Pastors are busy. Our calendars fill up. Our planners are packed. We sometimes struggle to keep our heads above water while swimming in our all responsibilities. Busyness is normal, but it’s not always healthy. We want to help you connect with God during your upcoming busy seasons.

How do we worship when our workload is overwhelming?

The Apostle Paul had a very full calendar. The guy had a big assignment on top of his to-do list. “Spark revival across the world” was right up there with making tents, writing a few dozen canonized epistles, planning missionary journeys, starting churches, and training leaders. Paul’s life was a grind, but He didn’t see it that way. All Paul saw was glory. When writing about work, Paul invited us to approach it with the mindset of worship. It’s his heart, and mine too, that we don’t miss God’s glory when we’re in the middle of the grind.

Together, let’s explore Paul’s proclamation with an invitation. We are going to examine Colossians 3:23-24 line by line to give us a framework for experiencing God during busy seasons.

Colossians 3:23-24

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Everything you do is an act of worship.

“Whatever you do….”

There are so many responsibilities on your plate right now. You have to plan services, disciple people, create sermon slides, and meet with your leaders for coffee. It can feel overwhelming, but Paul wants you to see all these assignments with a new perspective. It’s all worship. You can connect with God while doing administrative tasks in your office. You can experience God while cleaning up the youth room. You can worship while you work on your next outline. That’s the blessing of a ministry mindset. Everything you do is worship.

So how do we make that practical? Whenever you start a task, pray for God to meet you in the moment. Why? Because everything you do is an act of worship. How amazing is that? Just like a great worship service invigorates your soul on Sunday, a productive workday can invigorate your soul on Tuesday morning. When you experience it, everything becomes more fulfilling and more fun. The projects didn’t change, but your perspective did. That’s why we should all adopt a ministry mindset with everything we get to do.

God honors excellence.

“work at it with all your heart”

There have been times when I just threw something important together because I had so much to do. Maybe it’s procrastinating a sermon series, forgetting about a parent meeting until the night before, or just defaulting to dodgeball because you didn’t come up with a new activity. Next thing you know, your goal isn’t excellence, it’s completion. “I just need to get this done,” I have thought to myself. That’s no way to lead, my friends.

Have you ever let your workload affect your output? That’s one of the biggest pitfalls of an overworked leader. Here is the truth that Paul lays out in Colossians. Whatever you do, you need to do it with all your heart. Why? Because God loves excellence. God is a God who loves creating amazing experiences for people. Look at everything He’s done for us. He crafted the skies, the sea, and fruit. He did all of this because He wants excellent things for his children. We get to mirror God in the same way! We honor God when we create excellent experiences for our people. So what task is in front of you right now? Do it with all your heart. Give it your all. Dedicate your full attention. God will be glorified and you will be blessed.

Menial tasks can have miraculous outcomes.

“since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

Everything on your checklist can bring glory to God – even the small and seemingly tedious tasks. So how do we make this principle practical? Look for the reward!  Examine the outcomes on the other side of your tasks. Your emphasis on building a welcome team could help someone feel belonging after feeling isolated. Your hard work on putting together a devotional could help someone experience God’s word on their own for the first time. Your decision to pick up that family who doesn’t have a ride could lead to someone getting saved. Your half-hour of cleaning could make someone feel comfortable and safe in your space.

In everything you do, big and small, do it for the Lord and you will be rewarded. Busy seasons in ministry can run you ragged, so how do we help ourselves achieve a ministry mindset?

Achieving a Ministry Mindset

Here is a framework to encourage you when the checklist is overwhelming. Take a look at the tasks in front of you. Maybe you’re planning an Easter service, designing a sermon graphic, recruiting volunteers, or writing your leadership handbook. Write those things down. Then attach each project to a potential outcome.

Use this framework: “When I ____________, God uses it to  _____________.” We created a free daily planner for pastors to help you apply this principle every day of your workweek. You can download the Daily Planner by clicking here.

This helps us see that God is the ultimate objective of all our projects while He’s also the initiator of all our rewards and outcomes.

• “When I send a birthday card to a student, God uses is to help a student feel seen and appreciated.”
• “When I clean the auditorium, God uses it to help people feel safe in our space.”
• “When I create a series, God uses it to help people experience the life-changing truth of God’s word.”
• “When I buy lunch for a leader, God uses it to help them feel valued and cherished.”
• “When I come up with a new activity, God uses it to help my group engage in a new way.”

Everything, and I mean everything, is ministry with the right mindset. All of your work is an act of worship. Let’s all collectively commit to having a mindset of ministry–every single day. We are here to help you achieve that!

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Let’s Talk about it!

The pastors on our team would love to learn more about you and your ministry to help you apply these leadership lessons in your church. Send us an email at Pastor@ForMinistryResources.com or click the button below to schedule a call with a pastor. We hope to hear from you soon!

This blog contains leadership material from The Pastor Circle. What is THE PASTOR CIRCLE?

We recently asked ourselves, “how can we serve pastors more personally?” The Pastor Circle is the answer.

It’s a virtual small group community of pastors who understand what you’re going through and want to offer you godly support and guidance. We meet on Zoom once a month to listen to a short devotional and topic introduction, followed by a small group discussion. We hope to see you there next month! Click here to learn more.