by Jeff Shinabarger

The less I try to do everything, the more I value the abilities and gifts of the people around me. Just after returning from a sabbatical where my wife, Andre, and I spent considerable time choosing priorities and prioritizing family, I promised to speak at two different events on consecutive nights of the week. When I sheepishly reported my plan, she reminded me of our shared commitment.

I hate having to call someone back to change my answer, but knew it was the right thing to do. This is when I stumbled upon a significant truth. Every opportunity not right for me brings an opportunity for someone else. When I claim more than what I can handle, I limit the opportunities for another person in my community. In essence, when we choose to do what we ought to do, forsaking all else, we create opportunities and access for others.

When I declined the speaking opportunity, I asked if I could recommend a friend of mine who would be incredible for their gathering. This created access to a new opportunity for him. My “no” turned into someone else’s “yes.”

Have you ever stopped to think about how you have arrived where you are today? I guarantee you that someone gave you an opportunity. Someone believed in your abilities and gave you a platform to live out what it is that makes you breathe today. Don’t we all want to be part of a community that has the best interest of others at its heart?

The greatest love you can give a friend is to help him or her find and achieve their calling. Let me say it another way. My greatest responsibility as a friend is to help others discover what only they are made to do. I want to be involved in a community that does everything possible to help each other find the unique value that only they can contribute to the world. I want to be a part of a community that works together to create platforms for that talent. I want to do less, so my friends can do what only they can do.

When you think about your aspirations for your closest friends do you really want them to succeed? Are you willing to celebrate their victories the way you’d celebrate your own? Wouldn’t you love to join a community of people helping each other pursue their dreams, aspirations, and purposes?

It starts with you and it starts with me. As you walk through your day, think about the people you love. How can you use your influence to help them succeed? What access do you have that can further the calling of a friend? When you give your opportunities and energy to serve the calling of others, everyone wins.

Jeff Shinabarger is the author of More or Less: Choosing a Lifestyle of Excessive Generosity. He is a social entrepreneur, experience designer, cofounder of the Q event, and creative director at Catalyst. He is also the founder of Plywood People, an innovative community addressing social needs through creative services. He’s been featured in national media such as CNN, NPR, and Relevant Magazine and has been interviewed by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Chicago Sun-Times, among others. He and his family live in East Atlanta Village.

by Dave Truitt

One word can describe my years of volunteering at the Orange Conference—AWESOME

There are SO MANY reasons why it’s AWESOME to be an Orange Conference volunteer! Let me list just a few of the benefits I have discovered over my years of volunteering.

• I get to work beside other people who have a passion for children’s ministry.
• They feed you! And I’m not talking about a tray of cold cuts; I’m talking about REAL food! Plus, you get to eat with the other volunteers and staff. It’s a great opportunity to interact with other volunteers and share ministry ideas.
• I get a behind-the-scenes view of what goes into putting on a large conference.
• I feel like a star because I get to help people in this incredible environment.
• I still get to hear or be a part of a lot of the conference. Sure, as a volunteer you realize you are not going to get to see every part of the conference, but you’d be surprised to realize the large part of the conference you will still get to hear and see.
• I get appreciated! The Orange Team does a fantastic job of appreciating their volunteers and it always gives me ideas on how to appreciate the volunteers in my church.
• They Feed You! I know I’ve said this before, but this is a HUGE cost savings. If you volunteer for the conference, you not only don’t have to pay for the conference, but you also don’t have to pay for your food.
• I get to help be a part of something HUGE. Think of it, without volunteers, the Orange Conference wouldn’t be able to happen. I get to make it happen!

Being an Orange Conference volunteer rocks!

Dave Truitt is an Orange curriculum partner from Mechanicsburg, Penn. He has been at The Orange Conference (and previously Grow-up Conference) every year since 2005.

About my fifth year in ministry, I began experiencing nasty headaches. Combine full-time ministry with part-time grad school and three kids under the age of five and you have the perfect stress storm. Of course, I didn’t see it as that—I thought it was something medically terminal. But after a visit to my doctor, he well advised me of two things—cut down on two things in my life—caffeine and stress. He then asked me more about my work and asked me if I was passionate about what I do. For the first time ever, it took me a few moments to answer. I had always been passionate about serving in ministry. Then my doctor advised me in one more thing: if you want to continue to do what you love, you need to learn to say no once in a while and stick to doing what you do best.

