Editor’s note: This article was transcribed and edited from a webinar hosted by Ministry Spark. You can watch the full video here.
Unless we have God’s Word, we don’t have anything. The ultimate example of a healthy volunteer relationship is Jesus with His disciples. He called people up. In Matthew 3, Mark 1, Luke 4, John 1, we get the background. Jesus is baptized. He goes into the wilderness; He fasts; He prays; He’s tempted. And then Jesus comes out of that, and He begins to preach. It’s interesting that He started preaching before He pursued volunteers. And then He started pursuing volunteers in Matthew 4, Mark 1, Luke 5:1-11.
Jesus had a message that He invited people to come alongside and share. We have a message in the church. What’s our message? God made it. We broke it. Jesus fixes it. We respond. How does that fit in our lesson? God made it. We broke it. Jesus fixes it. We respond.
Jesus invited them to be part of the message. But He didn’t just invite them—He also gave them a plan. He said, “Follow Me.” And, ultimately, He gave a purpose of becoming fishers of men. And we know what those volunteers did. We’re here today because He invested in them, and now we have the opportunity to invest in other people and love volunteers well.
Love and Care for Volunteers
S: Soul-Care or Spiritual Care
I have done children’s ministry for a very long time. I love it! I love being around people, hanging out with kids, playing and teaching, coming up with messages, and being creative. But it’s interesting that if you serve in children’s ministry over a long period, you probably don’t have an opportunity to consistently go to the worship service.
I wonder if I surveyed you guys, how many of you would say, “Man, I am worn out.” Well, to be healthy and to help volunteers be healthy, we have to be healthy ourselves.
For a long time, I wasn’t participating in adult worship services because I had to work. I couldn’t leave my job to go and be fed. So, I began listening to podcasts of sermons for encouragement.
We have to be healthy in order to help others.
I would listen to sermons early on Sunday morning as I drove into church before anybody else was there. While setting up rooms, I was listening to different sermons. And I cannot tell you how much I have been encouraged and fed by those along with my daily Bible reading.
Part of your soul care is that you need to be in the worship service at some point in time. And if it’s not possible, then you need to find a worship service that you’re listening to consistently. I would say that if you can’t be there in person, you need to listen to more than one a week.
Your Soul Is Important: Love Volunteers Through Soul Care
Another helpful thing for me is going to conferences—like INCM Children’s Pastors’ Conference. And there are places like Ministry Spark, where you get access to thought leadership for free.
I also encourage you to listen to or read Christian resources and books.
Things like these helped me get out of my funk. And the blessing of a coworker that God had given me has made a huge difference.
3 John 1:2 says, “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.”
And guys, girls, friends, people all over the world, we must maintain our spiritual walk. We have to be healthy in order to help others. You can get by, sure—for a while. But it will catch up with you, and you will be depleted.
P: Prayer
Keep it simple, keep it real, and keep it up.
Pete Greg, Red Moon Rising
Pete Greg has a vision from God about making a difference, and he doesn’t know how that will work. And it starts and ends with prayer. And after reading his book Red Mood Rising, you will be motivated to pray.
You’ll say, “Put me in coach.” Any big work in the New Testament started with prayer. They were all in. So what are some points on prayer?
One of the best ways that I recalibrate myself in prayer is by praying the Lord’s Prayer. It gives you a template. And you can love volunteers by praying for them.
Object Lessons: Love Volunteers by Standing Together
Recently I saw a sermon where the preacher called someone to the front and gave him a set of two-pound weights. The preacher asked if they were heavy. Of course they weren’t. But he had the guy extend his arm, holding the weights out to his sides. And then the preacher just began to talk.
Well, even a two-pound weight eventually gets heavy. The pastor was talking about intercessory prayer. He went on for maybe five to seven minutes. And he asked again if the weights were heavy. Of course they were getting heavy.
Well, then the speaker came and helped the volunteer carry the weights. When we work with volunteers, when we’re trying to make a difference, we need to come alongside them and pray with our brothers and sisters as they are struggling. And they need to know that we’re doing that.
