Worship Team Guidelines Foothills Christian Church (Updated June 18, 2014)

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1 Worship Team Guidelines Foothills Christian Church (Updated June 18, 2014) Purpose of Guidelines To ensure current and future members of the Foothills Christian Church worship team have an understanding of the purpose and goals of the worship team. To identify and establish guidelines and disciplines that will assist the worship team in meeting the goals and purposes. By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established Proverbs 24:3 Goals Of The Worship Team To bring glory, honor, and pleasure to God the Father and His son, our Savior, Jesus Christ through unified and Spirit led worship each and every time we lead a corporate body in worship. To effectively model worship for the body we are blessed to serve, whether we re leading or in the congregation. To experience the presence of God each and every time we corporately worship Him. God is enthroned on the praises of His people Psalm 22:3 Be an extension of the vision of the pastoral staff. Qualifications 1. A committed disciple of Jesus Christ 2. Attend Foothills Christian Church for a minimum of six (6) months prior to auditioning 3. Recommendation from one of the pastoral staff, home fellowship pastor, or a current member of the worship team. 4. All new members must audition 5. God centered in purpose; serving God must be the reason you re on the team. Whether then you eat or drink, or whatever you do, DO IT FOR THE GLORY OF GOD! 1 Cor 10:31 Guiding Principles The worship ministry is a very visible ministry. Therefore it is important that participants in this ministry serve as examples for those we serve. We are leadership. To achieve our goal of bringing glory to Jesus the following guiding principles must be followed 1. Be worshippers : Demonstrate your love for God by personal and public worship, and practicing spiritual disciplines such as regular times of prayer; obedience to God s word, and regular church attendance even on weeks that you are not scheduled to play.

2 2. Be a Tither: The bible is specific in Malachi 3:10 that if you are not honoring God with your finances, through the tithe, that you are robbing Him. There is no place on the worship team at Foothills Christian Church for robbers of God. It is important to worship God privately before we are placed in a position to lead worship publicly. Financial records for all worship team members are reviewed every six (6) months. 3. Accountability. For your own growth and protection it is mandatory to have accountability in your life. This can be achieved through either attending a home fellowship or another type of small group. We recognize that because of work schedules, or other issues, attendance at a home group may not always be feasible. In its place a personal mentor/accountability partner is acceptable. Your home group leader/accountability partner will be contacted informing them of this requirement and will be asked to advise the Worship Pastor if any circumstances arise that would prevent your participation on the worship team. 4. Demonstrate a Servant s Heart; We look to Jesus as our example of servant-hood (John 13). His example of sacrificial service is the model we should strive for as we serve the congregation at Foothills, and the other team members. It s an honor to serve Jesus, and His people on the worship team, and it is recognized that it involves a sacrifice of time and effort. 5. Demonstrate loyalty to church leadership. Be respectful to all levels of church leadership. Refrain from criticism of all church leadership. Be supportive of church s goals, visions and priorities. Hebrews 13:17 1Thes 5: Free from addictions; not under bondage to any habit. Personal holiness is critical to the success of the worship team. We are only as strong as our weakest link. We must be careful to ensure that we are not mastered by anything that could potentially be destructive to us as individuals, or to the church its ministry, or especially that would dishonor Jesus. 1 Thes 4: Cor 6: 20 1 Peter 1: Community Teamwork is very important (very big!). Unity within the worship team is critical to its success. Behold how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell in unity Psalm 133:1 Regular participation in a home fellowship, or with a mentor or accountability partner is mandatory. This promotes accountability, establishes friendships and relationships are developed and nurtured It s also important that you pray for the worship team, and each other. Especially pray that God will use us to bring glory to Himself each and every time we lead - Ephesians 6:18

