When God brings volunteers into your ministry it is not just for the work they can do or the service they can provide. It is also for them to be trained in their callings and discipled in their relationship with God. As their leader, you are uniquely positioned to pour into their lives in a positive and lasting way.
Here are six steps to follow to provide the discipling your volunteers need…
- Model servant leadership-serve alongside your volunteers, not over them.
- Praise in public, correct in private-recognize and appreciate all they do. When correction is needed, always do it in the most gentle and loving way possible, and always privately.
- Practice and teach time management skills and the importance of balanced living-There are many online tools available and ample books out there that can provide ideas and direction in this area. Use them for yourself, and teach your volunteers to do the same.
- Make prayer a priority!-Pray with your volunteers, for their families, their volunteer positions, their struggles. You will be a great support when you offer to stand with them in prayer.
- Help them explore their spiritual gifts, passions, and talents-This may be as simple as meeting them over a cup of coffee and sharing what you know about spiritual gifts. Or you can go the extra mile and help them with a spiritual gifts assessment or do a book study together on the subject.
- Invest time and resources in their spiritual development-There are many great podcasts and websites out there to help your volunteers develop spiritually that are absolutely free. Share these with your team whenever possible. Forward them you Church Volunteer Daily when you think the topic would be of interest. You could also lead a Bible study with your volunteers on the topic of your choice.