Episode 216: Expectant for Easter with Brittany Nelson

Most KidMin leaders underestimate how crucial Easter planning is, and often miss the opportunity to serve with purpose amidst the busy chaos. In today's conversation with Brittany Nelson from Deeper KidMin, we'll discover how a strategic, faith-centered approach to Easter can turn a hectic weekend into an impactful gospel moment for your church. You can find Brittany on socials at @deeperkidmin.

Visit our retreat website to register for our upcoming KidzMatter Retreat! To be entered to win free tickets, email hannah@kidzmatter.com and tell us why you love the podcast.

Transcript

Hannah Augustine (00:00)

Easter is the biggest Sunday of the year for many churches, but for KidMin leaders, it can also be the most exhausting because between recruiting volunteers, preparing environments, connecting with all the visiting families and making sure the gospel stays central, there's a lot to steward

If we know anything about Easter, it's that you need a break afterwards. If you're not already thinking about how you're going to recover after Easter, we'd love to invite you to join us for our KidzMatter Retreat in Carmel, Indiana.

We're going to be gathering on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 14th and 15th, 2026, because children's ministry often moves at a relentless pace, especially around the holidays. So dwell is an invitation to slow down. Rooted in Psalm 91, one, this KidzMatter Retreat creates space for leaders to step out of the hurry of ministry and into the shelter of God's presence together. It's a place for us to pause the momentum, reclaim margin, and remember that God never intended ministry to be sustained by speed alone.

This retreat is intentionally designed for KidMin leaders who long to rest without guilt - Come on! - to be present without pressure and to reconnect with both God and others who understand the unique weight and joy of children's ministry. Visit kidzmatter.com or the link in the show notes to learn more and to register. But if you'd like to win a free ticket, you can email me at hannah@kidzmatter.com. Tell me why you love the podcast and you'll be entered to win. But today I am joined by Brittany Nelson from Deeper KidMin. If you're not

already following her on socials and checking out her website. I've seen so many people in our Facebook group lately, like, you've got to check out Deeper KidMin. It's like Teachers Pay Teachers, but for KidMin leaders. So you've got to start checking that out. But Brittany spends a lot of time helping KidMin leaders think strategically about discipleship, which I love, not just programs. And today we're going to talk about how that applies to Easter.

Hannah Augustine (02:09)

I want to set the stage, because instead of a traditional interview, it's going to be more of a brainstorming session. Brittany and I are both in a season of coaching. We have spent many years in children's ministry and our roles look a little different now. We get the privilege of helping people know how to implement some of the things we've learned along our journey. So we're going to walk through kind of a soft Easter timeline from planning, volunteer recruiting, to what happens on the actual Sunday morning.

So if you're a KidMin leader who wants Easter to be meaningful, not just busy, this conversation is for you. But Brittany, we're so excited to have you on the podcast. Thanks for joining us.

Brittany Nelson (02:43)

Thanks so much, Hannah. I'm really excited to be here.

Hannah Augustine (02:46)

I'd love if you'd share briefly, how'd you get where you are now? Your journey in KidMin to where you are today.

Brittany Nelson (02:52)

Yeah, absolutely. So I was a children's pastor for about five years at a local church. We were a mobile church, so we met at local high school. My husband was the youth pastor at the church and still is a full-time youth pastor now. We got to the point where we realized - this was before we even had kids - we got to the point where we realized that both of us leading full-time ministries, separate age groups, at the level and the capacity that we wanted to be able to lead at wasn't going to be sustainable long-term. 

While we did that for five years and both loved it and both of us actively feel a calling to ministry, I shifted my role. I decided if I couldn't be a children's pastor, then I wanted to support children's pastors. That's what I get to do through Deeper KidMin. I've been leading that ministry now for eight years. I get to do trainings and create resources. Like you mentioned, it's like a Teachers Pay Teachers, but for the children's ministry world, or if you're not familiar with Teachers Pay Teachers, then it's like a digital Etsy. It's an online marketplace where leaders are sharing the resources that they've created in their ministry so that other ministry leaders can use it too.

Hannah Augustine (03:52)

Which is amazing - why reinvent the wheel if it's already out there? Learn to look. It's great to create things - if you're creating things, if you have that creativity bug, connect with Brittany, because you could maybe get your stuff on her site and figure out, "how can I share the things that God has put on my heart with other people?"

