I used to hate scheduling things. Spontaneity was part of the fun. Picking up on a whim and hanging out with friends. Going out of town. New day, new adventure.
I still love to be spontaneous, but it’s fewer and much farther between these days. And that’s ok. I’ve found that as life has continued to progress, keeping to a tight schedule during my days has really freed me up to spend time with people I love, get all my work done and be available to the community of people that I pastor. It’s not better or worse. It’s just different.
Here’s a look at the way I schedule my weeks:
Monday: Day off.
Tuesday & Thursday: Meeting days. I fill these days with meetings from top to bottom. They are very long days with back to back to back meetings all across town, but it really frees me up for Wednesdays and Fridays.
Wednesdays & Fridays: I block these days off from all meetings so that I can have time to study, learn, grow, spend time with God asking for direction for Center City, etc. This time has proven vital to my life and leadership.
Friday nights also include setting up our venue from 6-8pm. It doesn’t take that long to set up, but we usually have around a dozen people there helping and simply enjoying each other’s company. Really laid back set up time.
Saturday: Coach tee ball. Take the kids to the park. Hang with family.
Sunday: Up early (around 6:30am). Go over my notes for the sermon that day. Pray. Ask God for last minute direction and confirmation of what I’ve prepared. Head to the venue at 8:45am. Pray with our staff until 9:15am. Make sure all is set for service. Service starts at 11am. Usually breaking down by 1pm and out the door by 2pm.
As a side note, I try as best as possible to never work past 5:30pm if I can help it. I have four kids, and they head to bed around 7:30pm-8pm. If I work much later than that, I don’t see them. Nothing more important than family.
It’s a crazy pace, but scheduling has really helped me to corral my life and keep it healthy.
