One of the continuing frustrations for small church leaders is finding enough volunteers to offer successful ministry programs. Here’s how we tackle that issue at our small church that has an average attendance of 80 to 100 for Sunday worship.
Determine how many leaders you need for any new church program.
A good rule of thumb for the number of leaders needed for any church program is 1 leader for every 3-5 participants. In addition, the younger the age group, the more workers you need.
We have observed that we have 15-20 leaders for our weekly Sunday School program, which averages about 50 each week. In worship, we utilize 20-30 people to produce worship services for about 80-100 each week. If you’re starting a new program, or trying to rejuvenate an existing one, start with adequate staffing. Nothing will kill a new program more quickly than an inadequate number of leaders.
Intentionally limit the number of weekly programs you offer.
A small church should recognize that there is a limit to the number of ongoing programs it can sustain. Our church has three church-wide weekly programs—Sunday School, Sunday worship, and Wednesday evening meal and activities. That’s all we can sustain on a weekly basis because those activities involve over half of our adult members as leaders each week. While we would like to offer more, we intentionally limit the number of programs we offer because we cannot sustain more.
Supplement your ongoing programs with special events.
A small church often can involve a higher percentage of its membership as leaders in a one-time event than it can in ongoing weekly programs. Recently 93 of our members participated in a one-day “Operation Inasmuch” project. On that one Saturday our members packed relief buckets, distributed 200 winter coats, gave away quarters at the local Laundromat, built a handicapped ramp for one of our widows, and helped with yard work at three of our senior adults’ homes.
We also have special one-time events for outreach such as music programs, church picnics, and our annual July cookout. Single-day events can supplement the small church’s regular programs, and give more church members an opportunity to participate as well.
