If you are on a church staff (especially in the creative arts department) you understand the phrase “Sunday is coming.” 52 times a year we put on a church service with the hope of people coming to know Christ for the first time each week. Every single thing we do to get ready for this day is important.

The thing we often miss though is that having a great Sunday starts on Monday.

Most weeks if we’re honest we don’t get to everything we planned on before Sunday comes. Here’s a list of 5 things to do during the week to ensure you have a great Sunday every week!

1. Batch Everything

   Make a list of all of your tasks to prepare for Sunday services. Scheduling volunteers, programming lights, importing backgrounds for lyrics, make the set list, create announcement videos, create social media templates, making sure all of the screen graphics are ready, etc. etc.

   Once you have a list of everything it takes to pull off a Sunday start blocking off time during your week to do all of these things. Batch them together according to their similarities or to your convenience, whatever is easier. For example, every Monday from 1-3pm you schedule volunteers. You make the schedule, you send the invites, you send any follow up emails or texts etc. Also, this way you are essentially creating a checklist for yourself so you don’t miss anything. You’re also setting up people who come behind you to make sure they know the plan.

   Batching everything during the week will give you more time to focus on things that come up so you’re not scrambling to finish the week to week task. Add each batch to your calendar and stick to it. This eliminates people from monopolizing your time during the week and you end up working on Saturday to finish everything for Sunday.

2. Look back

   Reflect on last Sunday. What worked? What didn’t? What do you need to fix? What happened that you wish you would have been better prepared for? What can you do to make sure that doesn’t happen again this Sunday? Are there any conversations you need to have with volunteers or staff about things that happened that you need to clean up for this week?

   Looking back is a great chance to review your goals as well. If you showed a video to promote small group leader sign ups did it work? If you announced connection cards for 1st time guests did people respond to your call to action? If not what can you change to get a better response? One idea is to have a standing meeting on Mondays with your team to reflect. Or a standard email sent out to volunteers with certain questions to ask them their thoughts on the day. (Email me sallieguillory@gmail.com and I will send you an example.) Here’s one example of a feedback tool called the Post Event Reflection Process that researchers from Florida St. developed for athletes to review their performances after each event. You can modify it and use it evaluate your church services as well.

   Make a habit of every Monday writing and reflecting on the day before. After one year you will have a great resource to help others and track your own progress.

   Don’t be afraid to ask other people their thoughts on Sunday either. Not all feedback is helpful, but asking for it is. Once you get the feedback then you can determine what’s helpful or not. Getting someone else’s perspective is huge. As church staff we are all programmed to look at things through a certain lens so getting insight from volunteers and congregation members can be very helpful. It allows us to see things in a way we never would be able to on our own.

3. Look ahead

   Now we’ve looked back and even prepared for this week. Now it’s time to look ahead to the future past this upcoming Sunday. Create a content calendar in Excel or another program that goes 3-6 months out. (Email me sallieguillory@gmail.com and I can send you an example). Begin filling in events and dates that you know are already on the calendar. Put what each Sunday entails. Is there a promo video needed for that ? Put it on the calendar for that Sunday. Will there be a special song needed for a holiday, etc? You get the idea. If you can write out all the big rocks then it’s easy to fill in the missing pieces. This gives you a good roadmap of where you’re going and what’s needed.

   Be sure to block off time during the week to plan out future events like Christmas, Easter, water baptisms, etc. Let’s be honest if you do not schedule time to plan ahead it won’t happen. Each week brings new emergencies and urgent problems that will suck up all of your time if your not careful. I like to do what needs to be done for Sunday on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and leave Thursday and Friday for future planning. This ensures that I’m not neglecting the important for the urgent.

   A good rule of thumb is to spend 1/3 of your week fixing last Sunday, 1/3 prepping for this Sunday and 1/3 planning for the future.

4. Communicate the plan to everyone

   Whatever your role is whether it’s a worship leader, creative director, production director, social media coordinator, etc. it doesn’t matter the best thing you can do to prepare for a Sunday is communicate. Tell people what your plan is so number one they can be aware and plan accordingly on their end. And number two they can help you see any holes or potential issues that may come up.

   If you’re the worship leader or creative director not only should you be communicating across to your staff team and volunteers but you should also be communicating up to your lead pastor. Tell him/her the plan for that Sunday so they can speak to anything. Also, it gives you a chance to hear their plan and you can find out if there is anything you can do to enhance it. If your pastor tells you he’s preaching on faith that can influence your set list. If you’re showing a video promoting and upcoming water baptism your pastor needs to know that because they may want to include something in their sermon to tie those things together.

   That’s why the Sunday content calendar that goes a few months out ahead of time is so good because you can inform him weeks ahead of time of what’s coming up instead of waiting for him to come up with things and then you having to fit them in. Also, if you’re the worship leader and plan on changing the set tell the production director so they can have lights, backgrounds, lyrics ready. If you’re the production direction and you plan on doing something really cool with lights to create a moment during a certain part of service communicate to the photographer and social media team so they can be ready to capture those moments when they happen.

5. Rest

   Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do Is to go to sleep early on Saturdays to be prepared for Sundays.

   It’s so tempting to do last minute things on Saturdays to get ready for Sundays but if you plan your week right and stay focused and on task and tell other people no during the week then you can leave Saturdays for rest and reset to prepare for Sundays. The best thing you can give your team and your congregation on a Sunday is a fully present, fully alert, fully rested self. Lack of sleep and lack of rest compound over the week.

   Don’t over extend yourself on other days prepping for Sunday or you will be feeling it by the time Sunday comes. Eventually it will catch up to you if you’re not taking rest and getting the right amount of sleep. It’s better to delay implementing something new for that week if it means you get more rest.

   Don’t look at each Sunday as an end game. Consider Simon Sinek’s infinite game theory and remember that there’s always the next Sunday so you don’t have to run yourself down to try and fit every single thing into this Sunday.

People’s lives are being transformed because of what you do each week. It’s a big deal!

Cheering for you! It’s an honor to get to do what we do each and every single week!