Joining the River: From Sunday to Sunday in Flow with the Spirit

By Aynsley Vermilya

The Challenge of Repetition

Church leaders often feel both the monotony and excitement of the reality that Sunday is always coming. Whether it’s a week or a day away, the congregation will fill the building, and we’ll do it all over again. It can feel like a steady routine, but it can also become a repetitive and wearisome pattern.

From Weariness to Renewal

How do church workers sustain this rhythm? People who dearly love the Church and long to serve within find themselves exhausted and unmotivated as they continue to do what feels like tedious and unrewarding work. What would it look like for those the Lord calls to be revitalized and ultimately transformed from the beginning of Monday morning’s service planning all the way through the close of Sunday’s gathering?

Leadership That Empowers

Pastor Moe Diggs has been leading Healing Place Church over the last 12 years. He’s run the course to get to Sunday morning week after week, and over his years as a minister, has learned what it looks like to steward creative energy into the planning of weekly services – and how to encourage his team to do the same. Pastor Moe prioritizes the team he leads, entrusting them with key elements of each service. Generous in his position of authority, Moe operates less like a CEO and more like a team captain. He has found that as a leader, he must believe in the vision God places on his heart, but also trust his team to catch that vision and run with it.

Principles for Weekly Planning

Throughout his time in ministry, Moe has done Sunday gatherings well and, at other times, has left services feeling discouraged. Over time, Moe has recognized various principles that help effectively steward the time and energy of church leadership in weekly planning, and through these ideas, he and his church have seen the fruit of willingness and obedience week in and week out.

Building on What God Has Done

It can often feel like what was done last Sunday needs to be “topped” next week, as church leaders feel pressure to make the next service better than the last. But Moe has offered his team a lesson the Lord spoke to him that has served as a consistent reminder ever since: we aren’t starting over each week; we’re building off of what the Lord did last time. This reminder is mentioned nearly every week at Moe’s church because it recenters his team, freeing them from any hint of belief that what they are doing has ever been about what they can accomplish. Moe has invited his team to remember that they are joining in the work of the Holy Spirit, jumping in and moving with a river that is already flowing.

Fueling Momentum Through Testimony

As he motivates his team, Moe seeks to fuel the team through the sharing of testimonies and stories of life change. When it feels like they're doing the same thing every week, Moe’s team tells stories of God at work within their congregation, healing and redeeming people through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Full Dependence on the Spirit

The pinnacle of the lessons that Moe has learned is ultimately what also allows any church leader to maintain momentum in planning services every week: complete reliance on the Spirit. It’s easy to be so committed to our plans for a worship service that we miss the actual encounter with God. Yet at the end of the day, people are there to meet with the living Christ. This is why it is so important for church leaders and those who plan services to be listening for the Spirit continuously, both throughout the planning and in the gathering.

Humility and Creative Surrender

Moe has found humility to be the linchpin in a worshipful life. If leaders cannot humble themselves to the direction of the Holy Spirit, the whole church body will go home disappointed week after week. Maintaining energy in what can feel repetitive each week comes from reliance on God, from whom creativity can and will flow. God desires to work through his people, both in our services and in the conference rooms, preparing for the next gathering. May we find that in surrender to him, even the mundane planning can testify to the Lord’s faithfulness.