The staff at New Vintage Church just finished studying Tony Morgan’s notes on building volunteer teams. The staff of a non-profit think about one thing all the time: “I need to recruit volunteers.” This thought drives us all the time. Hope these notes help even if you are not in the non-profit world because these are great principles to be applied wherever you work.
Becoming a Volunteer Driven Church: Five Keys to Building Healthy Volunteer Teams – in case you haven’t figured it out, you’ll never have enough money to hire enough staff to accomplish your ministry vision. The only way it’ll happen is if you engage volunteers. I will share five simple strategies to connect people in serving opportunities at your church. These proven principles will help you grow the impact of your ministry while reducing the need to hire staff.
Five Keys to Building Healthy Volunteer Teams
- Think volunteers before staff.
“Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.” (Eph. 4:1213)
Team Conversation: How does this principle reshape the culture of our church?
- Teach shouldertapping.
It’s not the pastor’s responsibility. Healthy recruitment doesn’t happen from the platform.
Team Conversation: How can we equip current volunteers to tap the shoulders of their friends?
- Stay focused.
More ministry programs and events mean more demands on volunteers.Team Conversation: Do our ministries compete against each other? If so, how can we streamline scheduling and communications to make it easier for people to take their next steps?
- Identify leaders, not doers.
“But select from all the people some capable, honest men who fear God and hate bribes. Appoint them as leaders over groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten.” (Exodus 18:21)
Team Conversation: Am I a leader of 10s (lead by example), a leader of 50s (lead other people), a leader of 100s (lead other leaders) or a leader of 1,000s (lead through the vision). What’s the capacity of the leaders on our team?
- Empower people to use their gifts.
○ Neverdoministryalone!
○ Jesussentoutthe72otherdisciplesinteamsoftwo(Luke10)○ “AllofyoutogetherareChrist’sbody,andeachofyouisapartofit.”(1Corinthians 12:27)
Team Conversation: Is anyone on our team doing ministry alone? If so, how can we encourage them to share the experience with someone gifted for that role?






