Hop Off the Hamster Wheel: Getting Ahead of the Coming Sunday—

Is nursery covered? Did I remember to make copies of the lesson for Children’s Church? Who texted me last night to tell me they weren’t going to be here on Sunday? Do I have enough volunteers? Which teacher asked me for stickers? Is check-in going to work? Did I remember all the things?

Round and round the wheel goes.

Sundays, unfortunately, can be stressful. We are so caught up in all of the details, that we oftentimes let the actual purpose of Sunday—worshiping and spending time with our Lord and Savior—get buried or lost. We lose sight of the people, the little ones, and families whom God has put in our midst and instead focus on the many tasks and details that need to get done. While details are part of ministry, they aren’t the most important. “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” (Matthew 6:27).

Jesus is first and foremost the reason why we do what we do. If we are looking to anything or anyone else, then we are like a hamster on a wheel spinning round and round going nowhere. It is imperative that we trust in Jesus first as we think about planning for each hour, day, month, and ministry year. “Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will act” (Psalm 37:4-5).

Worship is intentional…and there are so many verses God provides for us in His Word that tell us so. From the very beginning of the Bible in Genesis 2, God created a special—even a holy time—of rest and reset. The Lord’s Day is important—not to get all the things done, but to be in the presence of the Lord, worshiping Him, teaching, and hearing the Word, and pointing those whom God has entrusted to us to Him. Our heavenly Father doesn’t just mention it as a suggestion but as a command, a mandate of how we are to connect to Him. God makes it abundantly clear, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God…Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Exodus 20:8-9,11). The importance of the Sabbath—the Lord’s Day—is mentioned throughout Scripture. “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore strive to enter rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:9-11), Mark 2:27-28 states, “And He said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.’”

Lead by example…Getting to worship is hard, but would we allow anyone else to miss worship as much as we do? NO! We would make sure that our families and volunteers are sitting consistently under the teaching and preaching of the Word as often as possible, hence the reason for nursery scheduling.

We can look to the example of Mary and Martha (Luke 10). Two sisters, lots of tasks and things to do, a house full of people, and mouths to feed, but JESUS Himself was there! “But Martha was distracted with much serving…” (v. 40). It wasn’t bad or wrong that she was task-focused, but she was missing the blessing of being under Jesus’s teaching. Mary understood and may have even have thought to herself, “I’m not going to miss this! It’s too important. Everything else is going to have to wait!”

Do we tend to be more like Mary or Martha? Are we seeking to sit at the feet of our Lord, God, Heavenly Father, and King? Or are we too focused on the tasks—the to-do’s that need to get “tah-done”? Are we being good models for the little eyes looking up to us or to the parents and volunteers? Are we allowing ourselves to be prideful in our thinking, only to believe that we can do it all? “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1).

Be prepared and organized…by planning ahead. Do you have a teacher who constantly asks you for copies or materials right in the middle of class? Send an email or text beforehand to see if they need anything, stating that you want them to feel and be prepared. Offer (if your situation allows) for them to come in during the week and set up their room and ask for any copies or things they need from you so you can have them ready and waiting for them on Sunday morning. If possible, have materials, curriculum, and even snack ready before Sunday morning. Plan and have a schedule. Make sure you are allowing yourself adequate time to be prepared. It might mean that you get to church 30 minutes earlier so that you aren’t rushing around. “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:33-34).

 Be intentional…about making time for worship. Just as we ask parents to help prepare their children for worship, don’t forget to do it for yourself. Practice what you preach. Bring your Bible. Pray and ask the Lord for provision, to remove distractions, and to allow your mind and heart to focus and rest in Him. Don’t overschedule yourself. Recruit volunteers! As we are directed in Philippians 4:6-9, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice. Let your reasonableness be made known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things…and the God of peace will be with you.”

Secure help…Don’t try to do it all on your own. It is ok to ask for help! Don’t limit someone who might be eager to serve. Delegate tasks. Do you have someone who constantly is late or calls to be out at the last minute? Have several Children’s Team members, church members, and/or parents who are on standby in case there are call-outs or no-shows, so you aren’t scrambling at the last minute to fill holes. Send a weekly reminder email about who is serving and request your volunteers to be in charge and responsible for securing their own subs when they are going to be out. Leave tasks that can be done till after the service. Don’t get stuck chatting. Kindly state that you are making it a point to get to worship but would love to chat later.

If you are in a situation right now where this feels impossible, then first talk with your pastor and/or church leadership. Have a plan and set attainable goals. Start small and work your way up. Make sure you are also partaking in Communion regularly. Make sure to be in the Word for yourself—not to plan a lesson—but strictly to hear from God. If you are not getting fed yourself, then you will not be able to feed others. You run the risk of burn out; you definitely don’t want to fall off of the wheel in mid-motion! Matthew 11:28-30 gives us this reminder: “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” And Psalm 55:22 states, “Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.”

Of course these aren’t all of the things, and you are inevitability going to have miss a worship service or two, but hopefully this will help you to hop off of the hamster wheel, slow down, and meet with your heavenly Father for a time of worship.