Tag Archive - grow

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8 Reasons Why People Don’t Volunteer at Your Church

I’ve never worked with a church that has said they don’t need more volunteers. But I’ve worked with a bunch of churches that have trouble getting people to volunteer and stay engaged volunteering. This is a critical issue for churches to figure out. The reason why this has to be a front-burner issue is because at the heart of it, volunteering is an essential component of the discipleship process in someone’s life. Plainly put, volunteering is discipleship. Understanding that, here are 8 reasons people aren’t volunteering in your church…and subsequently aren’t growing in their relationship with God.

1. Don’t Feel Needed

Many people come to church week in and week out, they have an incredible experience and go home thinking, “All of this happens every week without me, what do they need me for?” Churches need to provide vision for people to volunteer and tie it to the spiritual growth process of the church.

2. They Think Staff Should do it

Some people simply have an unbiblical view of church…that the Church Staff should do everything. And unfortunately many churches have only reinforced this with a heavy staffing model and in so doing unfortunately built a culture that says, “Only professional Christians can do ministry.” Churches need to equip, empower, and release their volunteers.

3. Poor Past Experience

Many people have volunteered in the past and had a bad experience. They weren’t supported, encouraged, cared for well, or set up to succeed and they’re not sure they want to put themselves in that position again.

4. Don’t Feel Qualified

Many people don’t feel qualified or worthy to volunteer at a church. I’ve met incredible business leaders and military leaders who won’t volunteer in their churches because they don’t feel spiritually worthy. You need to help people understand that they are gifted and created to serve…even in the church.

5. Too Much Commitment

Some people are either at a stage of life or are over committed with other things and don’t have the time to volunteer. Churches need to provide these folks with easy low commitment opportunities to volunteer and perhaps a bit of coaching to move towards a sustainable pace in their lives.

6. Fear of Commitment

Some people simply are afraid that if they volunteer once then they’re in it for life. They’re afraid of making a commitment that never ends. So provide them with short term opportunities to experiment with volunteering and easy outs or off ramps from seasons of volunteering.

7. Difficult to get Involved

The number one complaint I hear from people who want to volunteer in churches who don’t is that they’ve tried to volunteer, they’ve signed up, they want to but they don’t know how to get involved, it was hard to get involved (they had to take multiple classes or be a member of the church prior to volunteering), or no one ever called them back.

8. Criminal Record

Yea, so you know that background check you run on people who volunteer with minors (and you should)…some people don’t want their past brought up on the results of that background check. So, help them get volunteering somewhere else.

I want to help your church get on the solution side of this conversation. That’s why I want to point you to one of my ministry partners: The Volunteer Rocket. These guys will help resource you with the appropriate tools, systems, and processes to help your church win, when it comes to building a volunteer culture.


Posted in Volunteers

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Why Leadership is Not Power

Have you ever thought to yourself, “If I were in charge, things would be different, things would be better”? Because, after all whoever is in charge has the most power right? They’re the ones who get to make the big boy decisions right?

What makes a leader is not power, but the ability to empower others.

Is the most powerful person in the room really the best leader in the room? Or could it be, that the better leader is the person who gives away the most power?

You win the hearts of people when you help them grow personally.

Lording over people and barking out orders never endears people to a leader. It was Peter Drucker who is credited with saying, “The leader of the past was a person who knew how to tell. The leader of the future will be a person who knows how to ask.” Click here to learn more about this leadership tension. Helping people grow as a leader means giving them authority to make decisions, practice with leadership situations and socraticly coach them to move in the right direction. It’s true. You get more when you give. Even in the economy of leadership.

“Everything they do is for show. On their arms they wear extra wide prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and they wear extra long tassels on their robes. And how they love to sit at the head of the table at banquets and in the most prominent seats in the synagogue! They enjoy the attention they get on the streets, and enjoy being called ‘Rabbi.’” Matthew 23:5-7

A majority of leaders are interested in keeping their position and acquiring more power. The Pharisees were interested in power and position. So much so that many had even sided with Rome. As a leader are you more interested in acquiring power or giving power away to others? Are you more interested in attaining more power, or providing the shoulders for others to stand on?


Posted in Leadership
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