Blog

by Lead Pastor Mark Beeson

Dustin is a volunteer. He runs a very successful business, enjoys a great marriage and inspires a lot of people. He’s über-talented. He’s a great man. Why do people like Dustin—great people with full and busy lives—volunteer?

Let me offer a few reasons why good people volunteer. It’s not an exhaustive list, but it summarizes a few key points for team-building and might be worth considering.

1. They want to see done the thing you’re trying to get done. What you're doing is clear to them, and clearly important to them. Because they value what you value, what you’re doing is clearly worth their sacrificial effort.
2. They see the need and want to help meet the need. Whether they jump in to help for a moment (helping with one step of the process) or stay with you for the entire mission (laying down their life for ultimate mission success), they see how they can assist you and they do.
3. They want to be involved. After considering their other options (how they could otherwise be using their time, energy, knowledge and skills), they prioritize your mission above other competing values. The success of your work—for one reason or another—is important to them. They believe the work is worthy.

Continue reading on Mark Beeson’s blog...

by Elkhart Campus Pastor Gene Troyer

“I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance (Ephesians 1:18).”

When I am generous with my time, my treasure and my talent, my focus becomes “other” centered. It opens the eyes of my heart and I find myself looking for Jesus around every corner, under every rock, in the eyes of the face in front of me. Perhaps I’ll find him there, perhaps I won’t.

But in the graveled mixture of life’s pebbles and rocks and the boulders that I can’t move, The Everlasting encourages me to breathe in, breathe out. To live with open hands and an open heart trusting that:

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies, You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever (Psalm 23, NLT).”

And then this quote from Dr. Jon Morrissette in reference to the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:

“Just as faith is never about what we say, so love is never about what we say. The substance of faith, the substance of love, the substance of mercy, is generosity! Love is tangible. It’s the bandages, the oil and wine, the donkey, the inn, the caregiving, the two silver coins, the instructions to the innkeeper, and the extra expense. Words are cheap. Generosity is costly.”

Generosity acts, it risks, it involves itself, it gives of itself, and it follows through. The good Samaritan was good because he was generous—financially, personally, and sacrificially generous. This is what Jesus commended—not love in the abstract, but the Samaritan’s hard-core, tangible, costly acts of generosity.

Care for your team.

Whether you’re a Senior Pastor or are leading facility care, you’re part of a team. Maybe you’re paid, maybe you’re a volunteer. Doesn’t matter. Find a way to intentionally care about your team. Those people you work with every day and think you know pretty well? Take one of them out to lunch. Ask one of them how their kids are doing, and really listen. Take time to share prayer requests. Send an encouraging email about something great you watched someone else do. It’s so easy to get caught up in the pace of the work that we’re all trying to do, that we miss the people God has put around us to care for and support. Sometimes your team needs you just as much as the audience you’re working so hard to reach.

Providing learning experiences for your team is another great way to learn and grow and invest in their ministry. It’s not too late, register and bring your team with you to a one-day workshop at Granger, happening May 18 & 19. With workshops geared for First Impressions, Creative & Communication Arts, Groups, Students and Kids Ministry, there’s something for everyone—no matter if they’re volunteer staff or paid staff.

by Executive Pastor Mark Waltz

I learned the hard way. People need to be reminded.

Back in my student ministry days I thought that grown adults could remember meeting dates and times. After all, they get kids to soccer practice, keep doctor appointments, show up for work, and remember birthdays. All that is true. And maybe that is the point: It’s all true. There is a lot going on.

It’s happened to all of us. Weekend service. You’re ready. You’re on time. And someone else isn’t. You cripple through the service or services on a shoestring, hoping to not miss any critical elements or people as you attempt to provide a welcoming space for your guests. It happens. People aren’t always blowing off responsibility. Sometimes people just forget.

Here are some thoughts about serving as a full team:

• Create a schedule. Put it on paper. Make sure everyone has it.
• Make the schedule easy to remember. Build some pattern into it. Monthly. Biweekly. Find a rhythm.
• Send reminders. Make phone calls. Send postcards. Tweet. Text. Email. And you must, you must, you must—not choose the easiest and preferred communication for yourself as the leader. Learn how everyone on your team is best connected. You’ll likely call some, text others, and email the rest.
• Follow up when someone doesn’t show. This is a simple and opportune chance to care. You may discover they are facing difficulty, illness, or worse. Reach out. You made it past the weekend. That’s good. But it’s not all there is to the team.
• Expect the schedule to be kept and followed. By planning it, printing it, reminding, following up you’ll communicate that people matter—the team matters. “We’re counting on you!”

Sunday is coming! Is your team?

Bring your staff and volunteer leaders to the First Impressions workshop at Granger, May 18, to boost your impact with guests. Register now to get the Early Bird rate of just $99 per person, or $89 for groups of 2–5, or $79 for groups of 6+. Attend both days of workshops (there’s a second day of additional workshops on Friday, May 19) and get a further discount: $20 off per day!

Craft a user experience that eliminates barriers.

