USHERING MINISTRY CORE VALUES

• Honesty
• Integrity
• Patience
• Accountability
• Team Work
• Humility
• Compassion
• Godliness

I believe that an usher’s performance can make or break the outcome of the service as well as bring a true reflection of how friendly and loving the church really is. Ushers set the spiritual climate of the service by presenting a joyful attitude, make others feel welcome and comfortable, and make sure that everything is flowing in a proper order so that everyone is free to worship without interruption.

Ushers are a tremendous force in setting the tone for worship and helping to prepare the people to hear and respond to the Word of God. They are also instrumental of shaping the perception of the visitors and influence their choice whether to visit again or join the congregation.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD USHER

• Good communication skills
• High level of confidence
• Manage their time well
• Good in multitasking
• High level of patience
• Neat and tidy (well groomed)
• Use proper language
• Act and walk properly
• Manage to understand everything fast

QUALIFICATION OF AN EFFECTIVE USHER

Not just anyone can be an usher, in the same way, that not just anyone can be on the worship team, work in children’s ministry or lead a small group. The right gifts, passion, and ability make a big difference.

The fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23 is a solid guideline for a good usher. The point is not about perfection, but a heartfelt motive and desire to live a life of a spirit-filled believer serving God diligently in this sector.

1. The usher’s spiritual relationship with the Lord must be continually growing such that his
   relationship with his fellowmen becomes exemplary.
2. An usher must attend meeting regularly.
3. An usher must constantly desire to develop and enhance team spirit among the members of the
   ministry.
4. Friendliness is a very important characteristic of a good usher.
5. Other attributes of a good usher are: punctuality, humility, graciousness, kindness, submissiveness, flexibility, cleanness (neat), sensitiveness (alert), faithfulness (dependable), availability, dedicated, poised and most of all, prayerful.
6. An usher should be knowledgeable particularly about the church – its faith, worship gathering schedules, workers, outreaches, ministries and facilities.

SPIRITUAL QUALIFICATIONS OF AN USHER

The fruit of the spirit found in Galatians 5 is a solid guideline for a good usher. This is not about perfection, but a heartfelt motive and desire to live a life of a spirit-filled believer.

• Love – In I Corinthians 13:13 the apostle Paul says, of faith, hope and love, that love is the greatest of these things. If you choose to genuinely love the people you serve as an usher, God will bless your actions.
• Joy – Take God seriously, but don’t take yourself too seriously. Lighten up and enjoy the moment. Your spirit will be contagious to others. If you are cold, aloof, and don’t smile (basically, if you are a grumpy usher) you will discourage others around you.
• Peace – You can add peace, calm, and order to what might otherwise be an overwhelming and hectic experience.
• Patience – This is a great quality of a good usher. Most of us are impatient by nature. Many of the people will have waited in line to park, waited in line to give offering, and waited in line for meals. Their patience will be running thin. You can set a good example with your patience toward them.
• Kindness – This is the attitude that makes you approachable as an usher. Going the extra mile can make all the difference in the world! Be imaginative. Think of all the ways you could show kindness to someone as they come to worship.
• Goodness – The inner quality of goodness is a gift that results from the Holy Spirit’s power working within us. This state of being will naturally spill over into your service and bring an intangible but powerful presence into the worship experience.
• Faithfulness – Faithfulness as a Christian bleeds over into your faithfulness as an usher. Showing up, being responsible and doing your ministry well matters to everyone. It matters to God, and it matters to all those who call your church home.
• Gentleness – A mature usher never throws around his or her authority. The best usher is a humble one who seeks to put others first no matter how much pressure may be present in the moment.
• Self-Control – It is impossible to control a large crowd if we cannot control ourselves. In calm moments self-control is easy, it’s under the pressure of hectic moments and last minute changes that your grace and self-control will shine.

Other Qualifications of an Usher

• You understand the vital role of the usher ministry.
• You enjoy and care about people.
• You possess a servant’s heart.
• You are committed to the vision of your church.
• You are supportive of the leadership at your church.

