Get 100+ Church Volunteers Instantly

Ok, I have to admit. Inaction and sitting like a bump on a log drives me nuts. And to see so many needs going unmet, but knowing that we have the capability to meet them sends me over the edge. What am I talking about? I'm talking about the need for volunteers in our churches, and the lack there of.

10% of the people do 90% of the work.

Yet the 90% are sitting in chairs and attending services. So the church is full, yet it is lacking volunteers to run efficiently.

Where have all the people gone? Why, they are inside sitting down.

My questions are:
Do people not know how to get involved?
Do they need an invitation to find a place to serve?
Do they need to be inspired? (People don't need motivation...they need inspiration! Inspiration motivates! Dangle a carrot...see how it works!)

I had a few thoughts as to solutions:
1. To gain 100 new volunteers, remove 100 seats. Those standing are your new volunteers. Give them a warm welcome, a hand shake and personal invitation to join a ministry or fill a need. (Need 200? Need 2000? Depending upon the size of your church you could remove more or less chairs.) This would be your instant solution to gain the number of volunteers you are aiming for. But is it an "instant" solution that we need?

2. Call for volunteers from each section in church?

3. Ask individuals to volunteer for one weekend service a month? Once a quarter? This will help single parents, traveling individuals, and swamped families feel they can contribute without a weekly commitment.

4. Should we offer family volunteering? Again, single parents who volunteer and attend meetings more than likely have children at home alone or with a sitter. And some families with children in sports and activities are too busy to split up. So, are family volunteering opportunities available for greeting? Serving? Cooking? Creating? Delivering? Setting up? Cleaning up? Preparing crafts for Sunday school classes or VBS? What about family missions?

Oh, the opportunities for volunteering are endless!

So, to answer my question...where have all the people gone?

Why they are inside our church building. Now, let's move them into action. One invitation at a time. It might be time for community building within our churches and reaching them one person/one family at a time.

Imagine if people JUST volunteered at least one time per year? That's huge!
(Note: Volunteering one time per year doesn't engage an individual in the church community. That then becomes service without engagement. Lasting relationships require an engagement-commitment from two parties! And volunteering is a relationship built!)