PREAMBLE

Jesus Christ is the foundation and cornerstone of the church. He came to restore man’s broken relationship with God. His finished work on the cross made that possible. Calvary Chapel Central Phoenix (CCC) has been formed as a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Our supreme desire is to know Christ and to be conformed to His image by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We believe that the Bible is the inspired, infallible word of God and that it is relevant and applicable to man today. Therefore, we place great emphasis upon teaching it in public, studying it in private and using it as a guide for our daily lives. As believers, we acknowledge that we are to be growing in our walk with the Lord. We encourage this by abiding in Christ through obedience to His Word, prayer, fellowship and the yielding of our lives to the Holy Spirit. We declare earnestly that Christian service is an essential part of that walk and is the responsibility of all believers.

Love is the greatest virtue and demonstration of the reality of Jesus Christ and the fullness of His Spirit in our lives. We will endeavor to show a Christ-like love toward all, displaying it in our lives by our deeds as well as our words.

We believe God is worthy of all praise, reverence and love. It is our goal to worship Him with our whole lives — at home, at work or wherever else we find ourselves. We will set aside a special time to worship Him whenever we gather together in His name, and, as servants in His worship ministry here at CCC, we will strive to create an environment through prayer, song and example in which others will be encouraged to enter into His presence to worship and adore Him.

CALLING

We require a threefold calling on the life of anyone who would become a servant in the worship ministry here at CCC. First, and most important, anyone who would serve must be a Spirit-filled believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. Ministering to God’s people is far too important to allow anyone who is not unequivocally born again to participate. A profession of faith will be required of all applicants.

Second, anyone who would serve in the worship ministry here at CCC must be called to this church; that is, CCC must be their home church as evidenced by regular attendance, a willingness to accept and support those in leadership, and participation in the financial and other support requirements of the body.

Finally, servants in the worship ministry must be called by God to participate in this unique ministry. We consider it a privilege rather than a chore to serve the Lord by leading His people into His presence through song, and by reaching out to the lost through evangelical music. Anyone who would serve in this capacity here at CCC must have a genuine calling and some degree of talent in these areas. Performing music is always a means to an end in this ministry, never an end in itself. Every applicant should earnestly seek the Lord in prayer and patiently await a clear and direct answer before proceeding. A participant who is uncertain of his calling or his true reasons for serving will soon find the required sacrifice of time, effort and personal preferences (e.g., musical styles, opportunities for participation, etc.) to be burdensome. The worship ministry should never be a chore. For these reasons, we ask that applicants wait at least three months to as much as a year after beginning regular attendance at CCC before entering the worship ministry. This time is designed to allow us to get to know each other before commitments are made. We encourage interested parties to use this time to familiarize themselves with the worship ministry through such activities as attending worship ministry meetings, getting copies of chord charts and beginning to learn some of the worship songs we do, learning the personal computer skills necessary to set up and operate our lyrics projection system, volunteering to assist in moving and setting up equipment for outreaches, and participating in other worship related activities that may present themselves.

COMMITMENT

Our responsibility to protect the flock far outweighs any reluctance we may have to inquire into the personal lives of would-be servants. Anyone interested in serving in the worship ministry will, therefore, be asked to demonstrate a certain level of maturity and commitment by filling out an application (form attached). The application will ask for some very personal information. We will treat this information with due respect and confidentiality. Our intent is to build a sufficient base upon which, with the covering of prayer, we can make an informed decision about an applicants compatibility with the worship ministry objectives here at CCC.

It is our desire that the main gift of every worship ministry servant at CCC would always be a heart that longs to worship the Lord. Musical ability is considered secondary to this attribute. Nonetheless, a certain level of musicianship is necessary in order to prevent distractions in this unique ministry. We ask that applicants submit to an honest evaluation of the suitability of their current skill level before being accepted.

Just as important as musicianship is the ability to work in a team environment. Servants in the CCC worship ministry must be willing to set aside any personal preferences or agendas that might be in conflict with worship team goals. Worship ministry servants must have a willingness to submit to leadership, accept whatever teammates are assigned for a given service, be available for whatever worship opportunities arise (including children’s ministry, mid-week services, bible studies, etc.), and generally shoulder the load as servants of all at CCC.

