What if volunteers truly enjoyed what they were doing?

What if volunteers truly enjoyed what they were doing?
September 15, 2017 Kate Warnock

There’s a fantastic phenomenon that happens at church: When leaders enjoy what they’re doing, kids reflect their energy, and have more fun, too!

This principle is at the heart of Group’s Vacation Bible School, and now we’ve created a similar variety of activities for Sunday school, too.

When you’re seeking volunteers, you’re looking for certain gifts a leader can share with kids. In the case of VBS, if you have an excited, creative volunteer, she belongs at Imagination Station. If you have a fantastic storyteller, he belongs at Bible Discovery. Why? Not because you think they will be “good” at it, but because you know they will have fun doing something that is natural for them!

When you recruit volunteers according to their strengths, you know they are going to feel empowered. Volunteers will enjoy what they are doing because it won’t feel like work. And when kids see that their leader is engaged, they will also have a blast!

DIG IN Sunday school allows for this wonderful phenomenon to happen each week. Teachers can build lessons filled with activities they excel at teaching. If you have a volunteer who absolutely loves crafts, she can build her lesson around that activity block. If you have a coach-type of volunteer, she will have fun building lessons around high-energy games.

Regardless of which activity blocks your volunteers use, each activity reinforces the same weekly Bible point. This means kids will get to know God in new and exciting ways while staying focused on the point of the lesson.

The various activities in DIG IN opens the doors wide for recruiting and training volunteers. There is truly something for everyone. Consider how people in your congregation might enjoy the different activity blocks in DIG IN (there are 11 of them), and find people who will naturally have fun with these activities. Once you do, volunteers are more likely to stick around, and kids are more likely to reflect the energy and passion of these leaders…ultimately getting to know Jesus better!

Kate fell in love with ministry as a camp counselor at Wapo and a Director of Youth Ministries in Edina, MN. As a marketing manager at Group, she enjoys learning how children's ministers thrive. Kate loves being behind a camera, snuggling with her family in Fort Collins, and asking a lot of questions beginning with "What If…?"

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