Thank You Volunteers!

“Volunteers do not necessarily have the time: they have the heart.”

Elizabeth Andrew

Today is our Volunteer Appreciation Day! What a privilege it is to honor them! Oftentimes we don’t realize the importance of something until it’s gone. That’s the way it is with volunteers.

  Every healthy community has an army of frequently unacknowledged, unseen volunteers often silently working behind the scenes. A healthy society is made up of individuals who are involved in their community and take personal responsibility and investment seriously. Volunteers and those who willingly invest their time and talent are essential to a healthy culture. Some of our greatest heroes from history understood this.

  Though known primarily for his role as one of our country’s Founding Fathers, Benjamin Franklin, was instrumental in creating the very first volunteer fire department. You’ve likely heard his famous quote, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” it was Franklin who brought together a group of thirty men in 1736 to form the Union Fire Company to prevent massive fires in Philadelphia.

  Though more famous as an internationally known author and mystery writer (she authored 72 books), Agatha Christie, became a nurse in the Voluntary Aid Detachment of the Red Cross Hospital in Torquay when her husband, Archie, was fighting in World War I. From 1914 to 1917 she worked as a volunteer nurse and then dispensed medicines for the hospital for another year.

  While most famous for being an astronaut and the first American woman in space in 1983, Sally Ride, was a role model to innumerable young girls. On top of that, she was a huge supporter of the Girl Scouts and co-founded the Girl Scouts’ Camp CEO, which paired minority girls with professional women. She even founded her own organization, Sally Ride Science.

  Known best for his role as “Superman,” Christopher Reeve,  became a super volunteer. After an accident left him paralyzed, the late actor became an advocate for those suffering from spinal cord injuries. He acted as Chairman of the American Paralysis Association and was Vice Chairman of the National Organization on Disability. He co-founded the Reeve-Irvine Research Center and created the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, a foundation that funds research to develop treatments and cures for paralysis caused by spinal cord injuries and works to improve the quality of life for people living with disabilities. Christopher Reeve turned a terrible tragedy into an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others. Where some would recluse themselves wallowing in self-pity, he used his tragedy to invest in a greater good, demonstrating that even disability isn’t an excuse to fail to make a difference in the lives of others.

  What does it take to volunteer and to make a difference? The most needed trait is selflessness. It’s what volunteering is all about. Giving of yourself, your time and talent to a cause you believe in in order to help others in the process. The whole experience can be both very rewarding and addictive! A little selflessness goes a long way. You’ll often find that you get much more out of it than what you put into it.

  Volunteers live longer, are happier and healthier than non-volunteers. Studies show that those who volunteer remain physically functional longer, have more robust psychological well-being, and even live longer. Making volunteering part of your lifestyle doesn’t have to be delayed until you retire. The elderly who volunteer are almost always those who volunteered earlier in life. Health and longevity gains from volunteering come from establishing meaningful volunteer roles long before you retire and continuing to volunteer once you arrive in your retirement years.

  Volunteering is more often taught than caught. No one needs to be taught to be selfish. It comes all too naturally. Adults who love to volunteer were frequently taught to volunteer by their parents or some other mentor. Even a young child can volunteer and thrive as a volunteer. It’s important for the spiritual and emotional health of your child’s future to make volunteering a family affair. According to Jeannie Fino, an early childhood consultant with The Guidance Center of Westchester, NY, children have “a natural tendency to enjoy giving to others, which starts with empathy and compassion.” As parents, Fino says, it’s up to us to foster these feelings, to “provide opportunities for kids to give to others and to be grateful for what’s been given to them.” Serving others widens our worldview and increases our own sense of gratitude.  

  Volunteering strengthens our relationships. It focuses us on something greater than ourselves strengthening our relationships. It’s no accident that as the percentage of those volunteering decreases, loneliness and depression increase. Working alongside others who feel as strongly as we do about a particular cause creates strong relationships with them. It’s not just for making new friendships. volunteering alongside those in your own family strengthens family bonds based in “doing” your values together. 

  Should Christians volunteer outside the church? Absolutely! Yes, our first responsibility is our spiritual family (Gal. 6:10), yet we’re commanded to be salt and light in our world (Matt. 5:13-16). How can we be salt in our world if the salt stays in the saltshaker? How can we be light if we fail to shine outside the church walls? Please serve in your church family and find a place where you can make a difference in our community. God has designed us to serve others. Please find a place to volunteer and serve!  

