volunteer values

I was talking with a youth worker yesterday, and he asked me about volunteers, and recruiting, and red-flags and I sort of just involuntarily spouted out a list of over-arching values that I have for student ministry volunteers, and volunteers in general- I have said these over and over to dozens of leaders- and I thought I should record them somewhere- 

1. every volunteer needs a job. 
if they don't have a job to do, then there is no reason for them to be at your meeting other than to watch you work. it makes me crazy when I see youth workers hold a meeting and insist on doing the welcome, the game, the songs, the message, the small group questions and the counseling - all themselves. and then they complain to me that they have no one to help them. every job that you can do can be given away to a volunteer- and they may even do it better than you. 

2. the best job that a volunteer can do is to care for a student.
that is the most rewarding part of ministry- and the most attractive. if you want a volunteer to stay with you, then give them the best and most rewarding jobs. if you get paid, then you should do the jobs that no one wants: setting up, tearing down, cleaning up, emails, receipts, administration. let the volunteers pray with kids and laugh with them- let them support the student when they are struggling. let them do the fun stuff- you do the boring stuff. ephesians 4:11 says, "Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up..." we think that our job is to do all of the fun things- but God has sent us to equip everyone else to do the ministry. 

3. anyone can serve.
we think that only a certain type of person can volunteer- a young, energetic, single person maybe. I have had volunteers that were young, and ones that were older- I have had leaders who were single and leaders who were married with kids- I have had leaders who were in college, and ones who had busy career. anyone can serve- as long as they love God and care about kids (and pass the background check). my youth pastor friend told me that so many people in his church were so busy- I said, "don't say no for them! let them say their own no! just make sure you ask." 
so when you're looking for a leader- ask anyone from your church- young or old, married or single, busy or not. 

4. parents make the best leaders.
conventional wisdom says, "kids want to be around cool, young, college-aged kids- not stuffy old parents." not true. parents make the best leaders- and here is why: parents come hard-wired with instincts. when a student is sad, a parent knows what to do. when they are injured, let the parent in there- they can make it better. when a student is misbehaving, let a parent handle it. they are experts. teachers are amazing volunteers, because they are comfortable with students and they are masters at managing the behavior of a group of students. 

5. there is no good reason for you not to value, recognize and thank your volunteers regularly.
these people voluntarily showed up to help you do your job to work with teenagers and you don't have time to say thank you? shame. that needs to be one of your highest priorities- and not just once in a while- on a weekly basis.

6. give a volunteer the tools they need to be successful.
do they need curriculum? get it to them early. do they need time to read it and pray through it? then get it to them very early. do they need food for their group? provide it. do they need a clean space to meet in? then clean it. do they need your support? then give it to them- before during, and after their meeting. do they need basic information like calendar dates, times of the meeting or contact info? then make sure that stuff is available to them as early as possible. 

a good volunteer is worth their weight in gold. when you find one- take care of them. thank them, recognize them, resource them and above all, listen to them.

God is love.
-rev-rob