Tag: planning

Replant Bootcamp

EP 307 - Planning Your Ministry Calendar

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In this episode, we unpack why planning your ministry calendar is not just an administrative task, but a theological act of stewardship. We walk through the biblical foundations for planning, the danger of goal-setting without humility, and a practical framework for building a gospel-driven calendar that serves your people instead of your ego. Our goal is that you will leave with tools to align your preaching, budget, leadership development, and community engagement around faithfulness to Christ in this season.

Biblical Foundations for Planning

• Planning is wise: “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance” (Proverbs 21:5). Wise leaders do not drift; they plan.
• Presumption is sinful: James 4 warns against planning as if we are in control, instead of saying, “If the Lord wills…”
• For followers of Christ, planning is not a solo effort. It is done in dependence on the Lord and, wisely, in community with other leaders.
• Planning your ministry calendar is a way to:
  • Steward people, time, and resources faithfully
  • Ensure the church is shaped by God’s Word and mission, not tradition, urgency, or personal preference

Key question:

What does faithfulness to Christ look like for our church in this season?

Heart Posture: Humble, Gospel-Driven Goals

• Goal-setting is not unspiritual; ministry without direction is poor stewardship.
• But goal-setting without humility becomes hubris.
• Dangers:
  • Confusing our dreams with God’s promises
  • Confusing ambition with obedience
• Heart questions to ask as you plan:
  • Are we trying to grow bigger, or shepherd more faithfully?
  • Are we chasing attendance and easy metrics, or cultivating biblical community, worship, and discipleship?
  • If the numbers do not move, can we still call this year faithful?

Your calendar will either serve your ego or your obedience.

Gospel-Driven Outcomes and Goals

Drawing from Jared Wilson’s Gospel-Driven Ministry and other Bootcamp conversations:

• Pastoral ministry is about:
  • Shepherding God’s people
  • Dependence on the Holy Spirit
  • Keeping Christ at the center of every effort
• Start by prayerfully identifying 3–5 gospel-driven outcomes you’re asking God to work in your church this year, such as:
  • A culture of intentional discipleship (more people in discipling relationships, not just more bodies in the room)
  • Deepening worship and prayer as core habits of the congregation
  • Increasing missional engagement among those far from Christ

Input Goals vs Output Goals (with Daniel Im)

• Output goals: Outcomes only God controls (e.g., attendance growth, number of baptisms, people saved).
• Input goals: Faithful actions you can actually plan and execute (e.g., block parties, door-to-door evangelism, weekly gospel conversations, training environments).
• Let input goals shape your calendar.
• Do not simply set goals around “increased attendance” and then copy-paste the last 30 years of events.

Evaluating Church Health to Inform the Calendar

Drawing from episode 253 with Brandon Moore:

• Use three lenses:
  • Healthy Identities:
    • Worshipers of God (joy in the Lord)
    • Family with one another (unity and tangible love)
    • Missionaries to the world (compassion that leads to action)
  • Healthy Foundations:
    • Gospel (where is our hope for growth?)
    • Scripture (living under the authority of the Word in practical ways)
    • Prayer (deep dependence woven into the church’s culture)
  • Healthy Structures:
    • Leadership
    • Membership
    • Discipleship pathways
• Simple exercise with your leaders:
  • Rate each of the 9 areas 1–10
  • Require two concrete pieces of evidence for each rating
  • Ask why it is not 2 points higher and not 2 points lower
• From that:
  • Identify 2–3 key areas to lean into this year
  • Give priority to identities and foundations before you begin heavily building and tweaking structures

Stewardship and Productivity: Doing What Matters Most

With help from Reagan Rose’s Redeeming Productivity:

• True productivity is not doing more, but doing what matters most in ways that bear fruit for God.
• This is especially crucial in normative-sized, resource-limited churches:
  • Every hour, dollar, and ounce of energy counts.
• A well-thought-out calendar:
  • Guards against activity for activity’s sake
  • Protects your people from overcommitment and burnout
  • Focuses limited resources on intentional, gospel-aligned work
• Your calendar becomes an expression of Christ-centered productivity, not just an event list.