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

Common Courtesy can make an Uncommon Difference

"Courtesy is the one coin you can never have too much of or be stingy with." John Wanamaker

  There’s probably nothing that I enjoy more than a good coffee shop. Some years back Burlington had a fantastic coffee shop called the Daily Brew. It wasn’t the coffee really or even the ambiance – it wasn’t the what, it was really the who. The owner, Sue Unbehaun, was one of the friendliest, most conscientious individuals that I’ve ever met. Yes, the coffee and homemade baked goods were fantastic. But that’s not why I went there regularly – it was Sue. For me and many others, it was a very sad when she sold it and moved on to other ventures.

  When Jane and I vacation in Tennessee, there’s a little family restaurant, the Tennessee Barbeque in Livingston that we go back to every time we're in the area. The food is fantastic but that’s not the main reason that we go there. It’s the service! The first time that we found this little place, it was in the middle of a thunderstorm, a total deluge. They were so concerned that we were okay, that we weren’t sopping wet. They treated us like family…and we’ve never forgotten it.

  If you step back and observe, you’ll discover that most marriages and most families that are healthy pay attention to what are called “common courtesies.” It’s not the big things that make the big difference. It’s the little things. Too often we’ve been sold a bill of goods in this society that it’s the big stuff – it’s not.

  For example, we think that with our kids that it’s stuff like taking them to Disney World or Six Flags that makes for a wonderful and close family…some big, expensive adventure. That it’s attending every game or purchasing the newest toy or gadget for them. But it’s not. In our marriages, it’s not a periodic romantic getaway or night on the town that make a difference. It’s the day in and day out kindness, the little things.

  For example, it’s very rare for me to leave the house without Jane giving me a kiss first. I rarely head home for the night without calling and seeing if she needs me to pick up something. Recently, I found out that because one of our kids has a different work schedule, that the stairwell lights can wake them up when they have to go to bed early. I work really hard to not turn the lights on. Common courtesies make an uncommon difference.

  Yet, it’s easy in a marriage or family to let the little things slip. We become so familiar that we start taking those closest to us for granted. That happens in a church, too. So can we talk?

  An area of common courtesy that we’ve let slip at Grace is returning phone calls or e-mails. We’re all busy. Let me repeat that, we’re all busy. So how do you feel when you’ve called the doctor’s office and they forget to call you back and you have to call them again? What if you have to call them three or four times? Would you feel that maybe you weren’t important, that they didn’t care, that maybe they didn’t like you? When one of your brothers or sisters in Christ calls, e-mails you, or texts you, please show some common courtesy and respond. If nothing else, let them know that you’re currently swamped but you’ll get back to them when you can focus more on the conversation.

  If you did a survey, I think that you’d find that there’s nothing that our ministry leaders at Grace find more discouraging or that can take the wind out of our sails, than having to hunt someone down because they don’t reply. It communicates a message of disdain, even disrespect.

  Say “thank you!” a lot. I love this quote, “Volunteers are not paid, not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless.” Did you know that nearly everything at Grace is done by volunteers? From the coffee to the AV to the worship to the greeting to the ushering to the nursery to the teaching to our midweek ministries. It’s all done by volunteers who faithfully serve the Lord by serving at Grace week after week. So when was the last time that you said, “Thank you! I appreciate your service for the Lord!” Mark Twain said, “I can live for two months on a good compliment.” Sometimes I fear our volunteers are starving for an encouraging word.

  Be thoughtful. Have you ever gone into a store and there’s trash in an aisle? It may have just happened, but you don’t know that. Years ago I was taught to leave a campsite in better shape than you found it. When you leave after a worship service, can you please make sure that papers are picked up and chairs are straight? If you see something out of place, make yourself a committee of one, and take care of it. If you see trash on the lawn or sidewalk outside, please pick it up. In the winter, if there’s a slick spot on the sidewalk, put some salt on it…or at least make sure it’s taken care of.

  Be “Yes” person. Most of us have full plates. Too many of us continually try to cram 10 lbs. of life into a 5 lb. bag. At Grace, we’re committed to not burning people out, to not overuse (or abuse) the same committed people. But sadly, sometimes we do – that’s because there are some things that have to be done yet there are others who won’t step up. Please know too that we believe that if no one is available to staff a ministry, then maybe the Lord is telling us to let that particular ministry die.   

  Volunteer. Perhaps you have a passion for a certain area or ministry. Maybe God has given you a particular gift. Yet, unless you tell someone and make yourself available, how would they ever know? Maybe you’re ministry won’t work right now. Perhaps it won’t work in our current situation. Yet, unless you share it, no one would ever know.

  All of us have different burdens and passions. To be very candid, we’d never have had a motorcycle, quilting or Tweens ministry, if it had been dependent on my vision or passion. Someone else had a burden and an interest, and the rest is history. Grace Church is a family. That’s a biblical model of ministry. We must be committed to treating each other like loving brothers and sisters. By His grace let’s make Colossians 3:12 real at our church, “Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”

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