Imagine a world in which every Christian church, no matter its size or budget, had an acknowledged volunteer champion in their midst, a leader who helped people use their God-given gifts in their Lord’s service within and beyond the church; a leader who taught ministry leaders best practices in volunteer recruitment and support. In an earlier post I spelled out my vision of such a world, why now is the right time for it, the benefits such a volunteer champion would bring, and the cost and challenges that come with it.

You can find a volunteer champion — you can perhaps be one! — no matter the size of your church or your position in it.

Is it an unrealistic dream? Our world is changing faster than ever, our churches are struggling, and fewer and fewer people are serving. These are huge challenges, for sure. But the same factors are compelling reasons for giving a higher priority to maximizing the gifts God has given the church through its people. An identified volunteer champion can help you do that, and finding one is not rocket science. You can find one — you can perhaps be one! — no matter the size of your church or your position in it. Some ways to help you, whatever your situation, get started:

if you’re a pastor or leader who wants to find or grow a vol champion:

• Ask God to guide you in helping all His people serve Him.
• Look at your mission and vision. Is it compelling? Does it include all God’s people? A compelling mission and vision motivates people to serve.
• Invite one or two people to read this article or something similar. Have a conversation about it.
• Ask 2 or 3 people, “who do you know who has a heart for serving and capacity to lead? Talk to them.
• Use these conversations to find people with desires similar to yours, people who are open to changing the ways things have always been done. Encourage them to do more reading and research on serving and best practices in volunteerism.
• With the people you’ve identified, decide on a step and take it. Repeat. Start small, and start with easy steps that are likely to succeed. Keep the big picture in mind, but you don’t need to have full-fledged plan in place in order to make progress.
• Continue asking God to guide you in helping all His people serve Him.
• Scroll down for more ideas “In the Meantime”

If you’d love to see a vol champion in your church but you know you’re not “it” and you’re not in a leadership position:

• Ask God to guide you in helping all His people serve Him.
• Learn more. Look at resources on this and other church volunteerism sites. Search out resources on general volunteer engagement.
• Identify a sympathetic leader. Share a resource with them, something short and powerful. Ask if you can talk about it together. Share your thoughts and listen carefully to their thoughts. If you can identify a common goal, ask “What’s our next best step to achieve this goal?
• Repeat!
• Continue asking God to guide you in helping all His people serve Him.
• Scroll down for more ideas “In the Meantime”

If your goal is primarily to get things done in the way you figure they should be done, that is not the role of a volunteer champion.

If you might like to be a vol champion:

• Ask God to guide you in helping all His people serve Him.
• Examine your heart. Are you aiming to truly help people figure out how God has gifted and called them to serve? If your goal is primarily to get things done in the way you figure they should be done, that is not the role of a volunteer champion.
• Do you have an open mind? As our world changes, the ways we engage volunteers must change. And change is hard.
• Educate yourself. Look for resources on healthy church volunteerism (ahem, my site has a lot!) and secular volunteerism (search ‘how to engage volunteers’).
• Share interesting resources with a leader. (Hint: the shorter the item shared, the more likely it will be read!) Ask for time to sit down and discuss it. Listen to their responses. Ask, “Is there one thing we could do to move us toward better practices for our volunteers?” Then do it.
• Repeat!
• Continue asking God to guide you in helping all His people serve Him.
• Scroll down for more ideas “In the Meantime”

In the meantime, whoever you are . . .

Whatever your position or lack of position in your family of faith, you can do much to help others serve as God has gifted and called them. Anyone can be an unofficial but effective champion of volunteers. In fact, we all should be!

Connect with other churches, near and far. Is there someone championing volunteers there? How can you encourage and support each other?

• Thank a volunteer for their serving. Do this often.
• Affirm the gifts you see in people. “Jean, you are so good with children;” “Bob, your patience is such a gift;” “Lisa, your organizational skills are a real blessing to us.”
• Get to know people you don’t know; their interests, skills, experiences, their ‘dream job.’
• If you are inviting people to serve, do it based on what you know about them. Don’t use guilt or pressure. Accepting a “no” answer in a grace-filled way opens the door to future serving. See “How to Recruit Church Volunteers.”
• Look for ways your church might be unintentionally discouraging volunteers and see what you can do to help change those practices.
• Can you start a new practice that encourages volunteers, such as writing position descriptions or talking to new members about their gifts or sharing stories of people serving?
• People can tune out repeated pleas for volunteers at church. Try a focus on serving in everyday life.
• Connect with other churches, near and far. Is there someone championing volunteers there? How can you encourage and support each other?

As you think about a volunteer champion, keep in mind God calls us each to serve within and beyond the body of Christ. And it is our serving beyond the body of Christ — everywhere we live, work and play — that is most likely to impact those who do not yet know Jesus as Lord. I would go so far as to say that the more focus we give to helping people serve outside our churches, the more likely we are to have people serving inside our churches. Sounds like a topic for another post!

The bottom line is the same. Let’s help each other serve!