Vital Volunteers on Youth Mission Trips
I'm looking for a good come-back line. Please e-mail me at dnewcomb@GroupWorkcamps.com with your ideas.
A come-back line for what?
A come-back line when an adult who ministers with church youth says, "I'm just a volunteer..."
JUST a volunteer?! There's no such thing as "just" a volunteer! To say it that way devalues the role and impact of volunteers in the lives of teenagers. Volunteers aren't merely a nice thing. Any paid youth minister will tell you they're absolutely necessary!
So I'd like something snappy to say whenever someone says, "I'm just a volunteer." Something like, "There's no such thing as 'just' a volunteer." Or, "The kids don't care if you're a volunteer or paid." Or, "God didn't call you to 'just' ministry." Something like that, but...well...catchy and cool. Something that would really stick when I said it. Something that would make people's eyes open a little wider as they realize volunteer ministry is definitely valuable.
(OK, here's where I need to pause to tell you this isn't a joke. I actually do want you to e-mail me your responses. If I get some doozies I'll even print them in the next YouthMinistry.com newsletter. And if I get one that really jumps out at me, I intend to use it. Giving you full credit of course. Because I hear "I'm just a volunteer" far too often.)
Adults who volunteer to serve with the youth group are especially important on youth mission trips. At our organization, Group Workcamps Foundation (www.GroupWorkcamps.com), we require one adult for every five youth who attend any of our mission camps. That ratio works well, and it's the same if it's for preteens, junior highs, junior and senior highs combined, or senior highs. Regardless of which age level you bring, you're going to need to bring volunteer adults...people who don't get paid to serve the youth...people who take vacation time so they can spend a week serving people in need alongside students.
Here are some of the reasons volunteers are vital for youth mission trips. I'm sure there are more.
But even those ideas don't get at the real issue of why there's no such thing as "just" a volunteer in ministry.
Sharing God's love with teenagers is a job for all adults. Kids need caring adults—plural—who love them and love God. Who'll be there to help them wrestle with what happens when Christianity meets adolescence. Who'll show unconditional love to them. Who'll let them see what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Being a volunteer youth minister is a big deal. We can't do it without volunteers.
Jodie Ginter is a Director at our home repair Workcamps. At these camps we typically have about 400 people on any given week. There'll be about 12-20 youth groups and about 70-80 adults. At the first adult meeting Jodie has the paid youth ministers stand up. We may have seven or eight people stand when she does this. It's immediately clear the vast majority of adults present for the mission trip are volunteers. Oh sure, a few may be pastors or interns or something, but still the vast majority aren't professional full-time youth ministers.
Since there's no way the handful of full-time youth ministers can effectively serve over 300 teenagers, we need all the adults to step up to the plate and be intentionally in ministry with teenagers. So Jodie has a cute little pledge she has all the adults say, pledging to be an adult, to take responsibility, and to have fun. We can't have adults who sit on the sidelines and watch. We need adults who'll jump right in and be a part of it.
And when they do that, it makes for a great experience for everyone.
So if you're a paid professional youth minister, recruit and train good adult volunteers. And love and appreciate them lavishly. You know I'm telling the truth when I say you can't do your ministry without them.
And if you're a volunteer, take heart! God is using you. You're making a difference. And you're impacting lives of teenagers.
You are very much not "just" a volunteer. There's no such thing.
And if you have a witty retort for someone who says so, please let me know!
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Doc Newcomb is a pastor, youth pastor, and Program Manager for Group Workcamps Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides a variety of short-term mission opportunities for church youth groups.
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