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The source of this article is Pastors.com: http://tinyurl.com/46zqq Parkinson's Organizations: Motivations for Volunteering: What Can We Learn? Volunteers want to be appreciated, cared for, Saddleback pastor says by Erin Curry Volunteers expect their time to be used wisely, essentially operating on the mantra, “If you use my time wisely, I’ll give you more.” Volunteers want to use their talents when they serve, and they enjoy seeing the big picture ... LAKE FOREST, Calif. (PD)--A study of volunteers found that what drives most people to give of their time is the opportunity to fill a void or meet a need, the chance for spiritual and personal growth, a sense of giving something back, a sense of significance or the opportunity to associate with like-minded people. But the study also found that those same people expect some personal attention, affirmation and some training for the tasks they’re assigned. They also expect their time to be used wisely, essentially operating on the mantra, “If you use my time wisely, I’ll give you more.” Volunteers want to use their talents when they serve, and they enjoy seeing the big picture, the study found. Erik Rees, pastor of ministry at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., conducted the national study of volunteerism two years ago and has since been formulating methods to meet the needs he uncovered. He spoke with people at national nonprofit organizations, mega churches and small churches as well as ministry leaders and volunteers at Saddleback to find out what drives people to serve and what they expect when they offer their time. Rees also discovered that what keeps people from serving is disorganized supervision, under-utilization of time, lack of appreciation, limited training or orientation concerning the task they are asked to perform, and being paired with wrong assignments leading to a sense of failure. Once he gathered the information, Rees developed a framework called the VALUES of Volunteerism, using an acrostic to clearly state the principles of caring for volunteers: V - Visit A - Affirm L - Listen U - Update E - Equip and S - Shepherd. First, Rees instructs staff and ministry leaders to spend a few minutes visiting with each member prior to assigning a ministry opportunity. “We challenge our staff specifically that projects can never get in the way of people,” he said, noting it’s the principle of personalization. “It shows people we care about them and recognize they’re here and they’re important.” Leaders should also affirm each volunteer and let them know how much their time means to the church. This can be done by writing notes of encouragement to the volunteers, which is the principle of appreciation. The third component of valuing a volunteer is to listen, based on the principle of attention. “This is where we are trying to challenge our staff and our ministry leaders that when you are visiting with someone to have ears to hear what people are saying and what maybe is not being said,” Rees said. Prayer requests can be gleaned from such times of listening to volunteers. Fourth, leaders should update their volunteers on how what they are doing is making a difference in the global church that God has called them to be a part of, making sure they know they have an impact on the big picture. No matter if their task is stuffing envelopes or data entry, Rees said, they need to know their time counts. This is the principle of motivation. Equipping volunteers for ministry is another component of letting them know they’re valued. “No matter where someone serves, there should be some sense of training proactively accomplished by the staff member or ministry leader so people feel they are able to succeed within the ministry opportunity,” Rees said. For volunteers in the traffic ministry, that could be training them on how to direct traffic on the church campus. For those doing administrative work for the staff, that could mean ensuring the volunteers are trained on how to use such office programs as PowerPoint, Excel and Word, Rees noted. The principle of utilization helps develop the talents God has already given a person. Finally, volunteers need to be shepherded. “We challenge our staff to let them see that for whatever season the volunteers are with them they need to be a conduit of care and coaching for these people and to see them not only as volunteers but as someone they need to shepherd and encourage and care for,” Rees said. “It’s the principle of shepherdization – How can I care about you?” Saddleback uses a formula for mobilizing people into ministry, and one of the pieces of the formula is to celebrate changed lives, Rees said. In June, in an effort to celebrate volunteers individually and corporately, the church had “Celebrating You: Volunteer Appreciation Week,” a week-long emphasis that encouraged the staff to make the most of their volunteers. Valuing volunteers In June, in an effort to celebrate volunteers individually and corporately, Saddleback had “Celebrating You: Volunteer Appreciation Week,” a week-long emphasis that encouraged the staff to make the most of their volunteers. Photo courtesy of SLICE, Saddleback's weekly e-newsletter Leaders were assigned a specific task for each day of the week, ranging from praying for each of their volunteers to sending thank-you cards to planning a fun day on Friday. Some leaders took their volunteer groups to dinner, and one group had a pictoral scavenger hunt. The group of 30 split up into two vans and had a list of 10 places within the community to take Polaroid pictures of the group. One example, Rees said, was the group had to take a picture of themselves giving a copy of The Purpose-Driven Life to someone who did not have one, and another was to take a picture of the group having ice cream. “The activity built great relationships, strengthened a sense of community among the group members and encouraged great fellowship,” Rees said. The week culminated with a time of corporate recognition during the Saturday and Sunday services at Saddleback. The bulletins carried a letter from Rick and Kay Warren, thanking volunteers for their service to the church, and volunteers were asked to stand and be applauded during the services. Afterwards, volunteers were invited to walk the red carpet to a celebration tent where they could receive a hug, a high-five and a handful of goodies like cookies or lemonade, Rees said. The entire emphasis, Rees said, revolved around letting volunteers know what they do matters and they are appreciated. -Purpose-Driven®- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn