I’m not big on pulpit pleas, but I do find a good deal of fruit in volunteer recruitment through a sweeping campaign each year. I do not just accept people on the spot (I’m big on interviewing, conducting personal asks, and placing according to passions and gifts). We use this campaign to educate the congregation about upcoming ministries and make sure new people know there is a great opportunity to serve kids. We allow people to show interest in a particular position and then follow up with them with applications, interviews, and orientations. Here’s what I am doing this year. I have packaged it in a generic fashion so that your church can use almost everything I will be using.

“Make a Difference” Recruitment Campaign

• 8.5 x 11 Logo
• 11 x 17 Logo (for wall posters)
• Adjustable Bulletin Insert
• Recruitment Video–Available here on Vimeo for download in HD MPEG (see below)

Scripture

Psalm 78:1-8 (English Standard Version)

Tell the Coming Generation

¹ Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
² I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
³things that we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.
⁴We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might,
and the wonders that he has done.

⁵He established a testimony in Jacob
and appointed a law in Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,
⁶that the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children,
⁷so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget the works of God,
but keep his commandments;
⁸and that they should not be like their fathers,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.

Devotion

For this to start off right, you will need to secure for yourself a track and field “baton” or make a flashy looking one out of a paper towel tube and metallic spray paint. Choose eight people to read and assign them one verse of the passage. As they are done, have them pass the baton on to the next person.

The legacy of the church is a little bit like a relay race in track. One runner is responsible for certain periods of the race and when his distance is up, he passes the baton on to the next runner. Relay teammates encourage one another, strengthen each other and help set the pace for future runners. Each generation in the church is responsible for passing the baton of faith on to the next generation. Edith Shaeffer in her book, What is a Family calls this the “perpetual relay of truth.” This involves two main institutions:

1. The Church: the church must work toward unity and be devoted to healthy biblical teaching so the next generation can come to place their faith in Christ and do even bigger things that the generation before.
2. The Family: according to passages like Deuteronomy 6 and Psalm 78, parents are the primary spiritual guide of their children. As those who work with children, this mentality must flow through all of our decisions, planning, and interaction.

Psalm 78 details what can happen when Church and Family work together to successfully pass on the baton of faith. Here’s what happens:

• Kids will grow up knowing God’s statutes (vv. 5-6)
• Children will see the importance of passing the faith along (v. 6)
• The coming generation will put their trust and hope in God (v. 7)
• The coming generation will obey God (v. 7)
• All generations will remember the works of God (v. 7)
• Successive generations will not repeat the sins of the past (v.8)

End with this question and allow for discussion: Based on this passage, what can we now do to foster an atmosphere in our ministry where the baton of faith is passed along to the coming generation?

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:18-20 (English Standard Version)

¹⁸All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Devotion

This opening illustration can be used with odd or even numbers of people. Have pieces of construction paper ripped in half prior to the meeting. If you have an odd number of people, give everyone a half piece and another person a roll of tape. If you have an even number, give two people rolls of tape and the rest a ripped half of paper. Don’t give them any instructions, just tell them they need to figure out what to do next. Hopefully they will figure out that the tape people are supposed to help the torn pieces of paper be rejoined. The point is that the people with the tape had the tools of repair in their possession. II Corinthians 5 really harks on the fact that we are God’s agents of reconciliation between sinful man and God.

Our main task in children’s ministry is to be agents of reconciliation. Children who have not yet been saved are at odds with God. They need to be reconciled to Him. God made a way for that reconciliation to be accomplished through Jesus Christ. We also serve unsaved parents and siblings. They all need to be reconciled to God. II Corinthians 5:18-20 provides two insights about this reconciliation with which God calls us to help.

1. Every believer is given the ministry of reconciliation. The evangelist is a special called office (Ephesians 4:11-13), but the call to evangelize is a calling on all believers. Our teaching in children’s ministry, our relational development, our curriculum design, should be structured around this calling.
2. God equips us for this ministry by giving us the “word” of reconciliation. The word of reconciliation is very simple. It is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sin. Kids are reconciled when they place faith in Jesus’ ability to forgive them.

God does not need us, but God chooses to use us out of His grace. It is a privilege and honor to serve as His ambassadors. You are not in children’s ministry because you have some inherent gift that God was grateful to have you serve in His kingdom. You are in it because you are an ambassador, a servant of God that He uses to spread the word of reconciliation to many children and families. Take the role seriously and utilize the emotion of “pleading” that Paul encourages in verse 20 to lead kids and families to Christ.

Admit it. You have a volunteer or two in your ministry who is just not working out. You are thinking you may need to fire this volunteer. Perhaps their personality does not match the ministry. Perhaps they have some spiritual issues to work on. Perhaps they smell. Or perhaps they have issues with authority. Regardless, if someone is not a good fit, you are only bringing your ministry down by letting them stay involved.

