Monday, May 16, 2011
What Volunteers Want
Most churches cannot afford to hire all the staff they need to operate the various ministries within its organization efficiently. Therefore, churches will continuously need able volunteers to help in the work of the ministry. Many of the volunteers will be people that spend most of their week in the marketplace pleasing several masters, such as, bosses, customers, employees, many people with different values from their own. When they volunteer their time, they are excited to do something that really matter with people that they love and with whom they share a common cause. There are a few things that leaders should keep in mind when assigning responsibilities to volunteers. “Give a clear, compelling purpose. Happy volunteers are crystal clear on their ministry’s purpose. They can tell you not only why their group exists, but also why that cause is important. For an important cause, they will give selflessly, and thank, you for it.” Also, involve volunteers as much as possible. “By allowing the volunteer to use their talents, you have converted the volunteer from ordinary donor to impassioned supporter. You can unapologetically ask for the best of their time and talents to strengthen the ministry.” Leaders should be careful not to waste volunteers’ time. “Volunteers want to contribute. They see their unpaid work as a wonderful way to build meaning and purpose into life. And they evaluate every meeting, e-mail, and phone call to see if it adds meaning. If not, they will withdraw and allocate their time elsewhere.”
By Ted Harro, Willow Creed Community Church
www. Christianity today.com
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dibbs!
ReplyDeleteCynthia,
ReplyDeleteI have been thinking a lot recently about how to utilize volunteers in my ministry and this article gave some helpful advice. I appreciate how you pointed out that volunteers often spend most of the week working at another job. They already have time consuming commitments, bosses to please, and perhaps other co-workers that they have to deal with on a regular basis. As leaders in the church, it can be easy to forget that fact. We are in school, so it is a little easier to understand the strain of other time commitments outside of the “church ministry”, but it is something that we should never forget when we transition into full time ministry. As a result, it is important that we take our volunteers time and energy into account. I think it is true that people who volunteer want to put their time and energy into the ministry, but it is important that we as leaders train them to do it efficiently and in a manner that best utilizes the gifts that they have been given. If not, we are wasting their time and resources and, in the end, not leading them or the ministry to the best of our ability.