Welcome to the Word of Life Praise Team Page!   Pam Clark, Alice Batson, Carla Seales, Dorothy Bearden, Erica Ragan, Michelle Gray Jesus said unto him, "If thou canst believe, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE to him that believeth".  Mark 9:23 'And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of music, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy.'  1 Chronicles 15:16 'It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord; and when they lifted up their voice, with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth forever; that then the house was filled with a cloud, for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God. So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God.'  2 Chronicles 5:13-14  SCRIPTURE TO LIVE BY  My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation. For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horses' mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body. Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth.    Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!   And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.  For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind:   But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.  Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.   Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?  Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.   Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.   But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.  This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.  For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.  But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.  And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace. James 3:1-18         What an awesome privilage and  responsibility to be called of God to lead people into worship and praise unto Him!  It's such an honor and a privilege to serve a living God!  The singing of music through worship and praise simply prepares our hearts for His Holy Word and opens our hearts to receive from God's word as it is brought forth.   The seriousness of holding an office or position at the Word of Life church is something that our Pastor feels strongly about.  When we hold a position of any kind in our church, we should do our best to live our lives above reproach, for we not only represent the Lord, we represent our Church and our Pastor.  We should never do or say anything that would bring a shame to the Lord or to our church.  We should take our callings and positions seriously, for they are gifts from the Lord, and never neglect to give the Lord ALL of the honor and glory for everything.  We are gloves in which he places his hand, willing vessels to be filled and used according to his will and His good pleasure. Without unity and God's anointing, our works are in vain.  When we come together as one, seeking God's will and His anointing, His Glory will settle on His people like a cloud.   Our job on this Praise team is to praise the Lord in song and worship, and to enter into his presence ourselves; therefore, encouraging others into his presence through our heartfelt and sincere worship.  We should never want to be seen, but ask the Lord to shine through us and hide us behind His anointing and His cross.  Humility is the key to keeping our hearts in right standingwith God.  We cannot accomplish anything without God. Let us never take for granted this wonderful place of worship that the Lord has given us and the power of God and anointing that is felt in our sanctuary.  We are truly blessed with an annointed Pastor, who is led by the Spirit of God.  We should never take this for granted, we are a truly blessed people, we have a lot to praise God for! God is able to do great things in us and through us, if we only submit to his leading and guidance.  So, we must be careful to always pray for that guidance and be led by his Holy Spirit. God gets the glory for all things. The following guidelines are for those who feel you are called to sing with the Praise Team.  It should be a calling, not just something that is your desire.  It should be thought about carefully, and prayerfully considered, for there is a responsibility and price to be paid with such an office.   God's word says that everything should be done decently and in order, so these guidelines were written down to keep things consistent, and in order, to keep unity and love in the body of Christ.  Please pray for the Praise Team that God's will be first and foremost and also pray that the annointing will be present in everything that we do.  May God lead and guide you in your walk with him and God Bless. ~WORD OF LIFE PRAISE AND WORSHIP TEAM GUIDELINES~ CALLING Every member of the Praise Team must feel that they are called of God to the music ministry.  His anointing is essential in all we do.  We are not entertainers, but are worshippers. SPIRITUAL MATURITY Members must be spiritually mature individuals with active prayer lives, a hunger for God's word and His presence, be faithful in their attendance to church.  Must be dedicated, dependable, and also should be members of the church. WORSHIPPER To qualify for the Praise Team, you must already be a worshipper.  This means you should have a sincere love of worshipping the Lord, no matter who is singing or preaching the word.  The person who is called for singing His praises is always ready to praise the Lord and lift up holy hands unto him.   The “Praisers” in the bible always went before the ministers and others offering their worship and praise of the most High God.  We must always be ready to offer up praise and worship to Him. COMMITTED TO GROWING SPIRITUALLY You should be fully committed to the Lord, and desire a continual spiritual growth.  