We could spend a whole episode on what you just said of recognizing margin and recognizing calling and how it looks different in different seasons.

Hannah Augustine (04:16)

Especially as women, we can put this label on what would be success. Recognizing in seasons of motherhood or personally, I've recently walked through getting married, moving states and pursuing my master's degree. So that leaves me asking, “what is success in this season?” And redefining that and redefining ministry. Ministry is not confined to the walls of the church. That's a beautiful space and a place to do it. I like to volunteer at VBS and things like that, but also recognizing my ministry may just look a little different. I love that perspective.

We're talking about how Easter can quickly sneak up on us. When you were in your full-time role, what were the first few things that you prioritized when you were planning for Easter?

Brittany Nelson (04:56)

When you're prioritizing and planning for Easter, you have to think about your people. And that's people in several different categories. One, the people that you're serving, so your kids and families; two, your volunteer teams;  and then three, like your people, right? Your family and what that looks like for you, because holidays in the ministry world look a little bit different than people who don't serve on Sundays or who don't work in ministry and in the church world.

Brittany Nelson (05:23)

Thinking through how you want each of those groups of people to experience Easter is key. That first one, kids and families: what do you want them to remember about Easter at your church this year? How can you help them create memories together, whether that's through a special event or through a Sunday morning? What do you want them to remember?

We just shared a blog recently on Deeper KidMin, about three questions that have helped me shape my Easter lesson. It really could apply to any lesson, but specifically with Easter, since it comes every year and you're asking, “how do I teach the same story in different ways to engage kids?” Asking the questions, “what do I want kids to think after the lesson? What do I want kids to feel after the lesson? What do I want kids to do after the lesson?” Answering those three questions really helps you clarify and hone in what you want to focus on for Easter.

Is it that the Easter story is true? Is it that God loves, that God sacrificed his own son? Is it the way that Jesus called the disciples to go out after he rose? Those three different emphases are going to require different focuses for you as you plan and prepare. Think through some of that stuff when you're thinking through the kids and families.

Then with your volunteers, the team, thinking through who's going to be on the team - who do you need to pull off what you want to create for families? How can you train them and best set them up for success?

And then that third group of people: you and your family. I think it's really easy to get so focused on…and you said it perfectly, that ministry doesn't always happen inside the walls of a church. I would even go so far to say, I think most ministry happens outside the walls of the church. That's where discipleship really happens.

With that in mind, thinking through your own family: what do you need to prioritize with them? What do you maybe need to shift around? What expectations do you need to modify, if you're talking about extended family and their expectations for what an Easter Sunday lunch might look like? Thinking through those three groups of people is usually where I start when it comes to planning for Easter. The kids and families you serve, your team, and then your people, you and your family.

Hannah Augustine (07:28)

I think the furthest you almost have to think ahead is with your family. Like you said, what are we going to do? Are we going to have a traditional Easter Sunday lunch? Can we, based on our service times - where I worked in South Florida, we would have two Good Friday services, and then three to four on Saturday, and three to five on Sunday. By the time you're done with that last service on Sunday, sometimes you’re ready to crash. There were some times where maybe I went to an Easter meal or drove up to visit family, and then other times where I got to take a nap and try to recover. 

Brittany Nelson (07:55)

I just want to order a pizza.

Hannah Augustine (07:57)

But even with that, thinking through, what am I going to do for meals? Can I prep a couple of things in advance? Am I packing lunches for my kids? Or is there going to be food for my volunteers?

We used to laugh because every year our church would release an Easter palette, and that was the color scheme for Easter. And we had this one girl on our team, Selena, who was always asking months in advance, “what's the color palette? What's the color palette?” Because she was thinking, “I've got to go shop and get my outfit that's going to match the color palette.”

Brittany Nelson (08:22)

That's amazing.

Hannah Augustine (08:24)

But like you said, let's focus a little bit on the volunteers, because I do think that is one of the biggest areas of struggle.

I know when we were looking at all of those services, I would think, “I have maybe 50 people that are consistent on a Sunday, but now I'm multiplying my services by two or three. So how am I going to fill the gaps?”

I'd love to hear from you: what makes Easter recruiting different from a normal Sunday?

