Volunteer Appreciation

Opening Line

Have you ever owed one to somebody?

Introduction

Maybe you asked someone for a favor, or you were in a bind and someone really bailed you out. Whatever the situation may have been, you had this feeling on being indebted to them for their time and assist.

It is interesting how this is such a cultural thing. You live in a day where the first question most people ask is, “What’s in it for me?” We live in a day where no one does something for nothing, they usually want something in return. Because of this mindset, if you ask someone for a favor, you almost always feel obligated to assure them that you will make it worth their while!

I believe that this mindset is one of the biggest reasons our nation is in what is called a volunteer crisis. Volunteer Canada, which I didn’t know existed until this week, reports that 65% of volunteer based organizations are reporting a shortage of volunteer workers. Organizations like Meals on Wheels and Girl Guides are so short that they have had to cut back on their programs in order the spare the few volunteers that they have. The Girl Guide of BC say they have thousands of girls on a waitlist, simply because they do not have enough volunteers to maintain their necessary ratios.

Volunteer Canada has a few theories as to why this is. They attribute it to the economy. It is expensive to drive to places and get babysitters for kids in order to volunteer. They attribute it to the backlash of COVID and people are simply afraid to be around people. But the biggest thing is a change in culture. When the ‘best generation’ and the baby boomers were the majority of the work force, they volunteered out of a sense of duty, a belief that they could make things better if they simply gave more of themselves. With the emergence of Gen X and every generation afterwards, there has been an increase of skepticism towards things like volunteering. These later generations are more prone to stay home and stream shows or go out and enjoy the great outdoors.

This skepticism really comes down to one thing: What is in it for me?

Part 1: Appreciation

in light of this crisis of volunteers in our nation, I want to start this morning by saying thank you to everyone who serves at OneChurch. But in order to express my thanks, I want to address something. I want to acknowledge the fact that when you serve at church, you are not just a volunteer. In his letter to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul says this:

Ephesians 4:11–12 NLT

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.

Build up the body

other translations say that it is the responsibility of the first five gifts to equip the saints for the work of ministry. You are the saints. You are the body of Christ. When you serve in church, you are being a minister for our Lord and Savior.

So one of the things I am going to be very conscious of is to stop using the word volunteer at OneChurch. The church doesn’t need volunteers, we need ministers of the gospel, which sounds really big and intimidating, but it really isn’t, and I want to show you why.

For those who serve as a greeter. You are not simply a volunteer who shakes hands. You are a witness of the love and hospitality of Jesus Christ. They say the first 8 seconds are the most crucial for making a good impression. But you are not just making an impression on behalf of the church. You are making an impression for Jesus. You are responsible to make sure everyone who comes in is ready to receive love from God because they see it in you. You are a witness of Christ’s hospitality.

For those you serve in kids church, you are literally ministers of of the gospel. The church has between the ages of 4-14 to sow seeds of eternity into our kids that will last. Every Sunday, you share the gospel of Jesus with the next generation, the people that Jesus was most attentive to during His earthly ministry.

For those that serve in youth, you are missionaries in every sense of the word. Every week you encounter youth who have no church background, whose family want nothing to do with church, and you get to show them the love of Christ, share the wisdom of the Holy Spirit with them. You are missionaries.

For those that serve in the booth, you are just as much pastors as I am. It is your service that allows over a hundred people each week to watch our service and allow the word of God to be sown in the hearts of those who can’t be here. With one push of a button it would all stop. Your ministry is almost as important as mine!

To the worshippers, you open the gates of heaven for us every Sunday. There are stories in the Old Testament where the armies sent the worshippers out first and the enemy was defeated without one swing of the sword. You are fighting battles that we can’t see, and winning victories we don’t know about.

To the prayer team, you are intercessors in every sense of the word. An intercessor is someone who stands in the gap, prays on behalf of others. That is the very definition of what the prayer team does every Sunday. They pray with you, they pray for you. They are standing in the courts of heaven, petitioning our God to move on your behalf. You are intercessors.

Even to those who serve with muffins. It is well documented that food breaks down walls and opens people up to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ. It might not seem like much to you, but those muffins you faithfully bring could literally be the difference of eternity for someone who comes to church.

