some of the hardest and time-intensive problems to solve. You don’t want those during your service. It’s best to find them now and fix them than try in front of a bunch of people.
Remember I said I lose the passion for the message when I plan ahead? Service Prep Day is also the day I pull out the message and rekindle that passion. I go into the room where I’m speaking, turn everything on and run through the entire service. Even though it’s empty, I pretend it’s full. By the time I’m done, I find the passion is back and my presentation is a lot better.
3. Day of the service
Sunday has finally come. I like to arrive at least an hour before my volunteers get there. I want to make sure everything is turned on and ready to go. If I had to pick up anything after prep time, I need to set it all out for my volunteers to use.
I also practice the songs and message again. Your music and message are the most important elements of the service and need to be spot on. Make sure you’re ready by going over it one more time.
If you have volunteers helping you with these service elements, have them meet you early. Practice with them too. You don’t want to be running worship practice while the people are coming into the room.
As volunteers arrive, show them where everything is and run through the schedule. You can make this a part of your pre-service meeting or talk to your volunteers individually about their segment their leading.
4. After the service
When everything is over and you’ve said goodbye to your last kid, start cleaning up and prepping for next week. You don’t want to come into a messy room days later.
One week I did an actual food fight with frozen tater tots. I thought I cleaned it all up, but a year later we changed our stage and found one behind it. It was gross. You don’t want the same in your area. Take some time to clean up.
Planning your service ahead may seem impossible, but it’s not. With a little intentionality and time management, you can relieve a lot of stress week to week and make your services great. Sunday is always coming. Instead of dreading it, you can look forward to it. It’s another opportunity to each people about Jesus. And that’s what it’s all about.