Brittany Nelson (08:48)

I think it's different in a couple of different ways. Like you mentioned, just the sheer volume of people that you might need is more than normal. But then you also have to think through - this is going to sound funny - but the quality of volunteers. You want your top tier people, because Easter Sunday is a very common visitor Sunday. Families who maybe don't normally come to your church will be attending for the first time or for maybe the second or third time.

You want, especially for your greeter team and your hospitality team, your top tier people who know what they're doing, who know where things are, where the second grade classroom is versus the two-year-old classroom, who can direct families there easily and with kindness and smiles and a warm greeting. It's this weird tension that we have to hold: we need lots of people because we have extra services, but we also need them to be really quality and solid people.

It creates this tension that you have to balance and figure out: how do I bring in people who haven't served in a while or who have never served before? I think Easter Sunday is a great onboarding opportunity. It's a lot easier to say to somebody, "hey, would you come serve on Easter Sunday because of these extra services?" versus going to someone and saying, "hey, would you come serve for the next six months?"

One Sunday feels a lot more doable for people. And of course, once they get in, they're going to realize how amazing children's ministry is and they're going to want to keep serving with you. But it's an easy way to pull in people who maybe have said no before, who maybe you wouldn't have thought of before, but now one Sunday is all we're asking. It’s a very specific, very short time commitment for them to serve on just that one Sunday morning.

It's this fun conglomeration of wanting the top tier people, but then using it as an onboarding process. We have to be really intentional with how we ask people, how we invite people to the team for Easter Sunday, but then also making sure we don't miss that opportunity to showcase the Children's Ministry and to show off the Children's Ministry, using it as a Sunday where people get a taste of how amazing it is, and hopefully want to continue serving even after Easter Sunday.

Hannah Augustine (10:54)

It is a beautiful onboarding opportunity. Christmas and Easter were our two really big opportunities for new people to serve. We would lower the requirements. You're still requiring a background check, still requiring some of those things, but maybe putting aside the extensive training and some of the things that you would normally need. We would give them a special guest lanyard, and we weren’t going to let them be the leader of a room, but they could be that second adult or that third adult in a preschool room or the extra hands in the elementary class.

Hannah Augustine (11:21)

They could be the person walking families to a classroom - all of those things. So thinking through, how am I recruiting? Honestly, this is about building your substitute bench all the way around. For Easter, you should be starting to invite people to serve at least two months in advance. You can plant the seed: “hey, we'd love to have you serve at Easter; I'll circle back with you."

We would carry clipboards around for our regular volunteers, and say, "okay, I'm going to write your name down.” Because even if you have a serving link or a planning center invite or whatever that is, people are hesitant to commit. Even the two weeks before Easter, that's when most of our regular volunteers would finally commit to a service.

This is also where record keeping is so important. We would look back on the previous year's numbers and see that last year we had the same service times (or very similar), and our biggest service was 11:30, and then 9:30 was the second biggest. Then we would adjust maybe 15% for some inflation. 

Brittany Nelson (12:00)

Mmm.

Hannah Augustine (12:17)

Now we need to know: if I'm going to have 200 kids, then I need to adjust my volunteer numbers accordingly. Then think through, how are you adjusting your programming? Are you preparing? We had preschool classrooms that we didn't use every weekend, but we did need them ready to use for Easter. The storage that's been hanging out in the extra four-year-old room or whatever - are all the rooms clean? Do they all have toys? Are they ready to go?

Because when those families pour in and we're surprised, you don't want the room of 30 4-year-olds: that's not a great experience for volunteers or families. If you joined Global KidMin Week last week, they played “Would You Rather?” One of the questions was, “would you rather have 30 two-year-olds or six middle schoolers?” And I'm saying, six middle schoolers! I have seen 30 2-year-olds. It is terrifying. Like 30 2-year-olds in one room, not okay. That's a separate podcast episode.

Brittany Nelson (13:16)

That's a different episode. It's like trying to herd butterflies. 

Hannah Augustine (13:19)

My goodness, yes. Then one's crying, and they're all crying, and my goodness, not fun. 

So what are some ways, Brittany, to creatively recruit? We're talking about getting some new people and fresh energy. What were some ways we could do that?

Brittany Nelson (13:31)

One of the things you said I loved and I want to piggyback on and push a little bit more, is going back to your records. Who served at Easter last year? That's your starting list. Those are the people that you ask first and say, "hey, you did a great job last year. We had so much fun sharing the Easter story with kids. Would you be willing and available to serve again this year? If so, here are the service options." You start with your base.

