As church leaders, we need to be careful not to let up or be let down after Easter.
These two post-Easter responses are very common.
“Let’s take a break.”
The work to prepare for Easter is easily enough for any church leader to say, “Hey, let’s take a break.” You may need a break, if so, get some rest, but the short post-Easter season is one of the best opportunities all year to engage those who have recently attended your church. What is your plan?
“We’re disappointed.”
If Easter didn’t go exactly as you hoped, it’s easy to feel let down in some way and perhaps become disappointed or discouraged. That’s exactly what the Enemy wants. Don’t give in, hang in there, what you are doing matters!
Both responses are natural, but I’d like to encourage you to think in a different direction.
These next two to three weeks can change the trajectory of your church.
We all know that your attendance can spike to a high point on Easter, only to fall right back down to where it was the week before. But what if it didn’t have to be that way? What if we all kept pressing in, praying, and asking God for favor AFTER Easter?
3 “News” to Lean Into Starting Today:
1) New Life
Our senior pastor Jason Berry gave a powerful and clear presentation of the Gospel for our Easter services. I personally appreciate that even though he communicated with great passion and his invitation was strong, he left plenty of room for the Holy Spirit to do His work.
Jason communicated that some people aren’t ready yet. And that’s OK.
Perhaps you were the one to plant a seed, or watered a seed that had been planted, but not yet sprouted. God brings the growth as we all do our part.
Our responsibility as leaders is to teach the good news of Jesus. That’s it. Each individual person makes their own decision in their own timing.
Thank God for the new life that took place over Easter at your church, and have no regrets for what hasn’t happened … yet. Let’s be grateful for those who said yes to Jesus and continue to pray for those who were not yet ready.
For now, focus on who said yes! Pour your heart and energy into anyone who gave their life to Christ. Make your plan to engage new Christians a top priority. That new life needs your attention.
Whether its one, twenty, fifty or hundreds, it is our great responsibility to genuinely care for those who said yes to Jesus.
2) New Guests
My hunch is that you had a good number of new guests over Easter weekend. That’s great!
What is your plan for follow up? Who’s leading the process?
The real point of how many guests we all have at Easter isn’t about the size of our churches, its about the potential strength of the Body of Christ.
Let me be candid.
If you quietly believe that most of your guests will not return, they probably won’t. The reason that’s true is because if you believe that, it leaks into how you lead.
I’m not suggesting a pie-in-the-sky formula that says, “Do this and all your guests will return.” But I can say that the combination of your faith, effort, and practical follow up will make a huge and measurable difference.
Your faith, prayers and belief have as much impact on guests returning as your incredibly important follow up plan.
Your actual plan is rarely the issue. Nearly any plan for follow up will work well if you commit to it. I’m very aware, like you, that many guests may not return. But work, pray, and serve as if they will return. That’s a picture of vision and hope. That’s how to lead the way.
Then, regardless of the actual number of guests who come back next week, you know you are in the game and doing everything you can.
The rest is up to God. And we need to be OK with that. That’s not surrender, it’s trust.
3) New Momentum
It’s often said that momentum is a leader’s best friend. Easter is one of the best opportunities that we have all year to realize new momentum.
Regardless of whether you had one guest and one conversion, or dozens in your church, that can represent new momentum.
When we consider the impact of one new convert as new life, one new disciple as new potential, or one new leader as new progress – we begin to see and sense the power of momentum.
Candidly, how that effects your heart, one or many, affects how you lead.
There is something inside the mystery of the gospel that when your congregation publicly experiences the power of God in one conversion, they can’t help but be encouraged. They know the spirit of God is moving. They remember their own story.
New Momentum is generated at a personal and soul level.
New momentum starts with faith in a leader’s soul for what is coming, what will be. Momentum starts there before its ever seen or experience by the congregation.
This is also true for a campus, department like student ministry, or a small group.
Action steps:
- Speak the vision over and over.
- Anticipate more salvations.
- Tell stories.
- Plan for baptisms.
- Believe in miracles.
- Pray like crazy.
I hope that these Three “News” for Post-Easter encourage you to press forward with gratitude, hope, and new energy to keep leading with passion!