Whether you’re in charge of getting volunteers to sign up at your table for your ministry fair or taking baptism registration forms, whether you’re dealing with paper forms or online forms, the end goal is the same. And user experience is key. Make sure that when people sign up for stuff, what you have to offer is quick, clean and easy to read. Unnecessary extra steps or extra clutter in a sign-up process can cause frustration and do the very thing we don’t want to do—hinder people from taking their next step.

As a sample, take a look at the Communications Volunteer Sign-Up Form Granger uses to introduce people to first-time volunteer opportunities, as well as the volunteer section of GCCwired.com.

Excerpt from becausepeoplematter.com | by Mark Waltz, Executive Pastor

1. “That’s Not My Responsibility”

This comment may cause team members to feel as though they’ve covered themselves, but the guest doesn’t care who is responsible. The guest merely wants the question answered or the request filled. The risk of dropping the ball increases each time a request, question or need is passed on to another person.

2. “I Don’t Know.”

If a team member doesn’t have an answer, he or she must be resourceful enough to find it. It’s OK not to know an answer; it’s not OK to leave it there. The team member must take the initiative to find the answer. “I don’t know” must always be followed up with “but I’ll find out.”

3. “No.”

Yeah, but sometimes the answer is no. Why would we not say no if the answer to a question is no? Simply because, when you’re the guest, you expect the answer to be yes. You want to be satisfied. When you hear no without an alternative or an explanation, you’re unsatisfied.

4. “They,” “Them,” and “You Guys”

Everyone wants to appear competent. When we don’t have the answers or the rule is difficult to explain, the temptation to blame someone else is tremendous. It can be difficult for people to recognize this temptation in themselves. But when the team member says, “They said” or “It’s up to them” or “You guys had better,” he or she is communicating a lack of ownership. When guests overhear this language or pick up on this attitude, they doubt the church itself.

5. “I’m Just A Volunteer.”

I always ask sales associates or clerks, “How are you?” It’s amazing how many times they respond, “I’ll be doin’ much better when I can leave this place! Only two more hours to go.” Too many people are unhappy working day after day in the same, grueling job. That should never happen in the church. Those who plug in to a ministry should do so because they fully embrace its mission and vision. If they do, no one will ever hear these words from them.

Want to hear more from Mark and how to keep guests coming back again? Pre-register to get the $20-discounted rate of $99 per person at the First Impressions Workshop. Includes materials and lunch.

Where & When: Granger Community Church campus, 90 miles east of Chicago, Wednesday, May 18, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Attend both days of workshops (there’s a second day of additional workshops on Thursday, May 19) and get a further discount: $20 off per day! Use the code: twoday20.

Looking to up your game or freshen things up a bit? Or is your task list turning into an epic novel? We hear you. We all could use a little help once in a while. No matter which camp you’re in, we want to help you get back on track and revitalize your ministry. Check out these top five resources, which have already helped dozens of people in churches just like yours, and get back on top of things:

1. Guest Services | Creating “WOW” Experiences Training Videos. These videos will help your staff and volunteer teams deliver great experiences for your guests, from the parking lot to the auditorium.
2. Communications Playbook. This “playbook” helps Granger Community Church have consistent, professional and effective communications. It includes a review of branding, Granger’s vision, how staff should work together with communication vehicles and the filters Granger uses to decide what gets promoted when and where.
3. A Christmas Carol Total Resource Package. This package includes the resources Granger Community Church used to promote the weekend message series A Christmas Carol, including: Audio MP3s, Message Transcripts, Sample Bulletins, Granger Notes, Graphics, Service Orders, Message Intro Videos and the script for the musical element Christmas Carol (of the Bells) and the script for the production Granger did on Christmas Eve of A Christmas Carol.
4. The Feed Video Announcement Bumper. Take your weekly announcements to a new level. This product includes the opener video, the ending video, the videos you see in the background and a few little videos of the Feed logo that you can use to create your own video announcements called The Feed.
5. Guest Services Manual. This manual helps develop first impressions teams through forms such as: roles and responsibilities, scheduling, volunteer training, emergency response, usher assignments and more. It includes summaries of all volunteer team roles at Granger, as well as a copy of the Emergency Response Manual for Guest Services teams.

by Elkhart Campus Pastor Gene Troyer

If there is anything that has surprised me about the people of Granger Community Church, it’s this. When I look around at who is serving in various volunteer capacities—changing diapers in the nursery or greeting guests or showing people to their seats or cleaning restrooms between services—I see a lot of people who don’t look like they belong.

Hold on, let me explain.

If you step back and consider how we “do church,” or maybe it’s easier to consider what we don’t do:

• We don’t have hymnals.
• We don’t offer adult Sunday school.
• We don’t care if you bring coffee into the auditorium. (We call it an auditorium instead of a sanctuary.)
• We don’t care what you wear or how many tattoos you have or what color your hair is.

There you go, you get the idea. So who are these people who don’t look like they belong? Is it the guy with the tats? Or the dreadlocks? I suppose it could be but no, that’s not who I’m thinking of.

Continue reading on Gene’s Blog...

To learn more about the way we do things at Granger, and get practical tips for creating excellent first impressions, healthy groups and a vibrant kids’ ministry, come to workshops on October 13 & 14. Register by September 14 and grab early bird discounted pricing for everyone on your team.