That may not even be the volunteers that you have right now, because you may have onboarded some people since last Easter, but you start with the people who served last Easter, then you move to the people who are currently serving in your ministry. Beyond that, we have to go into the other ministries within the church. Maybe there are adult small groups that meet on a Sunday morning that you could go to and say, "hey, would you guys be willing on Easter Sunday, instead of doing your normal small group, you can choose to sponsor a kids' small group? We can have two or three of you serve.” You’re inviting small groups to serve together, because that gives them the community, the fellowship, and the serving opportunity. It also gives you some pretty set people that you know are going to be there, because they're always there at their 10 a.m. Bible study. Pull people in from some of those other ministries.

Same thing with youth ministry. I mentioned my husband is a youth pastor. We love including our students, middle school and high school, to serve. And Easter Sunday is absolutely one of those Sundays. If you are a church that has multiple services - especially on Easter, a lot of churches do, even if you don't normally - then it's a great opportunity to say, "hey, would you sit one service and then serve one service?" A lot of times people say, "but if I'm in the kids' ministry, then I miss the service.” And you can say, lucky you. There's two times you could come!

So you say, "well, would you consider attending the nine o'clock service, but then staying for the eleven o'clock and serving in children's ministry?” Being intentional with some of those committed families, maybe who aren't serving in children's ministry, but their kids are always there. Maybe they're there most Sundays: ask them to extend their Sunday morning a little bit to sit one service and then serve one service.

The way that we talk about it, not only as children's ministry leaders but also from the stage, meaning the way the pastor talks about it, is important. We need to be framing that weekend as a mission-focused weekend, being upfront with people. We can say, "we expect double the attendance that we normally have, and we need all hands on deck to make it a great experience for those who are here. If you call this your church home, you're helping us host the party, right?”

If you're a host of a party, you're there to help serve, you refill the chips when they get low, you're adding ice to the ice bucket when it melts, you're welcoming people at the door. If you're helping co-host the party, then you're there to serve and make sure that everyone else has a great experience. Faming that mindset for the people and the families in your church, not just from the children's ministry perspective, but from like the entire congregation, helps. Leading people to that intentional mindset of, “Easter Sunday is not for us. Easter Sunday is for those visiting families. It's for those people who are visiting for the first time.”

And yes, we'll get something out of it. Yes, it's still a joyous celebration and a time with our church family, but having that mindset of a co-host or a party host and not just somebody who's attending the party can be super helpful.

In terms of practical things, being super, super specific and giving very tangible needs. Rather than just saying, “we need twice the number of volunteers;” the reality is, you're probably the only one who knows what exactly that number is. So instead of saying, "we need twice the number of volunteers," or, "we need more volunteers," give a specific number and a specific placement, too. “We need three people to help serve in the two-year-old class. We need four people to help serve in our kindergarten-first grade small group.”

Giving people very, very specific and very pinpointed descriptions of where they're going to be serving and how many people are needed in each area makes it easier for them to say yes, because they can visualize it a little bit more. “At the eleven o'clock service, we need two people in elementary and one in preschool. But at the nine, we need three in preschool and one in elementary.” People can see where the needs are and be able to step into them when they know what the needs are. We have to be really specific with recruiting in that aspect of putting out there what exactly we need and who exactly we need to help us cover all the bases.

Hannah Augustine (17:40)

This is such a good opportunity. I've said before in trainings that the best way to recruit is through a personal invitation. Sometimes that means you know someone, and sometimes it means you don't. I would walk around - again, we were at a very large church, so I did not know most people. If people looked approachable (or even if they didn’t), I would walk up and say, "hey, have you ever thought of serving in children's ministry?" And they'd respond, "I mean,

I don't know.”

Sometimes they'd say yes, and it would be this really cool God opportunity where they'd say, "actually, I've been praying about that and I haven't been sure where to serve." And sometimes they’d simply say, "yeah, no." You can respond, "no worries. Is there anywhere else you'd want to serve?" Just pivot. "I'd love to help connect you. If you ever want to chat, feel free to reach out," and you backpedal.

Recognizing it's not personal is important. I'm inviting someone to step into what God has for them, and that's being a part of the movement of the church. If they say no, no worries: that's not on me. It's my responsibility to extend the invitation. When you're specific (about what you need)…I think a lot of times we learn how to read people and get a feeling for what would be a good role for them.

