We have astronomical volunteers. Part of the reason why they are so awesome is that we train them for an hour before every large group program. Another reason they are so great is that we give them the summer off. No one can perform at astronomical level indefinitely. Here’s a snippet of the training we provided on how to lead well while taking the summer off.
Rest
The first thing we want our volunteers to do over the summer is rest. We tell them to pull back a little and recharge. They gave us 31 Sunday nights between Labor Day and Memorial Day. We know they are worn down and ready for a break so we give them one. We don’t ask them to show up at Bible studies or whatever else we might dream up for the summer. If we decide to do any programing during the summer, it’s entirely on our staff to pull it off.
Engage
While we encourage our volunteers to rest, we still ask them to stay engaged with their small group students, particularly through social media. I specifically asked them to communicate with their students at least once a week through whatever social media platforms they share with their students. I hear Xanga is all the rage.
In our structure each leader continues with the same small group year after year so it’s important to maintain the relationships over the summer. In addition, a little, “Hey, I’m still here and who knows when I might ask you what you did on Friday night” provides students with needed accountability.
Invite
Social media is an amazing tool but it can’t replace real life interactions. Face to face conversations are still exponentially more meaningful to students. I asked our small group leaders to invite their groups to do something (a movie, a trip to the beach, a service project or whatever) at least once during the summer. Some of our leaders are all-stars and they continue to meet with their groups all summer long but I know that this is an unrealistic expectation for everyone.
Recruit
Because our small group leaders are the functional pastors and shepherds in our ministry, our discipleship impact is dependent on the quality and maturity of our leaders. We work hard over the summer to recruit the best leaders we can find. However, it is difficult to describe to a person who has no background in our ministry exactly what we’re asking them to commit to. Because of this, our best recruiters are our current and former volunteers. They know what we are looking for and they can describe what it’s like to volunteer in our ministry. Understanding this, we ask our volunteers to identify people within their circles who would make great LifeLine volunteers. This “refer-a-friend” method has led us to many of our best volunteers.
So if you want astronomical volunteers, give them a break. But before you cut them loose give them clarity on what it looks like to lead well while taking the summer off.
Do you take the summer off? If so, how do you vision your volunteers for the summer months?
image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/mortengade/