Wow. He nailed my tendencies without even really knowing my story. I had a hard time saying no, and I wanted to do the best for God so I did it all—and then some. But I wanted to do more than survive; I wanted to be in ministry for the long haul. It was my heart cry, and I didn’t want to be a statistic of ministry burnout so I learned to recognize the warning signs, pulled back when needed, and learned to live with balance.

In Part Two of the book Mad Church Disease, author Anne Jackson examines the risk factors and symptoms of ministry burnout. Here are some of the warning signs:

Internal Factors
Personality and Family History: It doesn’t matter if you’re a Type A or a Type B personality, each can produce qualities that can lead to stress and burnout. Be aware of your family history and how you were raised to deal with stress or if you performed to please others.
Health: Stress filters out of your body and not always in a healthy way. Stomach pain, headaches, chest pains, are just some of the ways your body may be dealing with stress.
Relationship With Christ: When your time with God gets put on the back burner, it’s a sign that you’re heading for burnout. We can’t effectively be serving God if we’re not spending any time with Him.

External Factors
Distractions: Things such as technology can be a roadblock for us to take a break from ministry, to spend time alone or with our family, and can influence us in a negative way.
Pressure for Perfection: Competition, ego, drive to be the best, are all factors that can steer us toward burnout—even though they are all good qualities in appropriate portions. In addition, sometimes we get mismatched in our position and we’re working too hard at doing something we’re not designed to do naturally.

Church Politics: This could be unclear expectations set forth by your leadership, personality or value conflicts, no freedom to dream or grow, or constant pressure under fire to perform. Sometimes the church can be our worst enemy if we don’t learn to manage and balance the politics that come from an organization that’s doing God’s work but is still run by humans.

Think On This
What are things from your past that can make it difficult for you to do your best in the present? What are the things that distract you from your passions or goals in life? When do you feel out of control in your ministry position? How can you make sure you’re taking time with God to prevent ministry burnout?

Can you believe it—the countdown is already underway for OC13! We’re getting pretty excited and hope you are, too. Meet us in your area to talk about all things Orange, the conference, network with church leaders in your area, get questions answered, and exchange ideas. And we can’t imagine you need any more incentive to attend, but just to sweeten the pot we will be giving away an OC13 registration* at each stop!

And if you don’t happen to see one near your neighborhood, and are interested in hosting, please reach out to kporter@rethinkgroup.org by December 1, 2012, to get more info. All stops will be posted by February 1, 2013.

* OC13 free registration must be used for a new registration only.

Click here to let us know you’re coming.

Click here to let us know you’re coming.

Click here to let us know you’re coming.

Click here to let us know you’re coming.

I was talking to someone yesterday about good attributes a volunteer should have. Curious to see what the World Wide Web had to offer, I performed a couple of  Google searches—one for “How to be a better volunteer.” The first post I happened to find was one on WikiHow, entitled: “How to Know When Not to Volunteer.” Interested, I clicked. And there, among the list of scenarios, I found that I had violated several: Offering to volunteer when I didn’t really have time; Volunteering for activities I didn’t have the temperament for; Volunteering just because a friend did; and the list continues.

You can read the first part of the article here and jump to the actual post on WikiHow. Have you ever volunteered when you “shouldn’t” have?

How to Know When Not to Volunteer

Volunteering is an important and essential contribution from all members of society to help others, ourselves and to keep life running smoothly. But it’s possible to overextend yourself and experience burnout. This article is not intended to discourage you from volunteering. Rather, it is about exploring those occasions when there exist very good reasons for not offering your volunteer services or when, at the very least, you need to vary your volunteer offer.

1. Stop offering to volunteer if you do not have the time. If you cannot devote the necessary time, don’t say that you can. You create problems for other volunteers when you cease turning up or rarely turn up. It is also disruptive to have your absences occur at key moments when you said you’d do something but were unable to follow through. It’s better not to offer at all than to let someone down. This is especially important if you have signed up to visit nursing home residents. Lonely elderly people will quickly come to depend on your visits and won’t understand if you stop showing up.