Obviously, the really bubbly person might be perfect for the welcome area, or the platform in elementary, or leading worship. With the more quiet, reserved person, you could ask, "hey, would you be willing to enter data, help fill out new family cards, and take attendance?” All things that take time and energy. anything you can take off your plate is a huge win.

Like you said, keeping track of which services you need more people for. As you're filling those slots, having that number in your head. You don't want to end up with a ton of people at one service, and then nothing at the next. You can be intentional, even with people who say, "Oh, I'd really love to do the eight a.m." "Oh, that's great. I'm actually looking pretty good at eight. Would you be willing to consider the nine thirty or the eleven thirty?" 

If they're not, check with some of the people who signed up for eight. "Hey, any chance you would shuffle to one of those later services?" Because it is true, the later the service gets, the less likely people want to serve because they want to go have that Easter lunch or do the egg hunt with the family.

Like you said, if we can change the perspective from being a spectator to “we're hosting a party,” and we're creating an environment where people can come to know Jesus. On Easter, we are the 99, and we're going after the one: the one who's walking in and maybe hasn't been to church since Christmas, or maybe since last Easter. Helping people make those connections and build those relationships is so important.

Brittany Nelson (20:08)

Yeah, and even beyond just Sunday morning, maybe we need to clean out the four-year-old classroom that's full of storage. That doesn't have to be you as the Children's Ministry director or pastor, the on-staff person. That can be a volunteer role that if somebody says, "no, I don't like kids." "That's fine. Do you like to move things? Can you carry heavy boxes or do you want to help me color code and sort the craft supplies?”

There are so many opportunities to invite people in so that they can use their gifts. And like you said, inviting them into what God has for them. I think that's a key distinction that a lot of times when we recruit, we think, what do I need? Or what does my ministry need? But really when we shift our mindset - I've got an online workshop about this coming up actually in April on Deeper KidMin - but when we shift that mindset to, what do I need to do for true discipleship and serving as part of the discipleship process of how God is moving and growing in the person who is serving, then it totally changes the language that we use and totally changes the way that we approach volunteer recruitment. I think it makes it more effective because we're focused on how we can help the volunteer grow spiritually and how we can help disciple them in their faith - and part of that is through serving.

Hannah Augustine (21:14)

We used to say "It's what we want for you, not just what we want from you." And that's true when it comes to giving or tithing. That's true when it comes to attending on Sunday mornings, to reading your Bible and to serving and helping people have that perspective. It's so good.

Now let's kind of pivot to that. We talked a little bit about families - we had an episode with Corinne Noble last week. We talked a lot about interacting with kids and families and helping them have a great experience.

So, talking about Easter Sunday survival mode, especially those of you who have maybe a good Friday service or, whatever that looks like. That whole weekend can feel like we're in survival mode. What does your personal game plan - when you were in children's ministry, but even now, as you’re serving or whatever your Easter Sunday looks like - how do we have a game plan so that day is not just total chaos?

Brittany Nelson (21:58)

Maybe this is different at other churches, but in our church, it's not just Easter Sunday, it's the whole week. Palm Sunday is big. We have a Maundy Thursday service. We have a Good Friday service, and then we have extra services on Easter. On a typical Sunday, we have three Easter Sunday services. We add a sunrise service on Easter Sunday, and so then we're up to four. 

We actually just completed a new worship center so that we can stick to just our three or four Easter services rather than adding more. But it's not just Easter Sunday - it's the whole week beforehand. I mentioned my husband, he's still on staff, full-time youth pastor. I get to volunteer in the children's ministry. I'm a second and third grade small group leader. And then we have three young kids, six, three, and almost one.

Brittany Nelson (22:41)

Actually, I think by the time this airs she will be one. She'll be a year old. Yay. Happy birthday, Lila. Thinking through that, knowing that that week is coming, we are very intentional about what's going on in our personal lives that week. We don't schedule any doctor's appointments for Holy Week. If we have extracurricular activities, if they're part of our normal rhythm, we keep those, but we don't add anything on top of it, knowing that it's already going to be a busy week. 

From the personal standpoint, we try to pare down our calendar as much as we possibly can. We don't schedule new things, and we don't add on new things. If there's another event going on, we have a family conversation about it, if there's a birthday party, whatever it might be going on that week, then it's a discussion that we have: "hey, can we fit this in? How do we want to navigate this?" I think it's setting ourselves up to make the week as easy as possible. 

