Can Your Ministry Leaders Recruit Volunteers Without You?
Nov 02, 2026
Imagine it’s Thursday afternoon. Your welcome-team leader texts, “I think Taylor would be great with new guests. Is it okay if I invite Taylor to greet with me on Sunday?”
You text back, “Absolutely!” It feels like a two-second decision. But there’s a leadership question hiding in that text: Why did a good leader have to wait for your yes?
At the Multiplication Conference last week, the room came alive when we talked about recruiting. I left thinking about a question I keep asking in our own church: How does this succeed without me?
Watch the 2½-minute replay: Why Volunteer Recruiting Gets Stuck.
Take the two-Sunday test
Pick one ministry. If you were out of town for the next two Sundays, could its leader spot someone with potential, invite them to serve, arrange a first Sunday alongside an experienced teammate, and follow up afterward? Where, exactly, would things stop?
If the leader says, “I’d need you to give me the names,” you’ve found one issue. If they say, “I have the names, but nobody’s sure who follows up,” that’s a different one. And if they say, “I know what to do, but I didn’t know I could do it,” another announcement from the stage won’t fix that.
Give the leader an agreement they can use
Try a ten-minute conversation with that ministry leader. Settle three things together:
- The outcome: What part of recruiting belongs to them? For the welcome team, it might be that every interested person has a named host and a specific Sunday to try serving.
- The decisions: What can they do without checking with you? Name it: “You can invite someone, pair them with a host, and schedule their first Sunday.” Identify any real boundary they still need to honor.
- The check-in: When will you hear how it went? Put fifteen minutes on the calendar two Sundays from now. Ask, “Who’s finding their place? Where did someone get stuck? What support do you need from me?”
Then let the leader make the invitation. That last part can be hard for those of us who can already see how we’d do it. Give them room to say it in their own words and learn something you wouldn’t have learned for them.
What to look for on Sunday
You walk into the lobby and meet someone serving for the first time. A leader you developed spotted their potential, invited them, and is standing beside them. You didn’t arrange the introduction or build the schedule. You helped build the leader who did.
That’s a win worth celebrating, pastor. And you can begin with one ministry this week.
If you’re a lead pastor who wants help building that kind of team, bring one decision that keeps landing back on your desk to Next Level Pastor. We start February 4, 2027: eight lead pastors, 12 weeks, working on real challenges in our churches. I read every application personally; applying starts a conversation about fit before any financial commitment.
Apply for the February cohort.
— Gabe
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