We should always be pushing through to the next level of what God wants from us personally.  As praise team members, we should be always striving toward growth and maturity in the Lord.  Stagnant spiritual lives will mean a stagnant worship team.  We should always lift up each other by words and in prayer, encouraging one another in love, while challenging each another to move up higher to the next level in the Lord. COMMITTED TO FLOWING TOGETHER AND WORKING AS A TEAM It is important to be able to flow together as a team.  Everyone has a different type of voice and voice range, but when we sing under the anointing, God can blend those voices to be heard as one.  We should look at each other not as a collection of separate voices, but see ourselves as a single body, with a single purpose.  Our attitude should not be to shine forth in our own skill, but to use our skills to flow together with each other, according to His guidance and leading of God's Spirit.  We should uplift the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and should sing from our hearts and not only our mouths, we should let the love of God flow out through our voices and through our actions of praise and realize that we are not singing to entertain, but to praise and worship God. FLOWING WITH THE SPIRIT It is important that we be prepared for the moving of the Holy Ghost and flow with what HE wants to do in a service.  We want don't limit God on what he wants to do.  Sometimes the Pastor is led by the Spirit to have us sing for extended time periods, we must be ready, willing and able, both physically and spiritually, to sing as long as the anointing is moving. HAVE THE SUPPORT OF YOUR FAMILY It is very important to have the full support of your immediate family when you are a member of the praise team.  They must be willing to accept the necessary sacrifices of your time and be considerate of the importance of your commitment.  They must understand and support the importance of this ministry and should fully back you. SUBMISSION TO LEADERSHIP All members must be willing to submit to the direction of the Worship Team Leader.  The worship team leader has the authority to make decisions for the group and the responsibility of making sure everything is done decently and in order, and according to the word of God.  Members should be able to take correction and be able to submit to authority.  Members should be able to take a measure of criticism or comments and not take it personally or get hurt feelings.  The leader will listen to the group and make sure all are blending together and make changes accordingly.  The members should feel free to make comments and suggestions to the leader as we work together as a team.  If any members have questions or problems concerning the Praise Team, your leader is always there for you to counsel with.  We should never go to directly the Pastor before talking first with our Team Leader about PT issues.  Members should feel free to make comments and suggestions to their leader and to speak openly, but the final decisions will be up to her.  Also, it is important to remember to pray for your leader, asking for Gods guidance and leadership, holding up her hands in prayer. DRESS STANDARD AND PHYSICAL APPEARANCE As representatives of the Word of Life Independent Church, our Pastor, and most importantly of God, we must consider how we dress as we minister in song.  Our church has a lot of freedom in this area, but as members of the Praise Team, modesty is a MUST.  We will not wear pants on stage while we are ministering in song.  Skirts and blouses, and dresses are acceptable.  Denim dresses and skirts are fine except for on Sunday mornings, try to wear something nicer on Sundays.  Please keep the length of the skirts below the knee and no low cut tops.  We should always strive to look our best and to maintain a modest appearance.  In addition to how we dress, we should always be sure to ?wear’ our smiles and to spread joy to the people through our faces.  A sad depressed face singing “O Happy Day” will not move God, nor will it encourage people to worship with us. ATTENDANCE & PUNCTUALITY Members should have the highest level of commitment and dedication. Poor attendance and punctuality shows a lack of discipline and low respect for your position on the Praise Team.  Members are expected to arrive early enough before services to gather for group prayer, this is very important.  At practices, the same level of commitment is expected.  Practice times and dates are subject to change on occasion, but normally a certain day of the week will be set aside for members to clear their calendars.   Praise Team Members who habitually miss regular church services are subject to dismissal.  The guidelines are if you have (3) absentees from regular services within a 6 month period, you could possibly be dismissed or suspended.  Regular services are defined as Sunday Morning, Sunday Evening and Wenesday Night Services.  Attendance is preferred and encouraged, but not required for extra meetings such as tent revivals. PROBATIONARY PERIOD Those desiring to join the Praise Team must first demonstrate their commitment to the church.  Three months of faithful church and Sunday school attendance is required to join the team.  After that time, you will be required to attend 8 consecutive practices, during which time you will sing, practice, and pray with the group for God's leading and guidance.  You must be faithful to attend these practice sessions.  This will give the leader an opportunity to tell how well the group will flow together, and evaluate the possibility of new members coming in.  After the probationary time period an invitation may or may not be extended by the Worship Leader to join the team on a permanent basis.     GOD BLESS YOU ALL AND PLEASE PRAY FOR US THAT WE WILL ALWAYS SING FOR THE GLORY OF GOD!