How can you serve? Volunteer now...

God's plan is for us to care for one another."Whom shall I send? Here I am Lord. Is it I, Lord? I will go, Lord, if You led me. I will hold Your people in my heart."

God equips us for this service. He doesn't ask us to do things alone. He gives each of us different abilities, skills, and experiences to use according to his plan. "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."                1 Corinthians 12:12,27 

God made us to be a part of a community. In service, we grow in relationship with fellow Christians. We develop new friendships and deepen old ones. "Love your neighbor as yourself." Matthew 22:39  We are able to volunteer in different ways depending on our life stage. For example, someone busy raising a family may be looking for opportunities that can include children, but only require short time commitments. Someone who is retired and has experience serving in local hands-on mission work, might be ready to join an international mission team. Some may want to use work skills and experience to help the church. And others may find volunteering a good way to develop new skills and experience. It is good to explore new volunteer opportunities. It is important that, as volunteers, we be engaged in ministry that fulfills each of our needs for involvement and commitment. We should only volunteer in those areas about which we are impassioned, excited, and committed. 

How to find the right volunteer job for you.

For many people, the right volunteer role simply involves approaching your pastor and offering to become a church volunteer. There are many ways to contribute including working with children, adults and elderly;  greeting visitors; hospital visitation; sacking & delivering groceries; cooking & distributing food;  and special events; helping out with paper work in food pantry; cleaning the children's building or youth hall; cleaning the Joseph House; cleaning the church; getting involved with drama's and outreach for sidewalk Sunday schools; vacation Bible school, summer camp.  We are a non-profit organization and we can definitely use your help in a wide variety of areas. WE NEED YOU!  You do not have to be a member of our church to help volunteer in our community or travel overseas in missions work.  Let us know what kind of volunteer work you are looking for. We would like to match your skills, interests and experience with the perfect volunteer opportunity. 

Finding the Time to Volunteer

Everyone's so busy these days. Even many who are unemployed say that they don't have enough time in their week to volunteer! The good news is that you only have to volunteer a few hours a week, or even less, to contribute to changing people's lives while also helping yourself enormously in the process.  If you're too busy to be a volunteer every week, then come every month, or volunteer on an occasional basis to assist with irregularly-scheduled special events. If life becomes busier and you can't fit your volunteer work in, then by all means reduce your commitment temporarily -take fewer hours, with lesser frequency and shorter duration of your volunteer shifts until your other life activities and responsibilities settle down again.

Give an Appropriate "Official Reason" for Volunteering

Of course, there are many reasons why people volunteer, and at least some of them involve a give and take relationship - giving your time and receiving various benefits in return. It's no secret that volunteering offers this two-way or mutual benefit in the job search and career area, and in various other ways as well.  However, it's best when you are asked why you want to volunteer to be able to honestly and genuinely say that you want to: a) "give back to the community" and b) provide quality service to the client population that the agency services, whether that be seniors, people with developmental disabilities, teenagers or new immigrants. 

Giving Your Time In Exchange for Developing New Skills

It's important to make sure that you get the most out of your volunteer experience. For instance, how can you use this opportunity to build more skills for your career? Depending upon the project or volunteer team you are working in and the goals of the program you are assisting, you may be able to request from your volunteer supervisor duties that will assist you in developing specific skills. For example, you can develop people skills through providing a listening ear to frail seniors or people who come in out of the cold to use the soup kitchen. Or you could demonstrate your organizational or leadership skills through taking on additional responsibilities to ensure that services, meetings and special events are planned and carried out successfully. Consider volunteering for more than one department. Given that volunteering at one alone often greatly helps job searches, you can increase your chances and learn a broader variety of skills if you volunteer at two or more departments for a few hours per week for each.  Be sure to keep track of your accomplishments and the new skills you develop for your resume, and mention appropriate ones as applicable when applying for your next job or reapplying to specific job postings. If you describe them well, volunteer experiences can fill out your resume very nicely in a way that employers genuinely value and appreciate.