For those who schedule the servers, you are apostles. You are the ones who make sure everyone gets a chance to use their gifting. You are the organizer behind the scenes and your service can often be overlooked but cannot be over appreciated.

You are not just volunteers. You are ministers of the gospel. I am not just blowing smoke either. I am trying to put significance back where it has been lost. I cannot express how absolutely vital every single person who serves is to OneChurch. Without each and every one of you, the church would not run, not in healthy ways anyways. Could I do everything? I could try. But I wouldn’t last long. And I can’t afford to pay someone to do what each of you do. There really is no price tag someone could put on your value. This morning each of you are going to receive a little token of our appreciation, and I wish it could be more because you deserve so much more. If you have ever felt taken advantage of or under appreciated I am sorry because that was not my intention. You may not be paid but you are every much a part of this team as Michelle and I are.

Part 2: The Challenge

I want to finish this morning with a reminder. I started by saying that the biggest reason I believe that volunteering is on the decline is because of the mindset, “What is in it for me?” If you have your physical bible, turn to Psalm 116 for me. I don’t know who wrote this Psalm, but I have to say that if you wonder why you are called to serve as saints of Jesus Christ, this couldn’t say it any better.

Psalm 116:1–11 NLT

I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath! Death wrapped its ropes around me; the terrors of the grave overtook me. I saw only trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Please, Lord, save me!” How kind the Lord is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! The Lord protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and he saved me. Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me. He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. And so I walk in the Lord’s presence as I live here on earth! I believed in you, so I said, “I am deeply troubled, Lord.” In my anxiety I cried out to you, “These people are all liars!”

How good is our God

the Psalmist starts by reflecting on how good our God is. Maybe this morning this is where you need to pause and reflect. One thing the Old Testament tells the reader to do is to remember. Remember how good God is. Remember what He saved you from. Remember how many doors He has opened and how He has healed you. Remember that every good thing you have in your life is either a gift from God or a result of one the gifts God has given you. Every good thing is from Him because everything on earth is His, He has just entrusted it to you.

In light of God’s goodness, the Psalmist asks this question:

Psalm 116:12 NLT

What can I offer the Lord for all he has done for me?

in light of all Your goodness, Lord, what could I possibly offer You in return?

Psalm 116:16 NLT

O Lord, I am your servant; yes, I am your servant, born into your household; you have freed me from my chains.

I will serve the Lord

I will serve you Lord! I will use my talents, my time, my life to serve You in anyway that I can. In light of everything it is the very least I can do. You have freed me from the chains and bondage of sin and death, I will give You my life in return.

the Psalmist changes the narrative. It’s not about, “What’s in it for me?” I already have all that I could ever hope for from the Lord of my life. Since I already have everything I could ever hope, the question becomes, what can I give? How could I ever repay the Savior of the world for what He has done? I will start by giving Him my service and go from there.

Plant the Seed

As June comes to a close and the church puts a pause on many of its regular ministries, I want to encourage you to take the summer and do some reflecting. In September we will have the Ministry Expo again, but it is going to look very different. We are going to shift back to doing small groups. There are a lot of reasons why, and I’ve actually posted five of them on the app, but I want to highlight one of the biggest ones. We started the morning with Eph 4:11-12 which said that the role of the pastor is to equip the body. Another way to say it is to disciple the body. The reality is that there is only one of me and over 70 of you that call OneChurch your church. The result is that I can’t possibly disciple each you effectively. What I can do is put you in small groups and you disciple each other.

So I want to put the plug in and ask that you pray about hosting a small group. There’s no sign up yet, I just want you think and pray about it. If you don’t know what small group looks like, look around your table. The truth is, you’ve been doing small group every Sunday for over a year now. I’m just asking if you would be willing to continue the conversation later on in the week in the comfort of your own home.

Jesus told the church to go, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything He taught us. Discipleship happens in small group. Your spiritual growth happens in small group.

Take the summer, think and pray about it, and I will let you know when the sign up is available.

Let’s Pray

Discussion Questions

1. What stood out from this morning’s message?

2. What are some good things God has done for you recently?

3. What are some ways you can serve Him to say thank you?