One of the most fulfilling things for me over the years in youth ministry has been working with volunteers, watching them grow and try new things and become really committed to youth Ministry. But it’s also something that I really needed to be intentional about. So how do we do it, while still needing to focus on lots of other things?
Most of us have been in both roles of being the volunteer leader, and leading a volunteer team (and you may still be doing both!) We know what keeps us motivated to continue in that volunteer role, but then when we start leading sometimes we just simply get so busy organizing things, or we just forget what needs to happen to keep our amazing volunteers wanting to be involved and serve for longer than a couple of years, and that’s not just for us, but for them. We all know that without our volunteer leaders our youth ministries would just fall over.
Let me suggest 5 keys that I think are some of the ‘big rocks’ that we need to take the time to do so that volunteers will be fulfilled and committed. These are some things that I have tried to do over the years, and that I have watched others do in their Youth Ministries.
1. We need to know our leaders personally – all of us want to be known!
Being known is a key aspect of belonging to a community. I think we as leaders need to simply ‘know’ who our volunteers are, and this will create a sense of belonging.
These sort of questions will help the volunteers know that we are interested in them as a person, and that they are not coming to just do a job.
- Ask about their friends and family
- Know what they do for a job, or what course they’re doing at Uni
- What are their hobbies – what do they love doing?
- What are their skills – what are they good at?
- Have they been involved in leadership roles before? What was their experience – what did they like or not’t like? (Knowing what they don’t like is really important!)
- Know why they want to be involved – what has motivated them to be a youth leader
- What do they need from you as the leader to care for them? – phonecalls; conversations
- How do they like to be encouraged – publically? phonecall? having a coffee/meal with you?
2. Our volunteers need to understand and own the ‘Why’ of our Youth Ministry.
All of us want to be a part of something that we are passionate about, where we feel we can make a difference and to be a part of something that is bigger than ourselves. To build a passionate commitment in our Youth Leaders, we need to be able to explain what the vision for the Youth Ministry is. They want to be as sold out as we are as leaders, about ‘Why’ we do what we do. And if we don’t know ‘Why’ then can I suggest that it may be time to stop, grab your team and work this one out. (And here at myYouthLeader.com.au we can help you!)
And it’s important to remember that If one of your volunteers is experienced, or interested in thinking about the big picture of your ministry, allow them to be a part of working this through with you.
3. Volunteers want to be fulfilled in their role.
Let me first say that we are all know the importance of having a ‘servant’ attitude in leadership, and that we can’t always get to only do the things that we want to do. However, understanding the skills and gifting of the individual leader, and having discussions with them will help us know very quickly what role or area they would like to be involved in, and where God will best use them. And this is where we need to remember that all personalities and gifting can belong somewhere within the Youth Ministry.
4. Volunteers need encouragement and to know they matter and belong.
There are so many simple things that we as leaders can do to connect with our volunteers so that they are encouraged and feel a part of the Youth Ministry. You will be able to add another 50 things to this list, and we at myYouthLeader would love to hear those things that you do so we can pass them on. But here are 10 suggestions:
- Always say hello and ask them how they are
- Encouraging them as soon as you see them do something great with their young people
- Saying thank you for what they do and for just coming to help
- Being interested in their life outside of Youth Group and Church
- Pray for them
- Sending a text or a card during the week
- Taking them out for a coffee – in a group or individually
- Asking them their thoughts on how things are going in the Youth Ministry
- Organise some social things with your volunteers
- Delegate roles to them that will help them grow, and encourage them every step of the way
- And keep saying THANK YOU.
5. Helping volunteers learn new skills and grow in the skills they already have
This is probably another whole topic in itself, but let me just simply say here that if our volunteers aren’t growing and aren’t being used to the best of their ability, then they won’t stick around. We want to make a difference in our paid jobs, and it’s the very same for the volunteer roles that we do.
So it’s important that we are training our volunteers so that they are continually growing. Now we know that this can happen on the job as well as by running training sessions, however whatever way we do training, the important thing is that it’s intentional for both the individuals and the whole group.
Help them progress in their giftings… it needs to be challenged and not just what they can do with their eyes shut.
Well there are the 5 big things that are a start in helping you think through how you can be intentional in caring for and helping your volunteers develop and grow in their leadership role.
Let us know your thoughts, ideas, or questions. If you would like some ideas about how you can develop your Youth Leaders, please contact us here at myYouthLeader. We would love to help you.
Over the coming months we will have more on building our leadership teams.
Article written by Marg Tognolini
