How To Give Yourself Margin When You Are Out Of Time

The week to week grind is pretty hectic.  You wake up and it’s Monday, you blink and the week is gone.  Deadlines are approaching and you panic because nothing feels ready for your night of ministry.

While you can’t add more hours to the day, you can be more efficient with those hours.  Just because youth ministry is messy doesn’t mean you have to be disorganized.  To get margin when time seems to fly:

CREATE A WEEKLY SCHEDULE

You might not stick to it; however, it will help you get back on track if things get crazy.  Plan out everything in a typical week from arrival, to lunch breaks and all meetings.

Writing down your schedule is going to help you prepare for what is ahead.  When you are prepared you are able to create necessary margin.

MAKE SLEEP A PRIORITY

Staying up late and wearing yourself down is a recipe for disaster.  Make sure you are getting plenty of rest so that you can be productive.

If that means sacrificing some late night television, or web browsing do it.  When you are fully rested you’ll be more efficient in what you do giving yourself some margin.

CREATE A STOP DOING LIST

We all create to-do lists, but a stop doing list is sometimes more important.  When you don’t have margin it’s probably because you are doing a lot of things you shouldn’t.

Sit down and write out a list of everything you do.  Start looking at what you can delegate, eliminate and hold off on.  It might be painful and you may need help, but it will be worth it.

PLAN A REWARD

Busy seasons are usually temporary, but they can often feel hopeless.  If life is getting crazy plan a vacation or a weekend where you can just refuel.

It doesn’t have to be anything complex.  Just give yourself something to look forward to so that when things are rough you still have hope.

CHECK-IN WITH GOD

In fact you might want to lean into God.  When things are chaotic and busy it’s because you’ve taken too much control.  Trust that God is going to lead you to success.  Make sure you are spending time with Him and allowing Him to work through you.

Margin is hard to come by, but it is achievable.  Plan for it, trust that God will help you get done what needs to get done.  Slow things down by preparing for the road ahead.  After all youth ministry is a marathon.