So, Taco Tuesdays - the meals that are quick and easy to make, or that you can throw in the crock pot. Especially that Easter weekend, thinking through if we want a big Easter lunch? Or do we want to do our Easter lunch on Saturday instead? That's what we've done a lot in our family; we have our big Easter meal on Saturday, and on Sunday we can come home and just throw in leftovers, or order a pizza, or crash when we get home Sunday afternoon.

Being intentional to pare things down, to strip down the week, knowing that it's going to be a higher capacity week than usual. Trying to pull back on some of the other things in preparation for it, but then also being really intentional after it's over to take time to do our family egg hunt, or are Easter meal, whether it's right in the middle of it, or you push it to Monday. This is when we're going to take time off. This is when we're going to just spend time together as a family. 

Being intentional with that time of rest after Easter and blocking it off as part of our planning and preparation and being intentional from the get-go to be aware that this week is crazy. Bedtimes are going to look different. The kids might not get baths every single night and that's okay. Adjust some expectations as a family. Do everything you can to make life easy that week, whether it comes to meals or stripping things away, and pulling things out, and cutting things out as much as we can.

Hannah Augustine (24:41)

Absolutely. Take time to think through, if you've got young kids, are we doing Easter outfits. If we are, let's buy them two or three weeks in advance. I am a huge fan of grocery delivery; this is not a paid sponsorship, but Walmart plus is like $100 a year, and it's worth every penny.

Being willing to say, “what can I do to reduce the stress and cut back on one more thing?” Morning of Easter, what are you going to do? What am I going to do for food? What is my family going to do? Especially my kids, but also you. I think we can be guilty of getting to the end of the day and thinking, "have I had a bottle

of water today?"

What am I doing to pack water, caffeine, snacks? Your church may have that available which is a huge blessing. Can you make it available? Maybe you don't do that every weekend, but could you do it for your volunteers on an Easter Sunday? Consider creating a little coffee bar or some protein bars, a bagel, whatever that looks like to have some things available. But exactly what you said, thinking through how to make it special.

And then how to steward your soul, because I think we can be so caught up in all of the prep that - I don't know that I would say we resent Easter, but we can maybe let it become a burden instead of just a blessing. And while yes, we are focused on the one and we're the 99, it still matters to us. 

Taking that time, whether that's Lent, or something a week before, or doing a family devotional. There's some great books out there that you can, I know you and Lauren Jackson and Corinne are always posting, hey, what are some fun resources for families around some of these special days? But figuring out, how do I steward my soul in this season? You're getting your soul ready for that Sunday and not letting it pass you by without taking the time to recognize this is a sacred day.

Hannah Augustine (26:20)

What we're doing matters. Take the time to thinkin through whether you’ll have a salvation altar call in the elementary class. You want to know what take home things you’re going to send home that are going to help reinforce the lesson. All of this helps you steward those moments and be prepared for all of those different things. When you’re filled up, you're doing it from a place of overflow and not from  “I am at the end of my rope after three or four weeks of crazy prep leading up to today.”

Brittany Nelson (26:43)

One of the things that I have come to love, a habit that I've tried to really use are breath prayers, especially on a Sunday morning. Because one, it just physically makes you slow down when you are being intentional about taking a deep breath in and out a couple of times. But then, also using that moment to reconnect with the Lord and to remind myself why I'm running around like crazy and why we did all this stuff and why it's important. It’s just a simple inhale: Jesus; exhale, “thank you for the cross,” or “thank you for Easter,” or whatever your breath prayer is. 

Whether it's choosing scripture or choosing a reminder for Easter Sunday, using a breath prayer throughout the morning to just stop, because it's hard to stop on Sundays. You're always moving, you're always running around, you're always talking to people. Just stop, take some deep breaths, and re-center your heart and your mind on why we're doing all of this, and the joy and the blessing that it is. So that, like you said, we can serve from that overflow and not from a place of overwhelm. Just being intentional with taking a minute: just take a breath.

If you have to go hide in the supply closet for a minute; I've done that on a Sunday morning, so do it - it's fine.

