Easter Practice Starts Now
At the time this post goes live, there are six “normal” Sundays left between now and Easter.
Now, I get it. You get it. There is no such thing as a normal Sunday. Easter is not our Super Bowl. But that doesn’t change the fact that Easter Sunday brings Easter Sunday-sized crowds. And if your facility is already prone to pop, that means you have six weeks to prepare your regulars for the additional guests you’ll see.
So with six “normal” Sundays left, here are six suggestions on how to get ready:
1. Plan an additional service time and / or venue.
If your current service is 75% full, it’s reasonable to believe that Easter Sunday will put you at capacity. Run your numbers from the last few Easters in order to see what percentage you jumped on the day. If you jumped a little, you might get by with an additional venue. If you jumped a lot, it’s probably time to consider adding a service for that day.
When you do that, there will likely be a preferred service time that first-time guests will still attend (hint: it’s probably anything in the 10:30-11:00 range). So encourage your regulars to take a mission trip to the off-peak service in order to free up space for guests.
2. Plan a “volunteer only” service.
If an additional venue or full-scale added service time isn’t a possibility, consider a service just for your volunteers on Good Friday or Holy Saturday. This gives you a triple whammy: it frees up seats, it allows your vols to fully serve on Easter, and it gives you a chance to celebrate them (think Saturday night service plus dinner after).
Now, don’t forget that many of your vols will be inviting their friends and family to attend on Sunday with them, so don’t shame them if a vol-only service doesn’t make sense for them.
3. Start scooting ’em in.
If Easter brings capacity crowds, let’s start building muscle memory in our rear ends. In other words, let’s get people used to scootin’ their booty. For the next few weeks, practice scooting front and center with stanchions and seating teams. True, you may not need it now, but doing this will help build anticipation and remind your congregation that company is coming. Better to practice now when you don’t need it than scramble when you do, potentially turning people away in the process.
4. Invite some one-offs to serve.
Big days like Easter Sunday are an excellent time to add new folks to the roster, even if it’s just for one day. Many of your regular pew dwellers will understand the “all hands on deck” nature of Easter, and be willing to put their yes on the table for an hour or two.
A couple of caveats here: provide training for those people, ensuring that your guest experience (or kids experience, or student experience, or whatever) is just as high quality as it normally is. And then a week or so after Easter, follow up with them and try to win back those one-offs.
5. Clean it up.
Not long ago I walked through a space at one of our campuses that I don’t often walk through, on the eve of hosting some friends from other churches. It was amazing the amount of clutter and – I’ll just say it – filth that I saw.
Nothing helps you see the dust more than seeing it through the eyes of guests. So take a day – or a few – between now and Easter to walk your facility and pick up your junk.
6. Provide practical invitation tools.
Finally, what is Easter except the greatest news ever announced to humanity? Jesus died and rose again, and that changed everything. Don’t miss the Easter forest for the logistical trees. Don’t get so caught up in preparing your volunteers and your systems and your facilities that you forget to encourage your congregation – and yourself – to invite anyone and everyone.
Print up a batch of inviter cards. Create easily sharable content on your website or social media channels. Arm your regulars with details so they’ll know about new or adjusted service times, special events that are specifically for newcomers, and what to expect on Easter weekend.
