Anyone who leads a worship team, art team or other ministry team in a church setting is almost always on the lookout for new folks to plug into ministry.
The old thinking was announce it from the pulpit...put it in the bulletin...put it on the screen...and the list goes on. Churches tend to get caught up in the same way of doing things and don't always welcome change. This includes plugging people in and helping them find their place of service. As we all know, change, in many churches, is still a sin!
And here's the really sad part about church announcements. They've actually done multiple studies that prove this. It takes, on average, 4-6 weeks for people in church to CONNECT with an idea, a plea, a recruitment in a printed format and/or projected format. 4-6 WEEKS! By then you are well past your need and feeling frustrated, bummed, and even angry. Sadly, I've seen ministry leaders over the years develop an attitude - and not a nice one - toward their own congregation because no one responded to the 'need' that was put forth. Wow - that really honors God.
My belief has been this - the ONLY way to truly recruit the right people is one on one, NOT bulk announcements. Especially when it comes to artists of all types.
Get to know your church, your people. Find out what interests folks have - not necessarily the job they have, but what they have an interest in - and then find a way to connect them to a ministry that they can have a passion to be involved in, a place to call 'home' in the ministry of the church.
If you are a paid leader, like I am, sometimes people shut you out because it's our job to recruit. That's okay. Nothing you can do about it - except send your team members after them! Seriously, the best recruiters for ministry positions are the people who are VOLUNTEERING already in the trenches. They can answer the questions in their sleep, and they can talk about the leaders style, expectation, quirks, goofiness, etc. better than any key leader can. I know. I watch my teams do it all the time!