Hannah Augustine (27:52)

That's absolutely true. And even thinking through how you can help your volunteers steward it. One of things I love on YouVersion is you can do those group plans with a friend. We're actually with our KidMin Academy students, I said, "hey, who wants to do just a shared plan like a seven to three to seven day plan?” It doesn't have to be long, but making space to get in the Word and build anticipation for that day. Whether that's through something like YouVersion, or maybe you just send a scripture every morning via email, saying "hey, praying this over you today," as we're gearing up for that Sunday morning.

Could you do a short huddle before you get started, or just pray with your team, or have team leads who are praying with your team? Is there someone in the church who will not step foot in a classroom, but will walk through and say thank you to each volunteer, and say a quick prayer over their room? This reminds them that what we're doing is spiritual; it's not just physical. It's not just changing diapers, and wiping noses, and cleaning up toys.

We're investing in the future of these kids and helping them come to know Jesus.

What should we be thinking of on the day of, once we're actually at church? There are so many things that can go wrong, especially when our attendance is significantly higher. What are some of the things we can do to prepare for what might go wrong as we're anticipating that big day?

Brittany Nelson (29:00)

This is a funny question, because it's a dangerous one if you let yourself get too far into this. You can think, “oh, and then what if this happens? And what if this happens? And oh, gosh, what if this happens too? We should just shut the whole thing down.” 

I think one of the best things we can do is recruit a volunteer whose only job is [to handle emergencies]. You call them the firefighter - they're the firefighter for that Sunday morning. Their only job is to put out fires that pop up.

Brittany Nelson (29:23)

Their only job is to show up and take care of the little things that pop up: when the printer stops working, or when that one volunteer called and can't show up anymore because their child threw up, or they threw up, or whatever it was. You have one person, at least one person, whose only job is to put out fires. And it's not you - it should not be the main children's ministry leader, the children's pastor, or children's director. It should not be that person.

It should be somebody else who knows the ministry, who is good with people and good with administration. It should be somebody that you've had conversations with, so that if they have a problem that comes up that they don't know how to solve, they can bring it to you quickly and you guys can work through it. Having one person whose job is to put out those fires is one of the best things you can do.

You can try to prepare for so many different things. Technology is probably going to have a kink in it that morning. It's just inevitable: you know, the printers are going to stop working, or the ProPresenter and PowerPoint are going to get all funky or whatever. Thinking through some of those troubleshooting problems ahead of time, and training your teams as much as you possibly can, is great. But I really think having that one person - like I said, call them your firefighter for the morning - and their only job is to put out the little fires that pop up.

Hannah Augustine (30:31)

Absolutely.

I'm prepared for emergencies like a fire or whatever that looks like. I'm also prepared for the crafts running out, or I have this person lined up so that I have greased the wheels as much as I can. Then, maybe nothing goes wrong, or maybe things that I wasn't expecting go wrong. But everything else has been prepared to the point that I'm able to then handle whatever that extra thing is.

It’s so important to not schedule yourself. I think a lot of times, especially for those of us who are passionate about kids, we want to be involved. Maybe you want to teach the lesson in the elementary class. That's great until something's going wrong in preschool, and now you're getting pulled off the platform because they need you in the four-year-old room. Think through how you can keep yourself unattached to any area so that you’re not the only person in a position. You can jump in and help, but this way, you're free to oversee. There will be things that come up that only you can handle.

You also just want to be available. Make people feel welcome. Have those conversations in the welcome area. Speak to all of those new volunteers; for everybody who has maybe that colored lanyard that's identifying them as new, be intentional to strike up some conversations with them. That can then translate to them serving. Whether they only serve Easter, Christmas, summer camp, VBS, it’s a win; but maybe they'll start serving regularly. 

One of my favorite volunteers, he and his wife, finally said yes to serving for Christmas or Easter. I had asked them so many times: "Hey, will you volunteer? Will you volunteer? Will you volunteer?" And finally it was either Christmas or Easter. They said yes. And he's still serving. He's been serving for years. He's a faithful small group leader, a faithful Bible school teacher. I'm no longer in that position, so he wasn't just attached to me. He caught the vision of what God was doing in the children's ministry. How are you going to help those people stick?

One last question. How do we help volunteers feel trained and prepared? Any tips as we're leading into a big weekend, especially where there's new people serving, for helping people feel equipped?