2. Decline if you are already over-committed to volunteering. If you are already on a parent’s board, and making cookies for each bake sale, and helping adults to learn English in addition to working full-time, you may be starting to spread yourself too thin. Do not feel obliged to take on more, even if somebody asks. Volunteer overload is not good for you, your family or your work colleagues and it certainly isn’t good for the volunteer organization that can’t rely on your attendance because you’re overbooked. You may explain to the asking organization why you cannot extend yourself at the time, and remind them that you are open to volunteering in the future, when your current obligations have been met. However, you do not owe any explanation whatsoever. You can simply say “I am not available.”

3. Avoid volunteer activities for which you don’t have the temperament. Don’t become a volunteer firefighter if you’re afraid of fire or you lack physical fitness. Don’t become a volunteer health assistant if you faint at the sight of blood. Don’t volunteer in your child’s science classroom if you don’t relate well to children. Let others take the roles that you’re not suited for. Hunt around for roles better suited to you. Or tell the volunteer organization what your skills are and let them find a position better suited to your aptitude and interests. It’s far more helpful to devote a few hours to doing something that you can do well rather than volunteering many hours towards something you’re not suited for. [MORE]

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki building the world’s largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on “How to Know When Not to Volunteer.” Content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons License.

It seems like everyone is talking about the heat in the southeast. Twitpics of iPhone weather apps reporting 105-degree heat in Atlanta abound. Well, how do we at Orange stay cool? With an Orange Creamsicle Smoothie!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup crushed ice
• 1/2 cup orange juice pulp (from ~3 oranges) or one whole peeled orange, pulled apart *
• 1 cup coconut milk (or milk of your choice)
• 1 scoop organic vanilla protein powder
• 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. honey (optional for a sweeter taste)

*good source of fiber

Directions

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 16 oz.

• Calories: 303
• Total Fat: 6 g
• Saturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Sodium: 219 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 25 g
• Dietary Fiber: 3 g
• Sugars: 13 g
• Protein: 25 g

For this and other fiberlicious recipes, visit www.fortheloveoffiber.com.

This recipe was found: http://www.fitsugar.com/Healthy-Orange-Julius-Recipe-23752212

My son moved to L.A. last week to embark on an adventure. It’s a bit risky and he’s definitely taken a leap of faith—resigning from a position that paid him well and that he was successful in. While most young people his age are just happy to get a job post-graduation, he gave his up to pursue an endeavor that may or may not work. But his phone call on Monday night confirmed his decision—he was excited again, his voice filled with passion and enthusiasm. While his previous job was comfortable and he could do it well, he wasn’t working in a field where he could use his greatest strengths. But Monday morning, he got a taste or what it feels like to fully use his natural-born strengths on the job and I have no doubt that his risky adventure will lead to success because it’s honoring his strengths.

Many have used the online StrengthsFinder to discover where their greatest strengths lie (www.StrengthsFinder.com). But research has found that most people only participate in activities or work that have our strengths in play 17 percent of the time. That means, the vast majority of our days are filled with activities that bore us, frustrate us, or leave us cold. This month, we’re digging into Marcus Buckingham’s book, Go Put Your Strengths to Work. We’ll unwrap the six steps Buckingham lays out to seize control of your assets and give you a different approach to leveraging your strengths at work and in everyday life. Buckingham says it best with this, “You have development needs—areas where you need to grow, areas where you need to get better—but for you, as for all of us, you will learn the most, grow the most, and develop the most in your areas of greatest strength. Your strengths are your multiplier. Your strengths magnify you,” (p. 55). So, get ready to learn how to magnify!

Myth Busters
There are certain things in life that we’ve grown up assuming are true, we’ve never really challenged or questioned that what we know may not be true or may not be the best way to do things. The first step in putting your strengths to work is to take a look at the three myths that we tend to believe and stop us from using our strengths. Here’s a quick glimpse of the myths and the actual truths behind them:

MYTH: As you grow, your personality changes.

TRUTH: As you grow, you become more of who you already are.
Although our values, behaviors, skills, and self-awareness may grow or change over time, the most dominant aspects of our personalities remain the same.

MYTH: You will grow the most in your areas of weakness.

