We rarely ever get to hand-pick our volunteers, right? So often in church production ministry, we are meeting people where they are at just like the other ministries of an organization. Some come in hurting, needing community, or just a place to belong and be cared for.
Sorry, I am getting ahead of myself, let me first give you context to me. I began my staff journey as one of our church’s lighting associates where I focused on our lighting volunteer teams at each of our satellite locations. Many, many years ago, our church dubbed our volunteers the “Dream Team”. These guys and gals that so selflessly serve our communities are incredible. All walks of life; young, old, new to faith, long time believers, tech-savvy, just trying to find a team to call their own. That is the beauty of what the local church gets to be: the hands and feet, the family of believers wanting to spread the Good News of the Gospel. But, how do we steward, pastor, and care for volunteers regardless of if we recruited them, inherited them, or if they just stumbled into the booth on a Sunday after service and wanted to get plugged in? I think there are three key things to remember when we are trying to steward volunteers,
First, volunteers need to be pastored. Although we have soundchecks to get to, rehearsals to prep for, and services to run, we cannot lose sight of the fact that first and foremost these volunteers on our team need to be pastored. We can’t forget to check up on, be there for, and support those on our teams from a spiritual level. Pray for them by name, as often as you can. Check up on them and know what they have going on in their lives. Regular phone touch points, texts, meaningful connect points especially when they are going through specific big life moments! Ask how their spouse is doing. How about the child that is nervous to start a new grade in school? We must be present as pastors first, and tech leaders second to these volunteers.
Second, I believe we cannot write someone off just because you might have “inherited” them from someone else’s past leadership decision. It doesn’t always work out that we personally get to recruit every single one of our volunteers to the teams we are tasked with leading, but that doesn’t matter! We are still called to guide, equip, and train every single person we are gifted with. This also applies to volunteers who may be struggling with finding a spot they are comfortable in, or those struggling with a task. Do you have a lyrics slide operator not seeming to get the timing right? We shouldn’t automatically write these people down as unable to perform the task, let’s come alongside them and find a solution with training or perhaps an encouragement to have them try a new role on the team!
And third, just because a team or group of volunteers is thriving, doesn’t mean it is time to set the cruise control and coast! Stay as proactive as possible in each other’s lives by building out times to come together as a team. Build community, foster relationships from team member to team member. You never know what divine connections were meant to be formed within your team, and perhaps that connection is waiting to be made by you! Coordinate team nights, opportunities to cross train in other areas, and perhaps let those already proficient in an area help train new people learning those skills!
We are called to be good stewards of our resources, and “people above process” is the only way to have a healthy, thriving team. We have to make sure that we are maintaining physical, emotional, and spiritual health, and guiding our teams and volunteers to do the same, regardless of if they are “acquired” or “recruited”!
If you want to learn more about how to care for your volunteers, check out the FILO Breakout “Building Strong and Sustainable Teams: Prioritizing Culture and Wellness for Optimal Performance”.
