Welcome to Shiloh Temple of Praise Usher Ministry. Are you called to be a “gatekeeper”?
The heart of an usher is the heart of a servant, and he does his work for his Lord Jesus (Colossians 3:24). A church usher has a true love for the people of the church and a desire to promote an atmosphere of reverence and worship in the house of God. An usher’s theme verse could very well be Psalm 84:10, “I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” In the embodiment of ushering, the usher has to reflect the gifts of the Spirit in his or her demeanor and actions. The joy of the Lord must be present, and there needs to be a love and reassurance that comes forth in sincerity and care. The usher must also use the proper discernment and wisdom to keep the peace and have the proper response to know what to do in emergency situations. Ushers need to be sensitive to the needs of the people and dedicated to the tasks at hand with a positive attitude and to be a testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The word usher is referred to in the Bible as a gatekeeper, doorkeeper or simply a keeper. The word is derived from ush, meaning “to enter into.” The usher had many duties: 1. Keeper of the city gates 2. Announcer of dignitaries 3. They went before high-ranking people to clear their way 4. They directed individuals to their proper place 5. They were in charge of who to admit or permit into the building 6. They were the ones who made it possible for the speaker to be heard (not allowing disruptions in the room) Ushers originated from the Levites (2 Chronicles 8:14, 23:18-19). They were the overseers that David had assigned for service at the gates in the Lord’s temple. They made sure that the proper reverence was used in worship of the Lord when entering the temple. There should be, for us, a value when we approach the Lord. When we grow in our relationship to the Lord, we also should have some reverence to our view of God and in our worship of Him. They also assisted the priests in the temple and they also were overseers of the collection of the funds (2 Kings 12:9, 23:4; 2 Chronicles 34:9). The Levites were already highly regarded as priests in their own right. They were entrusted to supervise the work on behalf of the Lord and in His temple. They were operating as overseers and gatekeepers operating within the body in their service (Nehemiah 7:1, 3, 45; 1 Chronicles 23:3-5). David and Nehemiah relied on the Levites as gatekeepers to serve the Lord in their various capacities, but even with all of this, “everything must be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:40).