I love to help out at church. It’s an opportunity to give back, to support a community that supports me, to try out new things, to develop skills, to meet people, to do something that makes a difference, etc. etc. I love doing it for all those reasons. If I’m being really honest, I also love doing it because I like to feel needed. That last one probably isn’t the best reason to help out, but I can’t ignore it because it’s definitely one of the reasons I do it.
I’ve pretty much summed them up above, but for anyone thinking of helping out at their church (and these probably apply to many other things besides our churches), here are some reasons why I do it – hopefully they might encourage some of you to get more involved as well, if you aren’t already…
Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, it’s an opportunity to be obedient to God and to show His love to others. The Bible tells us repeatedly to be obedient to God. 2 John 1:6 starts “Love means doing what God has commanded us”, and goes on to explain that what God has commanded us to do is to love one another. In John 14:15 we are told “If you love me, obey my commandments”. And wonderfully, Luke 11:28 says “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice”. By supporting our community through volunteering in our churches, we have an opportunity to show God’s love to others. I don’t know in what way God is calling you to be involved in His work. I don’t think I really know in what way He is calling me. But I do know that by supporting my church, and by giving time and effort and money to my church, I am supporting God’s work. God may well have other plans for me, and by helping out at church I’m not ceasing to look for those, but for the time-being, I can at least know that I am involved in His plan and in His work.
Secondly, volunteering at church helps us to learn new skills and to have new experiences. I do some fairly varied things at my church. To give you a flavour of the types of skills you can learn, here are some that I’ve picked up along the way:
- Technical skills – I operate the projector and laptop once a month at church. I know how to connect a laptop up to a projector, how to show videos, presentations, pictures, etc. on the screen, and when things go wrong I know a few methods (not always enough…) of putting them right. I’m not an expert, but I’m more confident and vaguely competent.
- Public speaking – I have led a service and lead the prayers every now and again. I don’t particularly like speaking in front of lots of people, but thanks to opportunities I’ve had through the church, I at least know I can do it.
- Singing – I love to sing, but I used to be more of a singing in the shower only sort of person. With the support of the church, I am now able to sing backing vocals in a band, and have even led a couple of times. I love to do it, and my voice has certainly improved as well as my confidence.
- Organisational skills – I collate the rota for readers and prayers at the 6.30 services. To do that I have to be organised and in touch with lots of people. It’s not so different from a lot of jobs admin out there, although only a small time commitment.
- Working with children – I started this one to help out a friend, and discovered a love for doing it. I now help out at Sunday School once a month and absolutely love it. I hadn’t realised what an incredible experience it would be to teach children about God and to talk to them about their relationship with Jesus. But again, thanks to the church, I get to do that every month and am more confident at holding a conversation with a child (that probably sounds ridiculous to many of you, but those of us who don’t have small siblings or nieces and nephews, or children of our own, aren’t always so sure of ourselves when it comes to speaking to kids).
Thirdly, I get to meet lots of amazing people through volunteering. People who attend church generally have one over-arching thing in common: a relationship with God. Other than that, they are not necessarily people I would meet in my everyday life, but through working with the church I get to meet them, spend time with them, pray with them, learn about their strengths and understand in greater depth the people that God has placed on His earth. These people have become my social group, my support network, my friends.
And lastly, as I said above, I can be needed. You might have noticed that a common theme through some of the points above has been building confidence. The church is a place to do that through being able to give our skills and grow them. It offers a place to give back, while also seeing the results of that hard work. That is important for many of us, and I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing, although it shouldn’t become our identity.
So I hope that you can read this and see some compelling reasons to help out at your church. I would caveat it all with 2 warnings however. The first, is give only where you can add value. It might simply be that you are adding value purely by virtue of being a person who is willing to help, and that’s OK – you don’t have to be an expert at something to be able to be useful. But equally, for example, if you don’t know how to turn on a computer, maybe don’t be the person who volunteers to run the sound desk. Instead, pick an area of need where you can genuinely help out. The second warning is to remember to save time for yourself. I have a tendency to say yes, I’ll help, whenever there is a need. My husband reminds me that sometimes, it’s OK to let someone else help out, and just to take some time for me, or for us.
If you don’t already offer your time in some way to your church, I’d strongly recommend that you give it a go. You don’t have to sign up to a long term commitment, but maybe have a chat with a member of the staff team at your church to find out where there is a need, and then just have a go. See what happens. And remember, whatever you choose to do, do it for God.