He was hurting. He didn’t want to let me down, but he knew his family needed him. I told this volunteer that we would be fine if he needed a break. As much as I wanted to keep him around I knew I needed to serve him. He took the next two months off and came back with a stronger commitment.
If you want loyal and dedicated volunteers you need to serve them. Without them you are limited with who you can reach. Your volunteers enable you to extend your capacity. If you love your volunteers you need to know how to serve them. 3 ways you can serve your volunteers is by:
- Giving Them Permission To Rest: It’s easy to get sucked in and overwhelmed by a commitment. Your volunteers might not want to let you down by asking for a break. You know ministry is a long journey, make sure your volunteers know it’s okay to take a break. Schedule in seasons of rest or create terms of service. Help them last for the long run.
- Rewarding Them For Their Sacrifice: Serve your volunteers by rewarding them. When you point out the good that they are doing you’ll boost their confidence. Confident volunteers become confident leaders. Reward your leaders by giving them gift cards, send them thank you notes or just give them a shout out on Facebook.
- Challenging Them In Their Discipleship: Your volunteers need to grow. The more they grow in their relationship with Christ the better they can serve the next generation. Your volunteers need to be growing disciples who are growing young disciples. Encourage them to join a small group of their own or connect them with a devotional. Empower them to continuously go deeper.
While your ministry is to teenagers, you need to make sure your volunteers are at the forefront of your attention. They are more than people giving their time, they care about your vision and mission. When you serve your volunteers they’ll know that you care them as people.
In what ways do you serve your volunteers?
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