Volunteering Imperfectly Workshop

Summary of Volunteering Imperfectly

If you’ve ever been a part of a nonprofit organization like a church, a homeschool group, or any other civic organization, you know that it is not only hard to find time to volunteer but hard to be a volunteer. Mothers and fathers know this all too well. Whether it be serving in a ministry inside their church, teaching at a homeschool co-op, or coaching a sports team, they are already stretched thin. Experts say that when writing and speaking you must know your audience, so why would I address this kind of audience with a call to volunteer? The reason is because it is vital in our fallen world to support organizations that support our values; I need not list the current reasons because they are plainly obvious if one turns on any news source. As important as that reason is, the question remains: How do you find time?  

Also, it isn’t a call to volunteer more, it is a call to volunteer imperfectly. “But wait,” you say, “I already know how to volunteer imperfectly, I need to know how to volunteer perfectly.” 

As a volunteer who has jungled home, family, education, business, and volunteering, I’ve been asked many times, “How do you get it all done,” particularly when I was running a homeschool co-op. My answer has always been that I don’t get it all done, and now I’ve added, “and I don’t do it perfectly”. I came to realize that the only way to volunteer is imperfectly because God only made one perfect man, and it wasn’t you or me. Therefore, we need to shake the idea that our sacrifices have to be perfect, and get to work, because as Jesus said in Matthew 9:37 “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few…”.  Let's come together to explore how we can volunteer imperfectly and play our part in God’s perfect plan. 

In the Volunteering Imperfectly Workshop, we will discuss:

• Why volunteering is one of the best ways you can support the values that undergird our faith, our families, and our civilization. 
• How a paradigm shift is necessary from “I must serve perfectly or not at all,” to “Imperfectly is the only way to volunteer because God only made one perfect man, and it wasn’t you nor me.” 
• How to leverage the time we do have available to volunteer by identifying what is most important to us, define priorities, and balance that with self-imposed limitations. 
• How to choose the right kind of volunteer opportunity, by examining the organization and its leaders. 
• How to find the best position for yourself within that organization by considering your skills and your available time. 
• How to be an effective volunteer, one that supports the vision, mission, and values of the organization while being a person of integrity, who keeps her commitments, and has a growth mindset.
• How to be an effective leader of an organization that is relying on volunteer labor, one that recognizes and respects the limitations of the volunteers, plans thoughtfully, and allows the holy spirit to stir the hearts of the volunteers in His own time and way.