Another thing is fasting. What are you willing to give up to help focus your mind?
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
2, 4, 6, 8! Who do we appreciate? VOLUNTEERS!
R: Relationships
Alone, we can do so little, but together we can do so much.
Helen Keller
One of the things I’ve noticed over time (the hard way), is that your volunteers are typically missing some sort of belonging element by serving with you in children’s ministry. They’re giving up something to be with you. So creating a sense of belonging within your group is important.
One way to work toward this is by sharing a meal and sitting together. When you host trainings, invite the whole family. Don’t make your volunteers miss time with their kids and spouses—invite them all in.
We also celebrate together. When children memorize verses or accomplish something else, we celebrate together and invite volunteers and their families. Maybe we’ll go skating or eat cupcakes. The activity isn’t what’s important—the time together is.
Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
I: Information
If you don’t give people information, they will make up something to fill in the void.
Clara O’Dell
Information leads to peace. My job is to make sure that I over communicate. And, honestly, it’s easier said than done. I have lots of conversations in my head, but I sometimes forget to have them with people.
Information leads to security. Give your volunteers more than they need and love them by giving them clarity. Sometimes they’ll hear it, and sometimes they won’t. But you’ve got to do it and keep doing it.
Setting clear expectations from the beginning of a volunteer role provides clarity. The Volunteer Onboarding Kit from David C Cook is one of the tools available to help you do this. Check it out—there are videos, job descriptions, and more to help you think about your ministry to and with volunteers.
Romans 14:19 says, “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”
N: ‘Ncouragement (aka Encouragement)
Encouragement is like water to the soul. It makes everything grow.
Chris Burkmenn
We need to be encouragers, we need to be encouragers, we need to be encouragers. We must lift up the people around us. You can do this through thanksgiving and praise. You can do this by helping them where you know they need help.
Write a personal note, pray for people on the spot, give gifts with a purpose. Create a resource room with great food, snacks, or whatever it is that you can provide.
So, what can we do? There is always something we can do, whether for individuals or the group collectively.
1 Thessalonians 5:11 says, “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
We need to be encouragers, we need to be encouragers, we need to be encouragers.
G: Growing
Education is not the filling of a pale, but it is the lighting of a fire.
William Butler Yates
How do we help our volunteers grow? How can I do my job, encourage them, and not intimidate them at the same time?
You can walk by classrooms, stop in, affirm what’s good, and help with what’s hard. I try to check in with each teacher and make sure they are equipped with what they need—while also respecting their space as much as I can.
Knowing your volunteers helps you help them grow. If you don’t know them, you can’t know what they have to offer, and you won’t know how to help them develop their skills. And, truthfully, they can help you grow too.
Ask questions. Help them discover their spiritual gifts as well! And be open to growth as a team, as you all work to share the good news of Jesus with kids.
2 Timothy 3:14-15 says, “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”
S: Serving
Leadership is service, not position.
Tim Fargo
I have seen the leaders who don’t serve and only delegate, but they don’t delegate from a position of humility.
Humility will prompt you to clean up trash in the hallway, it will help you remember what your team has asked you for and motivate you to follow-through. Humility requires asking yourself how you can help people over and over again.
Along with this, it’s important to look at people and situations with fresh eyes. It takes intentionality week in and week out.
Matthew 23:11-12 says, “The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
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The main points from today create the acronym: SPRINGS. Springs represent what I hope for you today as you love and lead volunteers.
- Number one, spring is when dead things come back to life. There is a Chinese bamboo tree that spends three to four years developing roots underground. And on year four or five, it springs up. Then in about three months, it can grow 60 feet tall. It is amazing. My prayer is that wherever you are—and especially if you’re discouraged—you would come out of winter and into spring and experience new growth.
- In relation to the metal spring that bounces. My prayer is that this was an energy giving moment, but the reason I picked SPRINGS as an acronym is because of this verse:
John 7:38 says, “Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”
Friends, my prayer for you is that you would be a spring of living water in your volunteers’ lives.
