In Young Life, There’s No Such Thing as Just a Volunteer

Young Life has been a “leader-centered” ministry since 1941. It’s one of the marks of the mission and one of the elements that sets us apart from other organizations. Today, we’re in a culture where identifying faithful volunteer leadership is increasingly more difficult. That’s why we desire to elevate the role so we’re able to recruit, train, and retain the next Young Life leader and not just find another volunteer. 

In the movie, Finding Neverland, J.M. Barrie, the creator of Peter Pan, has this exchange with a young Peter Llewelyn Davies …

(Peter to Porthos) “This is absurd. It’s just a dog.” 

(J.M. Barrie ) “Just a dog, Just? Porthos, don’t listen to him! 

Porthos dreams of being a bear, and you want to dash those dreams by saying he’s JUST a dog? What a horrible, candle-snuffing word. That’s like saying, ‘He can’t climb that mountain, he’s just a man,’ or, ‘That’s not a diamond, it’s just a rock.’ JUST.” 

(Peter) “Fine then, turn him into a bear, if you can.” 

(J.M. Barrie) “With those eyes, my bonny lad, I’m afraid you’d never see it.” 

Watch the clip of this scene

I hear this statement often: “Well, you know, I’m JUST a Volunteer.” Ouch! Nothing hurts quite like that. I sometimes wonder if it reveals the deterioration in status of this critical community of individuals in the mission. If the statement is true, we’re acknowledging some shifts in volunteerism that will be challenging to reverse. We’re saying that volunteers JUST …

• HELP (achieve someone else’s vision)
•  ATTEND events (and that’s appreciated but not critical)
• CONTRIBUTE (but the work of Young Life could be done without them)
• SUPPORT the work (but are expendable)

What a horrible, candle-snuffing word: ‘JUST’! Maybe we have incompletely labeled the thousands of individuals who serve as the owners, backbone, and lifeblood of the Young Life ministry. Some current mislabels are:

Vol-un-teer / (Noun) – A person who freely offers to take part in an enterprise or help undertake a task.

Coun-se-lor / (Noun) – A person trained to give guidance on personal, social, or spiritual problems.

Chap-er-one / (Noun) – A person who accompanies and looks after another person or group of people.

“Volunteer,” “counselor,” or “chaperone” are partially true descriptions, but we don’t just take part — we lead. We don’t just give guidance, we speak truth. We don’t just accompany, we share life. These titles identify an element of the role but not the heart. What if we shifted from “JUST” to “MORE THAN”? The person in your community who owns the ministry without being compensated is significantly “more than” a volunteer, they’re invested, passionate, and irreplaceable because they’re LEADERS! 

Lead-er / (Noun) – A person who leads or commands a group, organization, or ministry.

In my experience here are the two key questions and answers we need to acknowledge regarding volunteer leadership:

Question #1 WHY DO YOUNG LIFE LEADERS LEAD?

1. They have a heart for Christ and adolescents.
2. They want to give back because someone was there to lead them to Jesus. 
3. They desire to be stretched and challenged in their faith.

Question #2 WHY DO LEADERS STAY?

• They’ve found a niche where their gifting is being utilized and they’re experiencing community.
• They see transformation in themselves and the adolescents they serve.
• They grow in their faith. 

It takes a community to reach a community and when that happens, everyone is changed! When done correctly, we all LEAD. We LEAD in relationship, authenticity, guidance, and by example. Ultimately, we LEAD toward an encounter with a living and loving God, and that is not “just” something we do, it is “more than” our eyes could ever imagine witnessing. 

FINAL THOUGHT: I’ve noticed when a volunteer leader’s sense of ownership grows, their description of their role changes as well. They shift from saying phrases like, “I HELP run a Young Life club,”  to, “This school is where I choose to MINISTER.”

Which phrase describes your team? We will always be grateful for more volunteers, but we really need leaders engaged in ministry! 

A CHALLENGE: Take some time with a friend or family member to discuss the difference between volunteer and leader. Then, take a moment to listen to where God may be encouraging you to lead. If it’s with the ministry of Young Life, there are more ways to serve than you might think! There are opportunities both in your local area and at camp!

Locally:

• You can become a leader – here’s a list of ministries your local area may have running:
  • Young Life College
  • Young Life (high school students)
  • WyldLife (middle school students)
  • Young Life ONE (reaching homeless, trafficked, foster care, and incarcerated youth)
  • Capernaum (our ministry with kids with disabilities)
  • YoungLives (caring for teen parents)
  • Multiethnic (serving kids of color and under-resourced communities)
  • Young Life Military and Club Beyond
  • Small Town Kids
  • Catholic Relations
• You can join your local committee (the group of concerned adults who helps run the area ministry)

Learn more about these opportunities

At Camp:

• You can apply for summer staff (perfect for college-aged people and older)
• You can serve on work crew (for high school students)
• You can help with YoungLives childcare