The best thing that can happen to a church is that it is absolutely packed with newcomers on Easter—but it can also be the worst thing for putting your church’s best foot forward if you’re not prepared. What will you do if your church has so many visitors that it becomes standing room only? How will you keep a large crowd happy? Doing some prep work beforehand to prepare for a large crowd, whether you end up with one or not, is good practice when you’re growing your church.

People get dressed in special outfits for Easter, pile the whole family into the car, and head to your church expecting to be able to sit down and enjoy the service—not stand at the back of the room. Setting up an overflow room with video feed is one idea, but if your church doesn’t have the technology to do that, you can have a second simultaneous service in an overflow area done by an assistant minister or church leader.

Parking can also be a problem so making arrangements for more space is important on Easter. If there isn’t easy extra parking close by, setting up a second lot and a team of volunteers to shuttle people or park cars is one great strategy. Ask your regular members to carpool and help set up arrangements.

Childcare is also another area where you might need reinforcements, especially if your childcare volunteers are at capacity on a regular Sunday. Recruiting youth to sit with little kids in the back of the church can be a great experience for the youth and an exciting change for the oldest nursery-goers. This can be especially important for the children of choir members and others who help in worship. You can also ask the regular members to keep their children with them on Easter Sunday to make room for visitors.

While your church might not be completely packed on Easter Sunday, having plans in place in case you need to accommodate a larger congregation than normal will make things go smoothly and have your visitors leaving with smiles on their faces, instead of frustrated looks.