Responsibilities Of An Usher

1. Faithfully attend church, whether you have ushering responsibilities that day.
2. Arrive at the church 30 minutes prior to the start of the service.
3. Dress should be appropriate, descent, clean, and neat.
4. Work and receive instructions from the Chief Usher.
5. Get the bulletins and take them to the assigned positions.
6. Maintain supplies at the Altar, make sure pews have adequate hymnals, Bibles, pencils, and offering envelopes if provided. In most churches, these are not provided so your responsibility will be to make sure pews are well organized and neat.
7. Welcome arriving congregation with a warm, friendly smile.
8. Be alert for issues that may need your attention.
9. Provide directions to the nursing mothers, Sunday school children, etc.
10. Assist the elderly and handicapped out of their cars and into the church.
11. Be available for offering, special offerings, and other duties as directed by the Pastor.
12. In some churches, several ushers and church deacons count the offerings and place the offering in the safe.
13. After the offering, at least one usher must remain in the lobby area to offer assistance when needed. They can monitor the hallways for unexpected guests.
14. Be aware of the temperature in the sanctuary.
15. Some churches require an usher to count attendance.
16. Be available around the Alter.
17. After the service has ended, have a designated usher go through the church building to make sure doors and windows are locked and no one else is in the building.
18. Turn out lights, lock all doors and windows, and ensure all power sources are switched off.
19. Provide Emergency help when needed in an orderly fashion.

20. During rainy months, provide rails for the congregation to scrub away mud and wipe their shoes.

  Chief/Head Usher Responsibilities 

1. Receive special instructions from the Pastor.
2. Oversee and direct operations of ushers during the assigned time frame. Make sure special instructions from Pastor is followed through.
3. Contact usher crewmembers prior to the start of the service to make sure there will be an ample number of ushers available. Make usher substitutions when necessary.
4. Conduct pre-service prayer.
5. Provide teaching and training for all ushers which includes, greeting others, how to handle emergencies, how to assist congregational needs, offering duties, and provide courteous and thoughtful attitude in their role.
6. Maintain open communication with all ushers.
7. Rotate ushers to avoid usher-burnout and allow others to be involved in providing services to the church.
8. Make sure to evaluate the offering procedures to have an air-tight system of removing offerings from the sanctuary to the time it is placed in the church safe for security purposes.
9. Develop and train ushers how to handle overflow seating situations.
10. Maintain church attendance recorded, list of visitors details and people with special needs.

Usher’s Conduct 

1. An usher should always display a positive warm smile to everyone who comes into the church or anyone they may assist.
2. An usher must display a servant’s heart, willing to always serve anyone, no matter how big or small the request.
3. An usher must avoid long conversations that could overlook providing a handshake, smile, and greeting to everyone who is in attendance.
4. An usher must never place his/her hands on the opposite sex other than a friendly handshake or helping someone at their request. Ask before touching.
5. An usher’s conduct should be above reproach and should reflect a gentle Godly spirit to all they serve.
6. Only females will place and remove modesty cloths on women around the altar.            

Emergency Procedures

In the event of an emergency, the safety of the church members is every usher’s first responsibility.  Most emergencies are for medical attention or some kind of disturbance with an individual. In these cases, please follow the instructions listed below.

1. Clear the area to allow assistance.
2. Always assign one person to call the police, ambulance or fire brigade where need be.
3. Conduct a scene survey and casualty assessment.
4. Station one person to help emergency personnel to the person who needs help. Have another usher make sure the isles are clear for emergency personnel.
5. Keep either an usher or experienced medical person from the church, next to the afflicted person at all times.
6. Encourage others to pray.
7. Assign one person to remain close to the family members and friends.
8. Monitor and make sure the area is not crowded by on-lookers.

 Evacuation Procedures

Ushers should maintain order to the best of their ability in the event of any kind of evacuation. In this case, the ushers should start with the last pew or row in the sanctuary and procedure to usher people out to a nearby exit. If the church has front exits, an usher will escort people from the front rows while others are going out the back rows.

