Building A Ministry Team….It’s All About The Volunteers
Ministry and Volunteers. Volunteers and Ministry. The two go hand in hand. Growing ministries need a large pool of committed, passionate and gifted volunteers. As leaders we need to always be on the lookout for prospects to join our teams. Once we identify them, how do we recruit them? What do we look for?
I’d like to get us started with some thoughts. This is, by no means, a complete list. I also don’t mean these in a judgmental way, just some food for thought as we build our teams. Not every person who wants to serve on your team is gifted to do so. If you would like to add something feel free down in the comment section. Let’s talk.
- Commitment To Jesus :: This should go without saying. First and foremost, we need volunteers who are in love with Jesus.
- Commitment to The Church :: It’s been said, “The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.” If someone tries to convince you that their level of dedication will skyrocket once they have a microphone in their hands and stand under the lights….RUN. That is a red alert.
- Attitude :: A servant attitude is crucial. **Let me also say, that THIS BEGINS WITH US as leaders. That’s right, I went all-caps. We need to model this for our volunteers. Be a servant, not a rockstar. This is a lifelong process for all of us…myself included.
- Character :: Are they a person of character? When you look at their Twitter feed or Facebook page, what do you see?
- Gifts :: I mentioned this earlier but not every person who desires to serve on your team is gifted to do so. Here’s an example from my own life. When I was in college I wanted to sing like Steve Green. I mean, I really wanted it. I wanted to stand on the stage and sing that enormous high (Bb) and let the congregation go wild. Well, I was not gifted to do that. Only God knows why, because I would have rocked it! 🙂 Seriously, I had to come to a realization that God had gifted me to do something different than he gifted Steve Green. We need to help our people, in a very nurturing way, to find their area of giftedness. That will bless God, The Church and them.
- Others? Thoughts?
Once they start serving, it’s up to us to model the type of servants we want them to be. Do you want your team to be on time to rehearsal? Then start by being on time yourself. Be ready before they arrive. This shows respect for them, the process and your entire team.
Do you want your team to embrace excellence in their worship? Then be excellent. “Be all you can be.” Be the best YOU that you can possibly be.
Early in ministry, I learned some of these lessons the hard way. I would be running around like a crazy man right before rehearsal, trying to get things ready for for my volunteers. You know what? They stopped coming on time, because rehearsals weren’t starting on time…. because of me. Yikes. I had to change my behavior. I had to intentionally change my process so that I could have things ready beforehand. This freed me up to welcome my team….it gave me time to build community with them.
What are your thoughts on building a team of volunteers?
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