The key to success: developing your team
Developing and encouraging volunteers and potential leaders is close to my heart. That’s why I came up with this plan for developing a team.
Good volunteers are the foundation of effective youth and church ministry. Good volunteers are people who trust themselves to take things on, who like to keep growing, who want to be there for others and who invest their time, money and energy in it.
As leaders, we can encourage and raise up volunteers like that.
That has a lot to do with communication and leadership. A leader who never lets their volunteers “just go for it” will always have to do everything themselves. A leader who develops their volunteers, puts them where their talents and gifts fit, and empowers their team doesn’t just create a good “working climate,” but also has a good chance of achieving a lot with a strong team.
And where a lot gets achieved, the motivation to keep doing excellent work isn’t far behind.
Why it’s worth having a plan for developing volunteers
Many volunteers have spent years in roles where they don’t really feel at home. Because someone was urgently needed, they stepped in and simply kept going. Plugging holes like that can lead to frustration in the long run. On top of that, it quickly turns these volunteers toward working through tasks instead of acting with growth in mind. We want to give our best for God. But we can only do that where our heart is and where our gifts are put to use. That doesn’t rule out the occasional task that isn’t as much fun. But for me, the deciding factor is the perspective: “I love doing this for God, and I feel called to this place.”
Some volunteers don’t even know what their gifts are, but they don’t dare to try anything either, because they fear that if they give an inch, someone will take a mile.
The following model is meant to help young people discover their gifts and try out different areas.
Developing volunteers as a journey of discovery together
The leader sets out with potential new volunteers on a journey of discovery in which gifts and tasks are clarified and skills are developed. This journey should include the following steps.
First conversations
In a first conversation, talk together about what the leader and the potential volunteer each have in mind: Is the goal to find out which gifts and talents are there, or is it already about a specific task? Clear communication from the start is crucial for a successful process. It also helps to use clear terms and to make sure everyone involved understands them the same way. In my ministry, for example, the terms explorer, team member and leader have clear meanings. They help us name the different roles and phases of the journey clearly.
Trial period
This trial period can be set up so that the explorer can try things out without having to fear that once they give an inch, someone will take a mile and they can no longer say they don’t actually want to do it.
Here’s what that can look like:
The youth leader has a conversation with the explorer. This is also a good time to do a spiritual gifts test to get an impression of which (spiritual) gifts lie dormant in the explorer. Apart from that, of course, you talk about preferences and talents, for example: Am I more people-oriented or more tech-savvy?
Spiritual gifts test
For this I recommend the Spiritual Gifts Survey from Lifeway, which you can download for free.
You’re also welcome to use more extensive programs, for example The 3 Colors of Your Gifts by Christian A. Schwarz.
It’s important to make clear that the results show tendencies. Every gift has to be discovered and trained, and in the end it is given by God. Still, it can help to think about which areas you’d like to try out.
An example from my own ministry: When I had just started in my role, a young man did a spiritual gifts test with me. It showed that he has the gift of leadership. Since he is a very quiet, rather introverted person, at first he couldn’t really see that for himself. So we agreed that he would give it a try at a camp. There he recognized his potential, was developed further and now leads a small group he started himself. He was also able to learn a lot there for his job as a team leader.
Guidance and a point person
Continuing the trial period, the explorer and the youth leader (youth worker, youth pastor, …) choose an area the explorer would like to try out.
The youth leader lets the leader of that area know. Within that area’s team, one person is named to take the explorer under their wing; depending on the team, maybe several people.
Volunteer agreement
The explorer comes along and watches three or four times. Then they decide whether they want to commit. If they do, they commit for a set period for now (depending on the area, such as half a year). For that time, an agreement is drawn up that names the tasks and areas the newcomer wants to take responsibility for or can try out without obligation. This is meant to give both sides security and to protect against asking too much or too little.
In the conversation, it should be clearly stated what the explorer wants to try out and what they definitely don’t. The leader and the explorer should both talk openly about their expectations of the role and of each other, and also put them in writing.
Writing it down is meant to help you notice developments and possible disappointments in a check-in conversation later. These conversations can also be held together with the leader of that area and/or handed over to them.
Requirements for serving
What matters to me here is that we are all in a process. Nobody is perfect, and nobody has to live out something they don’t want to. With volunteer roles in particular, it’s always about doing it of your own free will. Still, as a church it’s important to us to set requirements. For one, so that we can actually take responsibility for the area. And for another, because it serves the cause when people can’t just join in any old way.
Explorers
With explorers, it’s often the case that these young people don’t have much to do with God yet. Here, the only thing that matters to me is a willingness to grow. Everything else can be learned along the way. Explorer status also makes it clear to everyone that this is about trying things out and finding your place.
Team members
Team members have more responsibility. So I also expect a little more here. Depending on the area, a personal relationship with God is essential. That doesn’t mean it always has to be perfect, but it has to be there. Especially in teaching, preaching and one-on-one mentoring. In other areas like the café, tech and the like, “God explorers” are welcome to serve too.
In any case, a certain level of commitment is important. We’re also working on making basic youth leader training a requirement. On the one hand, training like this may well become mandatory for volunteers at some point anyway (check the requirements where you live); on the other hand, I’m convinced that this kind of basic training is very important for volunteer work.
Leaders
Leaders are responsible for their area. As the person in charge of an area, I need to be able to rely on the work being done faithfully, with a focus on growth and on a solid biblical foundation. That’s why it’s important that leaders are firmly rooted in the church and also keep being willing to live out discipleship themselves, so they grow personally in their faith.
How does the church support its volunteers?
Training
Regular training and continuing education should be offered for volunteers, both within the church and with outside speakers.
Guidance and coaching
In addition, new volunteers are shown the ropes in their areas and, where possible, trained and coached.
Once or twice a year there’s a one-on-one review with each volunteer. For these, there’s a template with questions to talk about. These conversations are about really seeing the volunteer: how they’re doing personally and how they’re doing in their role. That way you can see whether growth is happening, where things might be stuck, and where you may need to shift tasks or offer more training.
This article was written by Julia Thiele with Daniel Oesterle and Andy Fronius.
Julia Thiele is a youth worker with EC-West in Germany. She is passionate about walking alongside young people, helping them discover and develop their potential, getting through the highs and lows of everyday life with them, and finding out what God had in mind for life in all of it.
English version: October 2026
