5 Church Volunteer Roles for a Digital World
Volunteer positions are central to fulfilling the mission of the Church. Churches cannot make it without volunteers serving in a variety of different positions during the week and on Sundays. But, what we are finding out is that sometimes the “traditional” and typical Church roles may need to look different. Especially when the Church building is closed, even if temporarily.
As the world is ever changing, the Church needs to change and adapt with it. We know this. But with new challenges and changes comes opportunities. And when new opportunities for the Church as a whole comes about, new opportunities for the people of the Church arise as well. While the Sunday morning Greeter, Hospitality or Usher teams may not be needed for a time, there are some NEW and EXCITING opportunities for people to serve.
Here are some new volunteer opportunities you can offer for the people of the Church as we live in this digital world.
Chat Hosts. You may have already had Online services streaming before now. If you have then you know the value of Chat Hosts and how they serve as the hospitality team for your Online services. A warm, friendly Chat Host can make a HUGE impact welcoming and engaging with people who are looking to experience Christ and community together.
The great thing about this is that as you are streaming to different platforms (online, Facebook, YouTube and others), you have the potential to have many different Chat Hosts serving at one time. If you are streaming to a website, have some there. If you are also streaming to YouTube and Facebook, have different Chat Hosts there as well. Any place you are streaming, use Chat Hosts. It provides tons of volunteer opportunities.
Social Media Support. Social media has always been a huge ministry opportunity to minister and support people. But now, when people are shut in, they are on social media more. That means they can be on your Church’s or ministry’s social media channels a lot more. As they are on, get a team of people who are good on social media to start engaging with people on your various platforms. The extra set of eyes that can help you minister more effectively.
Content Creators. Another way to serve and help out is to have various content creators helps. Have people in your Church help out with blogs, videos or other different kinds of content your Church is creating right now. Your Church may have already been doing this but if not, now is the perfect time. You can have them help create video content, write first person accounts of what their life is like and how God is helping them and their family. There are lots of different content you can produce and share that will get people who are gifted in writing or doing video get more involved.
Digital Champions. These are people who love to use social media and who love your Church. They actively seek out ways they can share about what is happening in the life of your Church with other people. They will share to their digital community your Church services, events that are happening and cool stories that are happening from the various social platforms your Church has. They are championing what is happening in the life of your Church so that people can hear about it and hopefully want to attend. They are also apart of various community groups looking for opportunities to serve the community. So, if someone in a Facebook community group says they need help with something, these Champions are there to respond and offer support.
Digital Missionaries. This is a group who are Champions of what is happening in your Church but take it a step further. This group is actively seeking out ways to minister to people online. They are using digital tools and social media platforms to reach their community for Christ. Whereas a Digital Champion shares and champions your church, a Digital Missionary is looking to engage in conversations with people that will hopefully lead them to Christ. And the great news is that anyone can be a Digital Missionary with the proper training and equipping. To learn more about what a digital missionary is, click here. You can also see 3 ways you can be a digital missionary today.
Conclusion
The reality is online ministry is always going to play a part of your ministry strategy from here on out. Churches and ministries are now Phygital operations. And because of the combination of physical and digital, it gives many more opportunities for people to serve the Church and in the community. These are just 5 ways but there are bound to be more opportunities as we grow in the digital world.
What do you think? What other volunteer roles are there or will there be in this digital world? Share your experiences below or on social media using #ymsidekick when you share.
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