By Linda Ahlgrim
Worry is an insult to God! Even so, it”s easy for church leaders to experience panic and despair when they know ministry programs are doomed to failure without boatloads of committed volunteers.
I understand. As director of children”s ministry for our church, I often found myself burdened with the responsibility of finding and training volunteers to serve with our ever-increasing numbers of children. And as everyone around me anticipated a summer filled with fun and travel, I faced my annual “season of despair” when volunteer after volunteer decided to take the summer off.
I had to learn to trust God to provide the workers. “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3).
While I learned this promise is true, I also learned bulletin announcements and pleas from the pulpit rarely produced the results I hoped for. Social scientists report barely 7 percent of people in the United States can be categorized as self-initiators. That”s why roughly 93 percent of the people in our churches never step up and say, “Here I am, use me!” They wait to be asked.
It became increasingly clear that even though God was already prompting and providing volunteers, it was up to me to identify and invite them to serve. I prayed God would open my eyes to see those people he had gifted and called to ministry with children. Sometimes specific names came to mind as I prayed, but more often God helped me find them myself.
God showed that often those people were right in front of me, if only I had eyes to see. They were parents who stepped in to help when classrooms were overcrowded, or people who volunteered to run a game booth at the Fall Festival or help in some small way with VBS. Or maybe they just smiled and spoke with children in the hallways between worship services.
As our church grew I had to enlist others to help me watch and pray for potential children”s ministry servants. My team of intercessors joined me in prayer, and those who were already serving in children”s ministry helped keep an eye out for potential ministry partners.
When possible new volunteers were suggested to me, I mailed them a “you have been recommended” letter. They were asked to pray about this opportunity and told I would be in touch with them in a few days. The results were very encouraging. As I talked with these potential volunteers I was able to help them work through some legitimate fears that prevented them from volunteering, even when they felt prompted to do so.
Through these personal conversations I discovered in most cases people were honored to have been recommended, but hesitated to say “yes” until I helped them work through one or more of five fundamental fears: inadequacy, commitment, being trapped, being too busy, and missing God”s best.
The Fear of Inadequacy
Some potential volunteers struggled with the fear of inadequacy. They just weren”t sure they had the skills or experience necessary for the task. I had to assure them I would be there to help and train them. I explained how they would be teamed with more experienced ministry partners, and that they would have all the support and resources they needed.
I remember one young couple that was new to the faith and had almost no knowledge of the Bible. I helped them understand that by teaching Bible stories to preschoolers they would get on the learning fast track. That was 20 years ago, and they are still among our most committed servants in children”s ministry.
Fear of Commitment
Church leaders often lament, “No one wants to commit anymore!” and sometimes I joined them in that complaint. But this fear of commitment can actually be a good thing.
The younger generation takes commitment very seriously and wants to be responsible. They should never be rushed into making a decision. When given a detailed ministry description, with dates, times, and responsibilities clearly described, and the assurance that substitutes and resources will be provided as needed, these people who once hesitated to commit may turn out to be your most reliable ministry partners.
Fear of Being Trapped
Sometimes people were stopped in their tracks by the “what if I don”t like it?” fear. They were afraid they would agree to serve for the next year, only to discover they really didn”t like working with kids.
This is a legitimate fear. Sometimes we can misread God”s leading in the emotion of the moment and volunteer to serve in an area we really aren”t suited for. To alleviate that problem I asked everyone to take a “test drive” in children”s ministry, spending at least one Sunday observing in a classroom before they were assigned to a specific role. I always made sure they were actively involved during this “observation,” and not just watching from a corner. And while they were observing in the classroom, other members of the teaching team were observing them to see how they interacted with the children.
Through this process, some people wisely eliminated themselves from consideration, and I was able to steer them to a different area of service.
Fear of Being Too Busy
On other occasions I needed to help people overcome the “one more thing” fear. Most of our potential volunteers already had calendars overflowing with “stuff,” They needed to understand that I contacted them because I recognized special gifts that are needed in ministry with children. I reminded them God designed them for ministry in his body, the church, and that saying “yes” to serving in the church could help them prioritize the other “stuff” in their lives, making their lives more Christ-centered.
One successful businessman in our church, who never imagined he would someday be a key leader in ministry with children, reluctantly said “yes” and soon discovered that working with kids was the highlight of his week. He found meaning, purpose, and fulfillment his career could not provide.
Fear of Missing God”s Best
The final and most challenging fear I encountered was what I call “analysis paralysis.” People suffering from this fear had taken a spiritual gifts assessment and were determined to serve in their area of giftedness, but they just couldn”t figure out what form that could take.
For example, they never understood how the gift of mercy was desperately needed in the church nursery, or how the gift of encouragement could help children struggling to read the Bible or remember the memory verse. They couldn”t see how someone with the gift of administration played a critical role in leading a team of volunteers working together in a classroom, or how the gift of hospitality could be used to make a new child feel loved and valued at church.
Spiritual gifts can be difficult to accurately identify because these gifts are not fully developed until we use them in obedient service to God. While helping people work through their “analysis paralysis,” I began to place less emphasis on discovering spiritual gifts and more emphasis on responding to God”s call.
I believe the best way to discover our spiritual gifts is to obey God when we are called to serve. What God leads us to do, he equips us to do. It”s that simple! And if we lack anything necessary for the task, God will bring people alongside us who possess the gifts we need. Most of the time, we discover our gifts in practice, not in theory. That”s God”s plan!
I love it when a plan comes together, especially God”s plan. This I know: God is more committed to the fulfillment of his plan and purpose on earth than any of us. Therefore, he will help us. I know he was the one who helped me identify and mobilize hundreds of volunteers.
If God can use me, he can use you!
Linda Ahlgrim continues to serve in the children”s ministry at Rocky Mountain Christian Church, Niwot, Colorado, where she was director of children”s ministry for 18 years. She volunteers as the RMCC director of Kids Hope USA, a national mentoring program, recruiting and training church members to work with at-risk kids in the neighborhood public elementary school. Her husband, Alan, is the founding and lead pastor of Rocky Mountain Christian Church, where they have served together for 26 years.
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