3 Enthusiastic spousal support is extremely important. Serving on the worship team is a sacrifice. There are special services that need musical support, special events like Christmas Eve and Easter where extra services are scheduled, Sunday night prayer meetings, special nights of worship and ministry, and of course there is the early morning rehearsal on Sunday morning. It is important that your spouse is aware of the time requirements and whole heartedly supports your participation. Love one another; God set the example where He gave sacrificially His Son for us. It is crucial that we as a team LOVE one another sacrificially. We need to always respect each person on the team, and treat them as the brother or sister in Christ that they are, and that Jesus valued so much that He died for them. v 1 John 4:7-8, 11 You shall love your neighbor as yourself Mark 12:31 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love, give preference to one another in honor Romans 12:10 v Ephesians 4:31-32 Encourage one another; Because the worship ministry is so important we can expect that the enemy might take opportunities to discourage those that participate. Use opportunities that God gives you to encourage those you serve with. v Hebrew 10:24 1Thes 5:11 v 1 Cor 12 Saturday night service The Saturday night band practice schedule is set by the Saturday night worship leader. Courtesy must be extended to each person during the sound check Sunday morning All musicians must be tuned and ready to play at 7:00 a.m. or as specified by the worship leader. All vocalists must be at their microphones no later than 7:00 a.m. Practice and preparation prior to rehearsal is extremely important (listen to the songs on Planning Center!) Courtesy must be extended to each person during sound check. Special services and meetings v Be prepared to play at the time specified by the worship leader. Disciplines v Notify worship leader as soon as possible if unable to play due to vacations, sickness or other emergency. If possible, arrange for a substitute prior to notifying the worship leader. v Treat special meetings and events with the same priority as the Saturday night and Sunday morning services.

4 v Every six months the worship pastor sends out an EXCEL spreadsheet showing the band schedule for the six month period. This is so team members can schedule vacations, or get a substitute when a personal event conflicts with the worship team schedule. However, FCC uses the planning tool PLANNING CENTER to when making weekly assignments. v The weeks you are scheduled to play/sing you will receive an notification (invite) from Planning Center. It is your responsibility to accept or decline the invitation. You would decline if you have a personal reason for not participating (vacation, illness, family event, etc.). Responding to the invite as early as possible notifies the worship leader as to who is committed for the weekend services, and provides ample time to schedule a substitute if necessary. Once an invite is accepted you will be able to view the worship song plan for the weekend, Audio files and chord charts are included for personal preparation purposes. Appropriate dress/attire on Sunday; a) Men: T-shirts acceptable if clean and do not have objectionable slogans or graphics. Shirts with buttons and/or polo shirts preferred. Shirts do not have to be tucked in; jeans okay as long as they are clean and free of holes. Shoes, no sandals. Tennis shoes okay as long as they are clean. b) Women; dresses need to be a proper length and style (the stage is elevated!) No tank tops. Blouses with spaghetti straps should be avoided unless covered by a sweater or jacket. Midriff covered. Jeans and pants are okay. c) Worship leader has final say as to what is considered appropriate. Inappropriate attire will result in non-participation on the worship team for that particular day. We are visible to the whole congregation and are leaders. There are many parents who struggle with their children regarding getting tattoos, piercings, etc. and we want to be a support to parents as they address this issue. v Men s earrings removed when at church. v Tongue, eye brow, nose studs/rings not permitted on stage. v If you have a previously applied tattoo, one you purchased prior to being on the worship team, that is on a visible part of your body (arms, ankles, etc) they must be covered up. Please be advised that if you plan to get a new tattoo this will disqualify you as a member of the worship team. Exceptions can be made on a spot basis (example; an electrician that gets married and to reduce the chance of electrocution has his wedding ring tattooed on his ring finger). Please see Hank before you make a decision to apply a tattoo. v Remember that one of our purposes is to model worship. While this may include hand motions such as clapping and raising our hands, it is important that we do not allow ourselves to be a distraction to the congregation. Avoid exaggerated body movements that would draw attention to yourself and distract the congregation.. v Personal vehicles need to be parked off the main parking area to open more spaces for our visitors and congregants. Please part on Cypress, across the street in the Trueline Automotive parking lot on West Bradley, or in one of the satellite parking lots. If you need to know where to park, please see the worship pastor. v Come prepared for performance; have music book; instrument in good working condition. Keep worship music book organized.

5 v Be punctual (Romans 12:10)