The Hidden Principle Of “Intentional Margins”  

As a church leader, have you ever felt maxed out?

That feeling of being busy “all the time”?

I can remember that feeling all too well.

A couple of years ago I was sitting in my office listening to a person from my church who happened to stop by (unannounced) once again.

As I sat there trying my best to be their pastor, I couldn’t help but feel frustrated, overwhelmed, and stressed.

Didn’t they realize how busy I was?

My day was packed to the brim, with no wiggle room for this interruption.

Looking back, I hope I didn’t come off rushed or rude, but I knew something had to change.

I can still remember the feelings of guilt I had for not pastoring that person with unrushed patience and love.

What Kind Of Pastor Was I?

Was I Too Busy To Shepard My Sheep?

What Would Jesus Do?

If you’ve felt the same way I did, let me share with you the one principle that brought me back from the edge of burnout, and helped me to live at a more relaxed shepherding pace.

The principle that saved me was creating “Intentional Margins” in my day.

Let me share with you how it works:

1.  What Are “Intentional Margins”?

“Intentional Margins” are scheduled times in your day when you have nothing planned.

That’s right! 

Planned time slots in your schedule that don’t have any agenda.

Weird, right? 

But why?

Because if you fill your day to the max as I did, you put yourself in a prime position to be rushed, frustrated, and ineffective as the leader God wants you to be.

Scheduling “Intentional Margins” in my day helped me to slow down and enjoy ministry again.

And as I slowed down, something started happening:

1. The pressure and stress I felt started going away.
2. I found myself living more in the moment, instead of thinking about the next thing on my agenda.
3. I started seeing interruptions in my day as divine appointments God had assigned to me.

But how do we do this?

2. How To Schedule “Intentional Margins”?

For each of us, this will look different.

For some, there could be multiple “Intentional Margins” spread throughout your day.

For me and my current position, it works to schedule my “Intentional Margins” at the same time each day.

Below is a screenshot of my weekly calendar. It’s not perfect, but it works for me:

I have chosen to schedule 1 hour every day for “Intentional Margins”.

That way, if something comes up or a person needs to talk (unannounced), I know I have extra margin in my day to get my stuff done.

3. What If I Don’t Have Time To Spare?

Not having any “Marginal” time in your day is a warning sign of being unhealthy.

Of course, we all have times during the year that our busier than others, but if you are always in a busy season of ministry, you may want to ask yourself a few questions: 

• Do you have a hard time saying NO?
  • Many church leaders feel that this two-letter word is not allowed in ministry, but if you don’t say No to some things, you won’t be able to say YES to the more important things.

• Do you take pride in being busy all the time?
  • I know this one sounds weird, but many church leaders deal with this. As an example, I’ve found myself in the past taking great pride in the fact that someone wants to meet with me for counseling when I don’t have the time or knowledge they need.
  • I have to confess that those feelings of pride have robbed me of time I didn’t have, and them of getting the true help they needed.

• Do you find yourself procrastinating more than you would like to admit?
  • More leaders deal with this than they want to admit. Early on in ministry, I was my own worst enemy when it came to getting stuff done. I would put things off, and then wonder why I had no time to sit and enjoy the present.
  • If you deal with the same struggle of procrastination, I encourage you to sit down with your calendar and be brutally honest with yourself. Is it really that you don’t have any spare time, or is it that you have been sabotaging yourself? 

Call to Action

As church leaders, we have all found ourselves so busy that we forget what God has called us to do. 

To shepherd His church with unhurried love, patience, and great care.

So, take out your calendar right now, and schedule your “Intentional Margins” for the week.

What Do You Think?

What about you? 

Do you have another tip not mentioned? 

Feel free to share in the comments section below!