Jim Collins, in his book Good to Great, talks about getting the right people on the bus. You have to get the right people in the right positions in your ministry. The right people will help you further your vision, the wrong people will stifle it. Roger Fields really challenged me a few months ago when he told me that if I really believed in what I was doing, if I really believed that it meant something, then I would take steps to remove those who got in the way of the ministry. Unfortunately, I’ve had to fire a few volunteers (and paid staff in my secular work) and wanted to share a few things I’ve learned along the way.

Before you even think about firing someone, you need to ask yourself these questions. If you can’t answer them with the volunteer’s best interests in mind, then you need to take some steps to give the volunteer a fair shake.

• Did the volunteer have adequate guidance to do their position (i.e. job description, proper training, right supplies)?
• Did you pray over this person for several weeks to a month first?
• Did you extend grace first, overlooking smaller offenses?
• Did you approach this person with necessary feedback when they did something out of line?
• How did this person respond to your feedback?

Finally, if after adequately answering the questions above, you feel that firing is the best thing for everyone, think through these tips before handing them the pink slip:

1. Arrange your thoughts–Make sure you plan out what you are going to say and provide appropriate examples which guided your decision. Discuss this with other leaders who can help you shape how you need to say things.
2. Get some support–Be sure your supervisor knows and supports exactly what you are doing.
3. Be positive–I often overlook this one. Everyone has something you can praise. However, don’t go overboard. Don’t give them mixed signals. Praise them for something, but explain that the areas they are failing in are too damaging to the vision of the ministry.
4. Set up a quick meeting–Don’t give them a week to try to figure out what you are meeting about. I have found it best to try to set up a time within 3-5 hours of first calling them to let them know you need to meet. A long amount of time between communicating about the meeting and actually having the meeting can breed much gossip and dissension. However, don’t just pull them aside in the hallway on a Sunday morning. Be thoughtful about when to meet.
5. Have someone with you–Be sure you have a witness who can document what you say. Another staff member is appropriate or an unbiased friend of the volunteer who can back you up.
6. Be steadfast–Don’t take the attitude that this is a discussion. Allow questions and feedback, but if you go into a meeting like this, then your mind should already be made up.
7. Establish clear goals–Give them a few articles that may help them. Point them to some proven books. Give them 3-4 clear and measurable objectives to work on and let them know you are here to help them on their journey.
8. Be even keeled–Many volunteers are going to get mad. If they are doing poorly enough to get fired, they are most likely not going to expect to get fired. They may yell, they may bring it back on your faults, they may shoot a smoke screen. Regardless, do not let them get to you and keep the attitude of Christ.
9. Set a time line–Put the ball in their court to come back to you in a period of time to get their job back. Let them know you will be praying for them and will have an open door to them during this time. One year is a generally good time for someone to step back and allow the Lord to change them. Major spiritual or leadership growth does not just happen in a matter of weeks. Some volunteers, however, may not be fit for the ministry and if so, you may not want to give these folks a time line. That’s up to your discretion.
10. Write a report–Do not wait too long on this one. Write up what was said in a straight forward fashion and submit this documentation to your supervisor. Be unbiased and unemotional. Just report the facts.
11. Follow up–If you really care, you’ll touch base with this person to find out how the Lord is working in their life. A simple letter or hallway conversation every couple of months will suffice.

How about you? What would you add to the process?

I love VBS (that’s Vacation Bible School for the scarf with t-shirt wearing crowd of Children’s Ministers!). I love it because when it is done well and creatively, children learn foundational truths about Jesus, kids get saved, parents get plugged into church, and momentum is built to further the overall vision and work of one’s children’s ministry. My VBS is in 2 weeks and I’m extremely excited for what God has in store this year! Below are some creative ideas you can incorporate into your VBS to make it the best one ever!

Fun for Kids

• Mascot Hunt: Figure out a good mascot for your VBS and try to find a stuffed animal that looks like it. Hide the animal each day and challenge the kids to find it as they are walking around. If they find it, reward their class with a bag of candy and a special flag they can carry around the next day. This is so popular at my church, I have to do two, one for Pre-K and one for elementary.
• Surprise Character: Have someone dress up as a character who matches the theme. Have them bust into the classrooms during teaching time, interrupting the teacher and getting the whole lesson for the day wrong. Alert the teachers ahead of time so they can interact with the character and “set them straight” on the meaning of the lesson.
• Incentives: Offer an incentive for non-church kids to attend or for your own church kids to invite their friends. Last year, I gave away a Wii. It was our largest VBS in church history. This year, I’m giving a $5 gift card to Toys R Us to any non-church kid who attends at least 4 nights of VBS. I’m already WAY above the average mark for this point in our registration process and many of them are guests.
• Involve Kids in Follow Up: Have children in your ministry take the contact info for a guest that was in their class. Instruct them on how to follow up via a phone call or note in the mail. Have them to invite the kids back to church the next week and start a friendship with them.

Fun for Parents

• Send them home in style: If you have a car pick up line (which I recommend to reduce the amount of people who come into your building), then I recommend that you greet parents with a smile, open the door for kids, help them get their seat belt on, and say something positive about the kids. This can really have a huge impact on the ride home.
• Parenting Skills: Offer a parenting skills class during your VBS time. Have some snacks, foster community, and/or bring in a well known presenter to help them grow as a parent (Frankly, I’d love to do it!). You may start this off one year by just doing a one or two night thing. That way you could advertise it well during drop off and pick up prior to it occurring.