TRUTH: You will grow the most in your areas of greatest strength.
Most of us try to grow and fix our weaknesses in life. But we’re the most resilient, creative, and inquisitive in our areas of strength.

MYTH: A good team member does whatever it takes to help the team.

TRUTH: A good team member deliberately volunteers his strengths to the team most of the time.
The great teams are ones that are well-rounded, precisely because each team member is not. We aren’t effective when we try to be all things to all people.

In this book, each chapter concludes with practical ways individuals can work through each step to begin achieving use of their strengths. Use these tools as you work through this book and begin to put your assets to work.

Think On This
How does my current role in ministry use my strengths? What tasks or jobs am I doing only because I’m asked or no one else will do them and how does that deter me from what I do naturally well? Of the three myths, which ones have I always believed and how have they distracted me from using my strengths?

by Neil Hancock and Ben Fowlkes

Who are we? Our names are Neil and Ben. Why are we hijacking this blog? Well, sit back and read further, it will impact your life just like it has ours.

We met two years ago as volunteers at The Orange Conference. We were assigned to the breakout room, right next to the bathrooms—a popular thoroughfare at the time. We made our introductions and realized we were from neighboring towns.

A friendship was formed and two years later we had the opportunity to be directors at the same church. This opportunity led Neil back to a campus of a church where he had served as a lead volunteer in their children’s ministry. In fact, they had sent him to the very first Orange Conference. Neil is now the children’s pastor, and is teaching his team of volunteers to “Think Orange!”

Ben is the pastor of children’s ministries at a church now that is SOLD on Orange. He even attributes his job to a recommendation from a fellow Orange volunteer who he served with in both 2010 and 2011.

Being a volunteer at Orange Conference not only has been life changing for us, but we have met others from far away places such as, New Zealand, Australia and Japan, all of us passionate to help others in discovering and implementing the Orange concept in our churches.

We volunteer for the access to amazing leaders, conversations, wisdom gained from others in our field and the perks of being a volunteer—like T-shirts and delicious food!

As a volunteer, you walk away with more than a person could ever pay to learn. You walk away with friends, mentors, T-shirts and a passion to connect families, excited about volunteering again next year. We volunteer because it has changed our lives.

Are you ready to have fun and meet others who are having the time of their lives? Look for us, we love to dress in Orange, we love to have fun, we LOVE to volunteer.

So, sign up to volunteer today, you won’t regret it—it WILL change your life! In fact, you may just fall in love with volunteering like we did.

Did you know that Orange has a video account on Vimeo? From First Look Preview videos to music videos to MarriedPeople videos to Orange Specialists bio videos, to director’s notes videos, we have a cornucopia of videos that will give you a chuckle, inspire you, or teach you something new.

Here’s an old Orange Conference promo video made at the height of the “I’m on a horse” TV-commercial craze:

Orange Conference 2011 Promo from Orange on Vimeo.

Check out Vimeo.com/whatisorange today!

Every month in YouLead, we provide you with email copy that you can use to inform, invest, encourage, and praise your volunteers and staff. Following is an example of the emails we write for your use and encourage you to send out on a weekly basis. Click here if you’d like to try out a free month of YouLead.

A recent study conducted by Bibb Latané and John Darley tracked the behaviors of students at Columbia University. Enlisted to complete a survey, some students were left alone, while some were in a room with other students. As they filled out their surveys, a “crisis” emerged as smoke filled the room. Of those sitting alone in a room, 75 percent got up and alerted someone about the smoke. But only 38 percent of those sitting in a group reported the smoke. The conclusion? The groups failed to respond to the crisis because they looked to others in the group for cues on how to interpret the event. When the others in the group didn’t respond to the smoke, everyone concluded that it wasn’t a big deal. (Switch by Chip Heath and Dan Heath, p. 226)

Change can be difficult in churches and ministries. A change in service times or programming can rally a mutiny if the crowd takes cues from the wrong person. As leaders, you can be a powerful influence in how people react to changes in your ministry. Children, students, and families look to ministry leaders for assurance during transitional periods in ministry. When you rally around the change and speak positively about it, people are more likely to get behind the change and accept it. We want our volunteers to be on board when changes occur so if you’re unsure about the change or if you have questions, just ask. We’re here to support you as you help us lead and influence families.