Ushers should be assigned to help others in the building at the same time, such as Sunday school church, youth department, checking the washrooms and kitchen, etc. to ensure an evacuation is conducted in a safe and timely manner. It is good for all ushers to check remaining rooms to make sure everyone has evacuated. Once outside, the ushers can determine with others whether anyone is missing.

It should be also emphasized that the evacuation groups should congregate away from the church building in case of a fire or other dangers. It is good for the ushers to have a plan to take people to a place of safety prior to any kind of emergency.

In cases of fire, it is always best to call the fire brigade when in doubt. The longer the delay, there is a greater risk to the building and others. On a very small fire that can be put out with an extinguisher, put out the fire, and monitor it. Determine whether it was an extremely small fire to not disrupt the service but in most cases evacuations are the best solution. Again, safety comes first and it is always best to be safe.

In putting out a small fire, do not place your safety or the safety of others at risk! If the fire grows too large or aggressive to control by an extinguisher, time and safety are compromised. Exit the building immediately.

Disturbances 

Disturbances by mentally ill, distraught persons, or people who wish to disturb the service to gain something else other than respecting the house of God, require discernment on the part of the chief usher and other ushers present. In some cases, the pastor may deal with issues but for the most part, it will be the responsibility of the chief usher and other ushers to carry out the procedures.

1. Determine whether a person needs to be taken out of the sanctuary.
2. Determine how you wish to do this. Most of the times, it can be handled through a gentle but yet firm statement to come with the usher. If the disturbance is overbearing and causing further trouble, it may take a couple of ushers, one on each side, to gently encourage the person to another place. If they still refuse to be removed, then contact a senior elder or senior pastor for further assistance.
3. Determine a safe place to deal with this person and firmly state this type of behavior is not wanted or accepted in our services. Please distinguish between the person and the behavior. Most churches welcome everyone but not the disruptive behaviors.
4. Determine whether the person will stop or will have to be asked to leave the building. If they refuse, you may have to call the police department for help to remove this person.
5. If an individual is distraught due to grief, please ask them to step out and gently escort them out of the sanctuary. Ask the grieving person, “How can we help?” or “We have someone who will pray with you, please come with me.” Please do this in a loving and tactful manner. Have another usher to get senior elders to come pray with them.
6. On disturbances of family battles where one person attends church and another comes into the church to see their children or spouse, please escort the troubling person out of the sanctuary or area where the spouse or children are. In today’s times, there are so many legal issues of restraining orders, custody battles, etc. and unfortunately, there are times when others will try to take advantage of picking up a child they could not previously see or have a setting they think they can freely talk to their spouse.
7. Because of these and other issues that may arise in the course of the service, a good usher comes prepared mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually.

DUTIES OF THE USHER
Arrival and Departure
1. The usher should arrive at the duty site at least fifteen (15) minutes early to pray, to be
sure all are ready and early arrivals are made comfortable.

2. Conduct brief orientation to those who are coming for the first time.
3. In the event of special activities, the usher must be ready to come earlier as required.
4. The usher must leave the duty site only when fully satisfied that no further work is needed.

Greeting
1. The usher should greet arrivals in a friendly and cordial manner.

2. There should be no extended conversation so as to delay movement.
3. Any special request like persons wanting to see the pastor or any other person in the church should be attended promptly but should be passed on to other ushers not assigned for greeting.

Seating
1. Whenever possible, arrivals should be conducted to the seats nearest the pulpit, the front seats. This must be done with utmost courtesy without hint of coercion.

2. The ushers should discourage if not stop movement when prayer is being said or when worship is in progress.
3. Conducting to seats may be done before the start of the service, during praise time,
   during announcements and while the preacher is moving to the pulpit.
4. Arrivals during the sermon should be seated at the back whenever possible but at all times done in such a manner that creates the least disturbance.
5. Ushers assigned to spot vacant seats should remain alert at their post at the longest possible time or until they are satisfied that there will be no more arrivals.

GENERAL GUIDELINES
1. Ushers must observe proper personal hygiene as control/elimination of bad breath and body odor.