Letting the Community Calendar Inform Your Ministry Calendar

• Pay attention to real-life rhythms of your people and your city:
  • School schedules and breaks
  • Local events and festivals
  • Sports seasons
  • Weather and travel rhythms
  • Cultural holidays and civic moments
• Ask:
  • When do people have margin, and when are they stretched thin?
  • Where can we join what God is already doing in our community instead of competing with it?
  • Do we need to run our own event, or could we serve at an existing one (like a school fall festival)?
• When your ministry calendar respects community rhythms:
  • Participation increases
  • Burnout decreases
  • The church is seen as a present, loving neighbor, not just another organization fighting for time

Three Reasons to Plan Your Ministry Calendar Intentionally

1. Ministry should drive the budget, not the other way around.
   • Start with what God is calling you to prioritize.
   • Plan your calendar around those priorities.
   • Then align your budget to support them.
   • Ask: What should we stop or reduce so we can fund what God is calling us to do now?
2. It connects gospel-driven goals to real ministry.
   • If your goals have changed but your calendar has not, your goals are just good ideas.
   • A planned calendar forces questions like:
     • What recurring rhythms move us toward these outcomes?
     • Where are the clear touchpoints for teaching, discipling, equipping, and sending?
3. It helps you develop and deploy leaders intentionally.
   • A good calendar creates predictable spaces for:
     • Leadership huddles and training
     • Coaching conversations
     • Opportunities for emerging leaders to observe, assist, and then lead
   • You can set input goals like:
     • Developing three new group leaders in the next year
   • Planning ahead lets you invite people early and give them room to grow, instead of last-minute scrambling.

A Simple 7-Step Framework for Building a Gospel-Driven Calendar

1. Pray and clarify 3–5 gospel-driven priorities.
   • Where do we need to repent of pride, numbers-obsession, or busyness?
   • What fruit would faithfulness likely produce: deeper discipleship, unity, renewed prayer, missional boldness?
2. Look at your community calendar.
   • Mark school breaks, local events, busy seasons, and margin seasons.
   • Note months that will naturally carry heavy load versus lighter ones.
3. Map your preaching calendar.
   • Choose books or series that align with your priorities and people’s needs.
   • Anchor the year in God’s Word, not clever themes alone.
   • When possible, align preaching emphases with ministry initiatives on the calendar.
4. Layer in discipleship, care, and outreach rhythms.
   • When will you train?
   • When will you gather in smaller settings?
   • When will you serve outside the walls?
   • Make sure every key priority actually shows up on the calendar.
5. Add leadership development rhythms.
   • Plan regular leadership gatherings, coaching, or equipping nights.
   • Set realistic rhythms based on your context (weekly, monthly, quarterly).
6. Reality-check the calendar.
   • Is this doable with your current size, volunteers, and energy?
   • Are certain months overloaded?
   • What needs to be cut or simplified to protect your people, your family, and your focus?
7. Align the budget to the plan and do a final heart check.
   • What will it cost to do these things well?
   • Where do we need to say no to have a better yes?
   • Are any items more about ego or tradition than obedience and mission?
   • If numbers do not move this year, could we still say we were faithful stewards?

Takeaway

Planning your ministry calendar is not about controlling outcomes. It is about trusting God enough to plan wisely, steward what he has entrusted to you, and stay open-handed as he leads. A gospel-driven calendar will:

• Reflect your church’s God-given priorities
• Guard against burnout and busyness
• Help you develop leaders and disciples
• Teach your people, week after week, what truly matters

Use this episode as a guide to sit down with your Bible, your leaders, your community calendar, and a blank year—and ask, “Lord, what does faithfulness look like for this church, in this place, in this year?”