How to Get and Keep the Best Volunteers

Skills vs Heart

We all want highly skilled volunteers. We all need highly skilled volunteers. We can’t do this by ourselves, and when we aren’t in the room we want to know with absolute certainty that what is happening is being done the best way that it can be done. So what we usually do is look for the people who are highly skilled in that area. It is a really good strategy, but if you just look for competence then you are missing the bigger picture. The thing that you want to look for above anything else when you are building a team is heart. Hopefully you won’t have to choose between skills and heart, but if you do, choose heart every time. Why? 

Skills can be taught.
People can be trained! Yes it means work for you as a leader, but training people who love what they do is much better than dealing with someone who is good but hates it. If people have a servants heart and love what they are doing, they won’t mind training, in fact they will welcome it. We all want to be better at what we love. So surround yourself with people who are teachable and you will have a great team much quicker than you might think.

Hearts are hard to change.
The heart is much harder to teach. It is very difficult to teach someone who knows everything already. When a person’s heart is not into what they are doing, everyone can tell. It doesn’t matter how skilled a person is if they have no love for what they are doing. They may need a break, or they may just need to be removed from the team. It is one of the hardest things to do, but it is the best thing that you can do for your team.

Attitude is contagious.
Attitude, both good and bad, is contagious. You can tell when a team loves what they are doing because how they talk about what they are doing changes. Instead of hearing, ‘I have to work today,’ you will hear this phrase: ‘I get to work today!’ The difference is massive. A negative attitude filters down not just to the other volunteers but to the people you are serving as well. As the leader, it is your job to protect the hearts and attitudes of your people. This may mean letting someone take a break for a time (or permanently). 

Proverbs 4:23 says, ‘Guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.’ As leaders we have to guard our hearts, but we also have to guard the hearts of those we lead. You will find that a team full of people whose hearts are full of joy because of what they are doing will attract those who are skilled as well. Set your expectations high, not just for skills, but for heart, and God will bless you, your volunteers, and the people you serve. 

Enjoy the Journey

For Mercy's Sake

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. (Matthew 5:7 NIV)

This beatitude strikes a death blow to the heart of pride. The reality is that we all need mercy, because we are all sinners. There is nothing that we can do to earn our way into heaven. And apparently one of the things that we need to do in order to be given the mercy that we desperately need is to show mercy to others. The thing that isn't any fun about this is that it requires you to put yourself in a position where you need to give mercy. The truth is this isn't really that hard, because people need mercy all the time. The trick is actually being able to give that mercy out freely.

So what are we talking about home are talking about mercy? Are we talking about ignoring sin or glossing over it? Absolutely not. Justice and mercy are not mutually exclusive. It is quite merciful to help someone realize the sin in their life and repent of it. Nathan showed David mercy when he did not just cut him off, but hope to guide him to repentance. This is what we are to do for others as well. Ignoring sin and waiting for someone else's inevitable judgment is not mercy at all, no, in reality it is quite cruel. 

The key here is how you go about making someone aware of their sin and helping them return to the right path. It is the how that is the difference between mercy and judgment. May we be found merciful, so that we can receive mercy.

Enjoy the Journey

Stay Thirsty My Friends

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6 NIV)

Jesus uses the words hunger and thirst here because of something everyone can understand. He's talking about a longing that goes on forever. We are supposed to be continually chasing after righteousness. The question real answer is, 'How badly do I want to be righteous?' If I am satisfied with where I am, then I will never make it. If I think that I can make it on my own, and I am greatly mistaken. Because if I think that I can make it on my own, then I will have no need to seek after Jesus. It is only through Jesus that righteousness is given. Notice what it says in the second half of that sentence, for they will be filled. It doesn't say that they will achieve it, and it doesn't say that they will fill themselves either. 

No, righteousness is something that can only be given by Jesus himself. Therefore, if you're happy with where you are and you never seek after Jesus, you will never be righteous. This ties in with what Jesus said when he said, 'I am the way the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father except through Me.' Hungering and thirsting for righteousness never ends, but if you know where to look, you will be filled. Stay thirsty my friends.

Enjoy the Journey

Why the Meek will Inherit the Earth

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. (Matthew 5:5 NIV)

This problem every I've ever seen on this earth. We are taught from a very early age by society that to get ahead you must be ruthless. But here Jesus says it is those who are humble, gentle, and kind that will inherit the earth. I think that it the humbleness these people comes from the heart poor in spirit. They have realized that there is no hope without Jesus, so what is there to be arrogant about? They have laid down their pride and taken up their cross. This is supposed to be the trait of every follower of Jesus. It doesn't mean that you are supposed to just let anyone walk over you, but that you have a right view of yourself and your place in the world. 

The people hearing this for the first time would have thought that he was talking about the promised land. They are correct, but he is talking about so much more than that. God story is one of redemption, and I believe that he will redeem the entire earth, not just Palestine. But who will inherit this new earth? Those who have surrendered their lives and their pride to Jesus, and follow him wholeheartedly. 

Even now the meek this life more fully. One characteristic that they share is contentment. They can be happy with what God has given them, and therefore enjoy this life more than others. They are calm, and therefore more peaceful and stable. They have servants hearts, and they have discovered the joy that can only come from having servants heart. 

So not only are the meek more joyful, peaceful, and stable on this earth, they will inherit the new heaven and new earth. 

Enjoy the Journey