2. Ushers should not chew gum or any other way call attention to themselves.
3. Ushers should wear their uniforms or the designated attires. Always wear usher’s name badges
   when on duty.
4. Be courteous and tactful at all times. Never react to discourtesy or rebuff, instead act in Christian love.
5. Avoid favoritism or partiality to anyone.
6. Always straighten out any misunderstanding that might arise in the performance of duties.
7. Notify the pastor of the presence of an important person.
8. Keep children quiet, they are not to walk or run around during service. Request the parents to take crying or loud children out. Reserve seats for parents with infants/ toddlers and elderly.
9. Know the plan of action in case of emergency or contingency, such as overflow crowd or
   sudden outburst of emotion. Ushers assigned in the evening fellowship or night vigil must always carry a flashlight.
10. Be alert in spotting intruders particularly pickpockets who may be posing as worshippers.
11. Be ready to serve Holy Communion elements and be familiar with the proper procedures of serving the elements.
12. Be ready to assist those who are assigned at the pulpit or persons rendering special
    performance offering.
13. Be alert for opportunities to witness and share the Good News.
14. Be alert and sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
15. Always display a warm, be served, sincere smile.
16. Don’t be a bone crusher. Use a firm, not crushing handshake.
17. Learn the names of the people you greet.
18. Refrain from loud whispering.
19. Listen to the person in charge of the service for instructions.
20. Be a tither – faithful
21. Worship but be attentive.
22. Be firm not tough.
23. Be consistent – culture.
24. Develop effective people skills.
25. Always keep the ushers desk active.

Generally, the ministry of church ushers focuses on the following areas of responsibilities (if they occur in your church):

• Preparing the baptismal font for baptisms
• Guide people to the currently open seating area with a smile and open posture as they point to where seating is open.
• Reset the church hall for the next service.
• Politely asking for the removal of hats on the men and boys.
• Keeping those praying or dancing “under the power of the Spirit” safe from stumbling into chairs or other worshippers.
• Placing a cover sheet on women who “get overpowered in the Spirit.”
• Catching people who fall or start dancing “in the Spirit.”
• Hospitality Receptions after the service

• Church ushers are well-versed in emergency procedures. In case of an emergency, the ushers will take the lead in getting people to safety in an orderly manner.
• After the service, ushers will again be at the door to greet the congregation as they leave and provide assistance as needed. In many churches, the ushers will then make sure that the sanctuary is tidy.

• Remain at assigned post throughout the event unless taking an assigned break

Ushers Scope Of Operation

Take initiative

The cardinal sin of an usher is not to pay attention. At all times watch what is going on in your section and jump in to handle it. If you aren’t sure what to do, ask your team leader. The only wrong choice is to do nothing. Never assume “someone” else is taking care of the need.  Pay attention, take the initiative, and make it happen.

Pre-Briefing and Postmortem Meeting

Have regular meetings of the ushers for the purpose of instruction, interchange of ideas, suggestions, and discussion of experiences and problems. In some churches the ushers meet for fifteen minutes before every worship service.

Fill First Pews First

It is always important to get the front pews filled as early as possible. That is the secret of getting the people to the front. If you allow the rear and center of the nave to be filled first, it will be very difficult to persuade anyone to sit in the front. The reason for this is psycho logical. It creates the impression that the front pews are undesirable, since others have avoided them. It also makes some people self-conscious. Their timid natures rebel against the idea of going down the aisle past a lot of other people. It fills them with fear.

In large churches it might be well to have ushers stationed at various sections of pews, and to direct the people from one usher to another.

Don’t try to force anyone to sit where he does not want to sit. Ushers must not express surprise or resentment if anyone does not follow to the place where they want to seat him. They must try to act as though nothing unusual had happened, return to such a person, and kindly give him a bulletin. No matter how provoking a situation may be, the ushers should always graciously give in to the wishes of the worshippers. If a reserved section is involved, simply state that it is reserved, and suggest another place. Don’t argue. Don’t let anyone know that he is in the wrong. Ushers should always know where the empty places are, and never hunt for seats. They should never run after anyone down the aisle.

