Week after week we plug in, warm up, rehearse, and play. For many, like myself, it has become so much of a routine that when it comes to Sunday we do it automatically. I’m not saying that our worship is not sincere or entirely automatic, but the process of getting to that point is. Weekly we serve alongside faithful team members who consistently use their God-given talents in service to the congregation and it’s Sunday worship. Sometimes it becomes all too easy for us to get caught up in “Sunday routines,” our musical abilities, and the never-ending quest for musical and Godly excellence and we forget to take care of and cherish our most valuable gift… the people around us.
Are we working our volunteer teams to death?
Below, I will give several reasons why I prefer “Team Rotations” when it comes to volunteer activities and services. Keep in mind that full rotations are not always an option in every church and within every service or ministry opportunity. But… when rotations are or become an option I would encourage you to take these points into consideration before making a decision one way or another. So… in what ways does a volunteer team rotation help?
- Provides opportunity for new membership and mentorship.
If you are like myself or most churches you are always in dire need of more volunteers. We constantly advertise the need and ask around, but never show our congregations the availability of joining new opportunities. When we do worship team rotations (or even media/ tech teams for that case) we are consistently showing our congregations that we have a desire to include new people into our ministries and help them grow into a new position. Not only do we show an inclusive mentality or spirit by providing an opportunity for people to serve, but we also provide an opportunity for ourselves or other “seasoned” members of the ministries they are joining to mentor them and to help them grow. In doing that we are extending the reach of our ministry beyond just a few people and reaching out through new people and new avenues. If we are seeking quality and longevity doing a rotation is the best option by my opinion because we get to mentor, grow each other, and bring in newer members of all ages to serve.
- Provides opportunity for Worship Team members to get to worship in other ways.
As a worship pastor I can tell you that many times I have felt totally out of place in a worship service where I was not on the stage or had noting to do with the music, planning, production, etc. That shouldn’t be the case. I have heard and even said many times, “I worship through my music.” That is true, but that shouldn’t be my only avenue or method of worship. Instead we should be always worshipping through whatever means is available to us. By rotating on and off the stage we are providing our members the ability to worship through avenues other than leading the worship, and the opportunity to worship alongside their brothers and sisters in Christ instead of having to always lead. It is good to have a break… we may feel uncomfortable with it at first but I guarantee you that in the end it will be beneficial. This method not only provides a break from the routine; but it also gives members time to worship with their physical and spiritual families.
- Prevents burnout.
Every person is susceptible to burnout… even if they think they aren’t. While using our abilities each and every week we are constantly giving and giving and pouring out all that we are before our congregations while leading them in worship and sometimes we just don’t “take in” enough in return. I have found that I have lost my joy in leading worship before without even knowing it! By allowing breaks for rotation we are allowing and providing periods of refreshment where our team members can be poured into consistently with nothing to be expected of them in return. We aren’t a never ending well of resources and neither are our team members… we can’t expect anyone to give and give without a time of refreshment and refilling.
Hopefully this provides some food for thought and together we can build up our volunteers and increase the longevity of their ministries and the ministries of our churches collectively. In the end, we must take care of our people… they are our most valuable and least replaceable resources.
Tanner Royalty 