Christmas break will soon be here! All your planning and hard work are shaping up to create another successful holiday season at church. At this point, you may be looking at the week between Dec. 25 and New Year’s as an opportunity to sleep late and binge-watch TV.
As tempting as that may be, the down week is probably your best chance to get ahead for another year of children’s ministry. So use your Christmas break wisely, with these five tips.
Make the Most of Christmas Break
1. Rest!
While you probably shouldn’t go into full hibernation mode, rest is a must. In fact, God commands it throughout Scripture. God Himself rested after finishing Creation.
The Sabbath should be a time for rest. To keep doing your best work and avoid burnout, you need time to recover. Recharge your batteries. Take a few days out of the office. Don’t check email. Ignore social media. Set clear, reasonable boundaries between you and work.
Only by resting can you start the new year with a clean slate. Whether you’ve been at your church for six months or 10 years, it’s best to begin each new season with a fresh start.
2. Assess the past year.
After some time away, think about your ministry results from the past year. What went well? What can you change to make next year better?
If you had any goals, did you meet them? If you didn’t have any goals, what lessons did you learn from last year that you can turn into goals? And if you didn’t learn anything, that’s more of a reason you need to think strategically.
Take time to think through everything. Then gather your team for a meeting to discuss findings. Ask the questions you didn’t have time to ask during the year. This meeting can be as formal or informal as you’d like. But avoid getting bogged down by specific ideas or challenges.
3. Think big picture.
Now that you’ve collected your thoughts, turn your attention to the upcoming year. It can be daunting to imagine restarting the entire 365-day process all over again. This becomes more manageable by starting with the overall strategy of your ministry. Refocus on the mission of your church. Did you stay on track with directly pursuing this mission last year? Or did you get sidetracked with other projects?
It’s no surprise or shame if you veered off course a little. It happens. Just think through ways you can be more strategic and focused for 2026. What guides can you put in place to keep you focused on the mission?
Remember: The mission gives everyone within the church a common ground to pursue together. If no one bothers to follow the mission, it’s just a bunch of meaningless words.