Be Professional in your Appearance

Conduct your work in a dignified and reverent manner. Ushers should be dressed neatly and appropriately for the worship of God. They should be courteous, pleasant, and kind. They should always “be on the job. When their duties require them to be on their feet, they should be erect and tending to business. When they do not have to be up, they should be seated so as to be absorbed in the congregation and actively engaged in worship.

Always learn to absorb the pressure when it comes

Most of the ministry of an usher is pure joy. Seriously, it’s a lot of fun. But on occasion, there are moments of pressure when someone is upset, or something isn’t working right. In these moments never transfer the pressure to the person entering into their worship experience. You are the leader. You absorb the pressure. Get help if you need it, but never make the issue their problem. You help deliver a solution.

Own your section, lead your section, shepherd your section.

Seat the worshippers as much as possible where they want to sit. Ushers should study the congregation, learn the favorite places of the members, especially those that are hard of hearing, the near-sighted, the mothers with babies, and those who are ill. Visitors and people who come early are entitled to the best seats, if they want them. But no one ought to insist on his rights contrary to the law of Christian charity. Parents with small children should be seated in the rear, so that they will not disturb the whole congregation if they have to leave, and will feel they can go out without difficulty in case of necessity.

In an average environment with average ushers, once the seats are filled the ushers relax and mentally check out. As leaders, the ushers are empowered to take ownership of the section of seats they serve in and give leadership where needed.

Each usher should do everything in their power to ensure that the people have the best opportunity possible to connect with and hear from God. Each usher can shepherd the people by getting to know them, praying for them, learning their names, and meeting appropriate needs.

Follow the direction of your Chief/Head usher.

All good leaders are good followers. It is important that each usher follows the leadership of the team leader. Be supportive and encouraging. Offer suggestions if you have good ideas, but don’t be overly sensitive if your ideas aren’t used. Your chief usher will do his or her best to serve and lead you and the rest of their team well.

Meet the people with a smile and confidence.

The usher’s job is to move toward and engage people quickly and with the confidence to help them know what to do. Don’t leave people hanging. Let them know that you can handle anything they need and that you are the one that can make this a smooth and enjoyable experience.

Don’t make them come to you and ask. You approach them with confidence and a smile. Take charge with grace and poise.

Be Flexible

The service depends on your flexibility. Don’t get flustered when last minute changes are made. That will happen. Just keep positive, stay flexible and know that creativity is at work to help people connect with and hear from God.

Know and Be Known

An usher must be able to know all members of the church. This will enable the usher to know first timers and be able to possibly detect visitors and people with varying motives. Not being a member of the Church makes it difficult. Make an attempt to know the names of the church members, their family members, where they come from, what they do, how they like to be served including parking slot and sitting position in church. Always have a habit of introducing yourself or putting on a name tag to let people know your names.

Get an accurate people count.

Why does this matter?  Why must these numbers be so accurate? Why can’t we just make a good estimate? The answer is that every number represents a person. We want to be good stewards of all that God has entrusted to us, and therefore it matters that we know how well we are reaching people.  Just like in the book of Acts, they counted, recorded, and celebrated how many people were saved. Your church counts too.

Reset and clean up the auditorium.

People will leave papers, cups and “stuff” behind. The glamorous part of an usher’s ministry is cleaning up after each service. Also, rearranging of the seats and collecting litter even outside the church.

Remember, many hands make light work.  If all ushers jump in and help, it takes just a few minutes.

The 5T’s of Effective Ushering

1. Teachable. Ushers should have the right spirit and heart that easy to serve people and church well. Every usher should be willing to be taught and learn ways to improve. Ushers who are ever-learning can greatly enhance the service.
2. Thoughtfulness. Ushers should be looking for ways to serve and help others. Opening doors, assisting visitors, being courteous, and looking for ways to help others along with their other duties can bring a positive reflection for the church.
3. Tactfulness. Ushers should present themselves in being able to communicate well and have a keen sense of knowing what to say, what to do, and where to direct others as a way to maintain good relations and prevent distractions in the service.
4. Timeliness. Ushers should be on time and also timely in bringing assistance to others.  An effective usher does not wait to be asked or wait for others to help but is keenly aware of what is going on in the church and allows the flow of the service to continue without distractions.
5. Teamwork. Ushers should work as a team, each one working together as a whole. Ushers should work uniformly in receiving offerings, communion, bringing order to the service in as many ways as possible.

