The McDonald’s Secret That Can Put Time (And Some Peace) Back Into A Pastor's Life
The McDonald’s Secret That Can Put Time (And Some Peace) Back Into A Pastor's Life
Let’s talk about McDonald’s.
Not because of their fries (which will be in Heaven but healthy), but because of how a fast-food empire is run by teenagers.
Think about that.
The average McDonald's crew is a group of 16-year-olds who can barely stay off their phones, yet they can serve up thousands of meals a day with near-perfect consistency.
Why?
Because of systems.
McDonald's isn’t successful because they hire Michelin-star chefs.
It’s successful because the system is so foolproof that even a teenager who forgets to tie his shoes can run an entire store without burning it down.
That’s the power of a great system.
W. Edwards Deming, the man who helped revitalize Japan after World War II, said:
“A bad system will beat a good person every time.”
It compensates for inexperience, prevents failure, and keeps things running smoothly no matter who’s working the shift.
Now, let’s apply that to ministry.
Every pastor knows that ministry is complex—sermon prep, pastoral care, volunteer coordination, counseling, event planning, crisis management.
It never ends.
And too many pastors are doing everything manually, trying to hold it all together without the support of reliable systems.
What if don’t need more effort?
What if you just need better systems?
The World Runs on Systems—Your Ministry Should Too
Everything in life works because of systems.
- Your refrigerator keeps food cold without your intervention.
- Your car starts and takes you places without you reinventing the wheel.
- Your heart beats, your lungs breathe, your digestion works all without you thinking about it.
But what happens when these systems break down?
Suddenly, you're knee-deep in melted ice cream, stranded with a car that won't start, and facing a morning without coffee (a true crisis).
The same happens in ministry.
Take Woodstock, for example.
The 1969 festival had everything—starving hippies, overflowing porta-potties, and traffic jams so bad people abandoned their cars.
It was chaos.
But guess what worked?
The sound system.
They heard the music they came to hear because a reliable hard-to-break system was in place.
Despite all the chaos, where there were systems, there was success.
Where there weren’t, there was disaster.
The lesson?
A great system creates predictable efficiency, frees up time, and avoids burnout. A lack of systems guarantees the opposite.
"Busyness is a tax you pay for poor systems." - Matt Gray
The Real Reason Pastors Burn Out
Most pastors don’t quit ministry because they lose their passion.
They quit because the weight of managing everything crushes them.
The late-night sermon scrambles.
The endless administrative tasks.
The I-should-call-them-but-I’ll-do-it-later moments that never happen.
None of this happens because a pastor doesn’t care.
It happens because there’s no system in place to ensure it gets done without mental exhaustion.
A Pastor Who Used a System to Solve His Biggest Time-Waster
Most people think of sermon prep and follow-up when it comes to ministry systems.
But here’s a less obvious example that saved a pastor hours each week.
Problem: A pastor realized he was wasting half his week just scheduling meetings.
One email: ‘Hey, can you meet Tuesday?’
Response: ‘Tuesday’s bad, how about Thursday?’ ‘Thursday doesn’t work, what about next week?’
And on and on it went—like a slow-motion tennis match where nobody wins.
Solution: He set up Calendly.
Instead of coordinating every meeting manually, he sent people a simple link where they could choose an open slot on his calendar.
No more back-and-forth. No more wasted time.
Result: He freed up actual, literal, bona fide time every month—time that could now be spent on ministry instead of logistics.
He also multiplied that time by using it to systematize some more.
Now he walks around using the word "exponential" a little too much.
(Relax, Pastor Rick. We know.)
That’s the power of a system.
Where to Start: Your First Simple System
If you’re drowning in tasks, here’s how to fix it:
- Pick one recurring thing you do manually. (Scheduling, emails, volunteer coordination, planning meetings.)
- Write down 3 steps to automate or streamline it.
- Choose a tool or method to systematize it. (Calendly, Asana, ChatGPT, pre-written email sequences, text automation.)
Start small. One system at a time.
"Systems under which people work account for 90% of the failure; therefore, the key to success in any endeavor is to perfect the system." - W. Edwards Deming
Final Thought: What Does God Think About Systems?
God loves systems.
He didn't just fling the earth out there, He put it in a solar system.
On that earth He created eco-systems.
Man thrives in that ecosystem, with his central nervous, respiratory, muscular, vascular systems, all hanging on his skeletal system.
The eyeball isn't merely an organ, it's a conglomeration of parts that make up a "seeing system."
All God's design.
God loves systems.
One residue of the Imago Dei in us is the ability to create systems.
Even bad ones.
Because even a bad system will beat a "good" pastor, every single time.
And just about any system can get us one step closer to getting optimized.
More Resources To Help You Optimize
🥤Momentum Shake: The Complete Longevity Shake for Optimal Health
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💊 My (Scott's) full supplement regimen
