Assistant Minister Volunteer

Thank you so much for volunteering at Family of Christ!  We could not be a successful, influential, loving congregation without your commitment and involvement.

As an Assistant Minister you are helping lead worship and distributing the Eucharist to the congregation of Family of Christ Lutheran Church.  You will receive an email the week before your Sunday which will include the leaders guide for the week you will be assisting.  Please take some time to read over the prayers and if you have any questions ask the pastor before the service.

Please read through the following responsibilities:

• Please arrive 30 minutes before the service
• Check with the pastor for any changes
• Walk in the with pastor as the service begins
  • Pause briefly at the altar and be seated in the front row
• When you say the prayer of the day do so behind the altar
  • Walk behind the altar near the end of the Hymn of Praise
  • Pray while holding hands palm up to the ceiling
• If doing the Children’s sermon
  • Invite Children forward to sit on the floor in front of the altar area
  • After sermon send them back to get activity bags
• Apostles Creed, Peace, and Offering
  • Following the sermon hymn come forward and stand in center of Sanctuary in front of the altar. Invite people “Please join me in professing the words of the Apostles Creed” “I Believe in ….”
  • Invite people to share the peace. “The peace of God be with you always” “And also with you” “Please spend a few moments passing the peace to one another.
  • After sharing the peace for a while invite the ushers forward to take the regular offering
  • After the ushers have begun the regular offering invite children forward for noisy offering. The blue buckets will be next to the altar
  • Have one of the kids collect the offering and put the buckets back
  • Receive the regular offering and place it on the altar
• Prayers
  • After announcements, go behind the altar
  • The prayers will be sent to you during the week before your Sunday or will be a part of the leader’s guides
  • Read the prayers from behind the altar
• Communion
  • You will help with communion by distributing the bread
  • While pastor is saying the words of institution wash and/or disinfect hands in sacristy or with the sanitizer on the altar
  • You will be distributing the bread/wafers
  • Line up on the opposite side of the pastor for distribution you will be leading one of the two lines
  • If people want gluten-free please use the wafers in the smaller cup
  • Distribute the wafers with the following words, “The body of Christ given for you.”
  • If you need more wafers, they are available in the covered cup on the altar
  • When Communion is finished return wine to the altar
• At the Closing Hymn, please exit the sanctuary with the pastor, pausing briefly at the altar before going down the aisle
• After the closing hymn say “Go in peace, to love and serve the Lord.       Thanks be to God.”

Thank you for your volunteering and ministry!