Common sense

• Maintain proper appearance and personal hygiene.
• Show up on time.
• Read the bulletin – get informed, stay informed.
• Wear your name tag.
• You will probably not be required to usher every Sunday, but when you are on the schedule, give it 100%.
• If you are on the schedule and can’t make it, be sure to call and let your team leader know. Don’t just no show. People are counting on you.
• Smile, talk to people, and learn their names
• Make people feel nice about themselves

HOW TO USHER IN A CHURCH

Greeting people in a warm way makes them feel good about their presence in church. Be a great welcomer to the house of God.

1. Have a close relationship with God. Seek to be anointed as the usher is the first contact of the people. Pray, fast and meet regularly. This is one step closer to getting to the Lord.
2. Dress appropriately for ushering. Be professional, but comfortable.
3. Remember you are on the “front line”. Therefore, you will be one of the first impressions of this ministry. Warmly welcome guests and regular attendees.
4. Be a team player. Always be willing to work with others. Know how to find a replacement if you’re not able to usher when scheduled. Advise your chief usher if you need to do this. Cover for your fellow usher when needed.
5. Provide a conducive environment. Environmental, Health, Safety and Security.
6. Be alert at all times. Ushers need to be ready at all times to respond as directed when there is a disturbance, illness, or other situation that requires special attention.
7. Make the people, members and guests, feel welcomed and important.
8. Assist visitors to their seats. Never leave them looking for a place to sit. Know where available seats are when the church is filling up.
9. Assist special needs persons to enter and leave the church.
10. All strong smells are a hindrance to your guests and members when serving as a church usher. Many people cannot tolerate strong odors due to allergic reactions.  Colognes and perfumes have to be minimal. Observe good hygiene to avoid mouth smell or body odour.

if I can smell you from 7 feet – that’s too much.

If your smell stays with me after a hug – that’s too much.

If I still smell you after you have left the room, that’s too much.

Latest Trends

1. Evolvement of online church. There is a big number of online followers through YouTube, Facebook and videos shared by members via WhatsApp. They too need to be considered and be informed. Almost everyone who attends your church for the first time has already been to your church…online, or heard about it.
2. Need for bigger and spacious car Parking slots as more believers drive to church. This creates the need to have a designated team for the parking area to receive, help arrange the vehicles, great the congregation at the parking and record the vehicle details.
3. Preference of congregation to take photos and videos during the sermon or various presentations for future reference.
4. More church members preferring to pay tithe and offerings via mobile money transfer, bank account or visa card rather than dropping at the offering bag.
5. Most people not sensitive with their dress codes when coming to church thus causing distractions and creating unnecessary attention.
6. Kidnapping and child abduction is on the rise thus there is need to have tight security and children control within the sanctuary. No kid should be left to walk out of the church compound without being accompanied by their guardian or parents who are well known by the ushers.
7. The need for a nursing room for breast feeding mothers and those who want to change their young ones.

CONCLUSION

Ushers displays the first impression of the church and love of Christ amongst the congregation and so they should welcome people with a smile that speaks more than a thousand words and leave a lasting impression on people, and give God glory in serving.

Preaching can be omitted, praise and worship omitted but not ushering. It has no substitute. Ushers are forerunners for all the ministries in the congregation.

They should treat everyone with dignity and respect, make them feel like kings and queens and be the smiling, caring and loving servants of God

Ushers should love what they do and do it with love because the master is watching and should work diligently to sow rather than to show.
Please click to read my revised Ushering Manual

You can watch my You Tube Church Safety Video Here

Recommended Books for Effective Ushering

Ushering 101 by Dr. Buddy Bell

Developing Church Leaders by Dan Reiland

The Ministry of Helps by Dr. Buddy Bell

 
The Art Of Effective Church Ushering