Brittany Nelson (32:21)

One, keep it short and sweet. Focus on maybe your top five things they need to know to be able to serve. Don't give them the entire volunteer handbook, and say, "hey, have this memorized by Easter," because it's just not going to happen. They're not going to read it. But if they have a list of five things to remember for Easter Sunday morning, that's an easy checklist that they can go back to.

Then I would say, communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, and then communicate again. If you feel like you are over-communicating, then you're probably just starting to communicate enough with your team. You would rather somebody feel annoyed by how much you're communicating than frustrated because they don't know what to do. I'd much rather have somebody who could write the emails for me, because they've read all the other ones and are taking them in, and have internalized it, than having somebody say, "I'm not sure where I'm supposed to be when, or what I'm supposed to do, or am I supposed to bring this, or should I have read the lesson? Did you send a lesson?"

As much as you can communicate with people, do so. Over communicate in all the different ways. Send an email. Maybe you mail something home, if you really want to get want to get old school. Text messaging through whatever scheduling app you use, through social media, all the possible ways that you can communicate with somebody for that Sunday morning to help them feel prepared. Keep it simple, keep it short and sweet, and then over and over and over and over again, keep that consistency.

Hannah Augustine (33:36)

I actually love the idea of something in the mail. If you've got the margin - or again, that's a volunteer that could come in and help. You create a little template, and all they do is slap an address sticker on it. You stick it in the mail two weeks before, because then that’s one more way to communicate. Maybe somebody is going to stick that on their fridge. 

You also need to think about timing. If you sent the email two weeks before, you should send it again three days before. I have been in the position where I've been assigned to something, then on the day of or the day before when I'm mentally preparing, I’m wondering: “wait, where was that email?” And I'm trying to search and find it. “What was I supposed to wear? When was I supposed to arrive? Are they going to have food?” 

Whatever it is, just being so clear. Use bullet points, bold what needs to be bolded, or highlight it, whatever works so that it's easy for people to skim through. Have enough detail that for those who will read it, it's going to be helpful and encouraging.You could consider filming a video, using as many mediums as you can to get that message across. You send that YouTube link in a text message: “hey, here's everything you need to know for Easter." 

As for content, like you said, what are some of the basic things you want to cover? Always have two people with a child. Refresh them regarding your bathroom policy, or whatever those top three to five things are that everybody has to know.

I would always tell new volunteers, listen, if they walk away and they know Jesus loves them and you love them, that's a win. So the curriculum may not go off without a hitch.

Brittany Nelson (34:37)

Mm-hmm.

Hannah Augustine (34:52)

We might run out of crafts or snack. But if they walk away and they know Jesus loves them and that you love them, that's all we're really looking for. So yes, try to do the curriculum, but know that there's flexibility, and worst case scenario, Jesus loves them and you love them.

Brittany Nelson (35:07)

For sure.

Hannah Augustine (35:08)

At the time of this airing, we're about two weeks out from Easter. So hopefully you've got some of this planned, but if not, this is your nudge to get that volunteer email out, finish up your personal Easter prep, and get the curriculum mapped out.

Easter can feel overwhelming for us KidMin leaders, but it's also one of the greatest opportunities that we really have all year to introduce kids and families to the hope of the resurrection. 

Brittany, I'd love it if you could share real quick, what are some of the ways that people can connect with you and find the resources you're creating with Deeper KidMin.

Brittany Nelson (35:38)

Yeah, absolutely. So you can find us at deeperkidmin.com, deeperkidmin.com and then @deeperkidmin on Instagram and Facebook and YouTube.

Hannah Augustine (35:49)

Love it. Super easy. Love when it's just the name. That makes it easy for us, right? Just remember, deeper KidMin. But that link will be in the show notes as well, so be sure to check that out. 

To every KidMin leader listening, you don't have to make Easter perfect. Release that pressure. You do not have to be like the big church down the street or the small church around the corner. You're going to do what's right for your community, and you can steward it well. God has given you what you need to do this. So focus on the gospel,

Brittany Nelson (35:52)

Yep. Keep it simple.

Hannah Augustine (36:15)

Care for your volunteers, and trust God to work through the seeds that you plant. Thanks for joining. Don't forget you can like and subscribe; head over to Brittany's pages. You can follow her to get all those great resources, and you can visit kidzmatter.com for more information about the retreat. If you'd like to win that free ticket, email me at hannah@kidzmatter.com and tell me why you love the podcast. Have a great week everybody.