After initial acceptance into the CCC worship ministry, there will be a formal review with a worship leader at the end of six months to ensure that expectations on both sides are being met. We humbly request that each new member commit to this probationary period concept to give both parties an opportunity to ensure that they are in God’s will

SERVICE

Service in the worship ministry begins with prayer. Worship ministry servants should have active individual prayer lives, lifting up each other, CCC leadership, the body of believers we serve and the lost that the Lord puts in our path. We strive to stay in God’s will by seeking His guidance, His wisdom and the outpouring of His Spirit in our ministry. In addition, we gather regularly to pray together before services. All worship ministry servants are welcome and encouraged to participate whether they are scheduled for a particular service or not.

Many times, service is rendered most effectively in the worship ministry by the example we provide. This is especially true of our conduct, sincerity, dress, etc., when we are before the body engaged in worship, but it is just as true when we are in the audience. Dress should be modest and neat, conduct should be such that attention is drawn to the Lord rather than ourselves, and worship should always be as unto the Lord. We strive to lead our brothers and sisters into His presence not by commanding them, but by entering there ourselves and inviting them to follow.

Faithfulness is essential in any ministry, and the worship ministry at CCC is certainly no exception. The faithfulness of worship ministry servants should embrace punctuality, individual and team rehearsals, prayer, regular attendance at church, participation in worship ministry meetings, support of the vision and leadership of CCC (insofar as they are properly aligned with the will of the Lord), and support of the body’s fiscal and other support requirements.

Availability for service is an area in which we are all attacked, more and more it seems as the pace of our daily lives continuously increases. But to be forewarned is to be forearmed. We must make every effort to seek the Lord’s will in the balancing of our commitments to Him, our families, our jobs and our ministry. If commitments in the first three areas are such that insufficient time is left for the worship ministry, servants are expected to seek the counsel of leadership and perhaps step down until a proper balance can be achieved. Availability within the worship ministry should embrace a willingness to provide musical worship for any service in which there is a need including, as mentioned earlier, the children’s ministry, mid-week services, outreaches, bible studies and other opportunities that arise from time to time. It also should embrace such things as the willingness to accept whatever teammates are assigned, making oneself available for post-service “counseling,” prayer and fellowship with the body at the Lord’s leading, and taking on the responsibility (and immense blessing) of mentoring new worship ministry servants or interested members of the body.

Worship ministry servants must make a conscious and unwavering effort to remain teachable. We are, of course, to be seeking to learn daily that which the Lord reveals of Himself through the study of His word, the guidance of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, and our relationship with Him through prayer. We must also remain teachable in our musical skills, ministry techniques, servanthood requirements and other practical elements of our ministry. Our goal as servants is to subordinate our personal goals and preferences to those of the worship ministry team and, more importantly, to the will of our Lord. In order to serve those He entrusts to us, we ask for more of Him and less of us in our lives and ministry

CONCLUSION

When we step out in the service of our Lord, we become targets. Anyone who would serve must be aware that the evil one will surely test them and their commitment. This is not to scare anyone away, but rather to encourage would-be servants in this ministry to put on the full armor that God so graciously provides

Please be aware that we rely primarily on the honor system in this ministry. This document, for instance, is meant to be a set of guiding principles rather than a list of rules. That means that each servant is expected to be self-assessing and self-disciplined. If you are in doubt about the propriety of some behavior, apparel, song, etc., please ask someone in leadership or just avoid it. Our ultimate goal is to lay down our lives, pick up our crosses and follow Jesus.

The worship ministry leadership at CCC is committed to ministering to its members as well as the body. We proclaim that we are all sinners, saved by the grace of God, striving daily to draw closer to Him. Please take no offense at anything in this document that may seem at first to be hurtful, it is not meant to be. We are striving to have the kind of worship ministry and be the kind of servants that our Lord desires. If you have questions about any part of this guide, please feel free to come and talk openly to us.

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