Fun for Volunteers

• Late Week Break: Have a variety of drinks and special snacks available on day 3 or 4 of your week for volunteers. Stand by the cooler and personally thank each one who gets a drink.
• Perpetuate the Memories: Set up a Facebook page or blog where VBS leaders can share memorable experiences after VBS is over. Use these quotes in recruitment the next year.
• Make Them Feel Good: Be sure to recognize them in a creative way if you do some sort of kick off or celebration night. Have them run out through a kid “tunnel.” Do a creative video highlighting the lead teachers. Pick a “Leader of the Day” to recognize outstanding work.

What creative idea do you have for VBS?

I not only like to provide free resources on this blog, but also free “nuggets” that you can use to make your ministry more healthy. This month, I’d like to share with you some awards that I give to volunteers each year at our volunteer banquet. I have the volunteers nominate people for these various awards. When I present them, I speak a few words about the individual, and present them with a nice certificate (which you can find here). The awards are:

• Cardiac Award: The volunteer with the biggest heart for kids.
• Legacy Award: A volunteer who has committed a great deal of years, time, emotion, and energy to your ministry.
• Rubber Band Award: The volunteer who shows an attitude of flexibility each and every week.
• Boy Scout Award: The volunteer who shows themselves to be the most prepared every week.
• Lexus Award: The volunteer who shows a commitment to excellence in all that they do.
• Up and Coming Award: Goes to a new volunteer who shows unique promise in doing great things in Children’s Ministry.
• Spirit Award: Awarded to the volunteer who is a wonderful example of godliness to the kids and other volunteers
• Out There Award: Goes to the volunteer with an extra measure of goofiness and ability to relate to children on their level.

You may also be interested in:

1. No Other Ministry Promotion Poster
2. Volunteer Performance Evaluation

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How many of you evaluate your volunteers? If you do, great! If not, I’ve got a little tool you can use…as always…free of charge!

This coming Sunday, my Sunday School Coordinator (Amy you are the best!) and I are going to start doing 2 minute walk throughs in each classroom. The object is for us to pop into the room, get an idea of what is going on in the 4 areas of: Teacher, Kids, Content, and Environment, and provide a bit of feedback for the teachers.

At first, I thought evaluating teachers was going to be more difficult than wiping cheese doodle dust off of my 3 year old’s face, but I had a stunning idea. At a meeting to kick off the new school year, I decided to present the 4 key areas of evaluation and the 2 minute walk through concept to the teachers. They liked it, so I asked them to identify the individual points in each area they would like us to evaluate them on. 10 minutes later and I had a “teacher generated” evaluation tool! The burden was not on me, it was now on them because they came up with it!

The plan is to pop into each room about 6-7 times per year. I’ve told them to also use the form (which will be hanging on a clipboard by their lightswitch) as a self evaluation form or to have a friend come in, observe, and complete the evaluation for them. This is just a new and small step in generating greater excellence and accountability in the efforts of my volunteers.

You can download the document here on the Volunteer Training page. It’s a Word document that you can feel free to adjust. No copyrights on this one!

What about you? What do you do to evaluate your volunteers?

If you are not screening your volunteers yet, you should be moving toward that process. You can find some sample screening documents here. Family Watchdog is a fantastic resource to find out how many sex offenders live in your area. You can search by state, city, zip code, and even address.

I used this as a tool to show people that our area had more offenders than they thought. For example, the zip code that my churh is in has 138 offenders. You can also get free updates when an offender moves into your area.

If you are like me, you are in the absolute HEAT of recruiting for the fall. I mean there is no other ministry in the church that recruits 100 people at a time right?

I’ve found a great video on Vimeo that is a handy recruitment tool. If you are not familiar with Vimeo, it is a site much like You Tube, but filled with videos from much more competent videographers. You can also download straight from the Vimeo site. Many churches have found Vimeo a useful site for sharing their work.

You can view the video below or see it directly from the site here.

When I Grow Up… from Marty Taylor on Vimeo.

I came up with this list that I’m putting in our church newsletter for the month of June. I thought some of you might want to cut and paste and use it for yours as well. Hope it could be a good tool for you.

Top Ten Signs You Should Volunteer for VBS:

10. Your wife is volunteering and she said you had to work with her.

9. You have a passion for wiping snotty noses.

8. You wonder why your adult Sunday school class never plays “Jump the Creek” or eats marshmallows with pretzels stuck in them for a snack.

7. You have a spare 20 hours during the week of (insert VBS Dates here).

6. (Insert your name) will not stop asking you about serving.

5. You have been a member for 15 years and never served anywhere.

4. You realize that “I’ve done my time with Children” is not a valid excuse anymore.

3. You recognize that primetime ESPN is pretty boring during the summer.

2. You think hand motions are a nice touch to any song.

1. Being hugged by stinky, sweaty children really gets you pumped up about God’s Kingdom.