Assistant Minister is in some ways the most involved of the three "adult" worship leader roles, and certainly has the most steps, but most of the activity is spelled out for you in the liturgy and most regular church attendees with a reasonably good voice who try it out quickly find themselves enjoying the experience. 

Calvary's need:  one Assistant Minister per Sunday morning service. 

Sequence of activities: 

1. Pre-service preparation: the single most important is to practice the Kyrie, which is the responsive introductory singing portion at the beginning of the service:
   • 8:00 and 11:00 Assistant Ministers will almost certainly use the Lutheran Book of Worship ("LBW") Setting I  (page 57) Setting II (page 72) or Setting III (page 99) Kyries.  If you're not able to download and play these from your computer, check with Jonathan or Viktor to get the CDs on which Viktor has burned all of the Kyrie versions.
   • 9:30 Assistant Ministers may use any of the following Kyries:  The most common "Olson" 9:30 Kyrie, the slightly darker and shorter "Ghana" version, the "Viktor" version or, rarely, the "Now the Feast and Celebration" version.  We will figure out some way to post the approriate Kyrie to this site so you can know which one to practice well in advance.
   • Collaborate with the pianist:  if you want Viktor or Debbie to play your sections of the Kyrie any particular way (e.g. sting the starting notes and then leave you alone, or play the melody line the whole way through to help you) tell them before the service and they will oblige.
   • Preview the Prayers of the Day, either by getting a loose copy left in the robe room or by looking at the copy in the altar hymnal.  Look especially at the names of the people in the prayer concerns list, to make sure you can pronounce them, and read through the whole thing to check for punctuation, or put in pause marks if you think you need to be reminded to hold a thought before continuing.
2. Dressing before the service:  try to arrive at least fifteen minutes before the service the first few times you do it, twenty if you want to run over the Kyrie a few times using the piano.  Even if you know all of the Kyries cold, it can be helpful to run the current one once to get it loaded into your head before you get up there.  Wear a comfortable robe with decent velcro, a rope "cinture" that wraps around you several times and hangs about halfway down your right thigh, a wooden cross, and one of the wireless microphones, which is necessary if/when there's no microphone on the altar.  Take a second to familiarize yourself with the "on/off" and the "mute/not mute" switches.  You have to be on and not muted for the system to hear you.
3. Procession:  if you're serving in an:
   • 8:00 or 11:00 service, you will generally have a separate acolyte and crucifer to handle the cross and candles.  Wait until the people start singing the processional hymn and then follow them up aisle side-by-side with the Lector, staying a short distance behind them until they have lit the candles and handled the cross.  When you reach the altar, bow before it and then walk around it to the left.  Your sitting place is usually left of the two innermost chairs.
   • 9:30 service:  you will lead the procession and bear the cross up the aisle.  Wait for the congregation to start singing the processional hymn and then move slowly up the aisle with the cross as high as you can hold it while maintaining appropriate dignity.  Maneuver around the baptismal font and lower the cross into the socket of the pedestal which is behind the altar, almost directly below the wall-mounted cross. 
4. Sing the Kyrie:  after the procession there is a minute or two of spoken service between the pastor and congregation before the Kyrie.  As the music starts, take a moment to review the verses and get the feel of the beat.  You may even want to subtly snap your fingers behind your back to lock the beat in.  You are the leader of the Kyrie...the piano is there to accompany and assist.  Lock in your own beat, get the right pitch, and then proceed confidently as though there was no piano at all.  If you wait and listen and try to "chase" the piano, while the pianist is trying to follow you, strange things can ensue.  If you set the pace, the pianists will adjust and you well stay well-synchronized.  When the time comes to sing, take a deep breath so you have air enough to make it through, and don't be afraid to project.  Singing out strongly will support your good pitch.
5. Remain standing:  after the Kyrie, you've finished the toughest part of the service  You're essentially done until after the sermon and Hymn of the Day.  You can either remain near the altar or fall back a few steps during the Hymn of Praise.  From a standpoint of standing and sitting, you are a member of the congregation now.  Sit for the Lessons and/or Psalm, stand for the Alleluia verse and Gospel, sit for the Sermon and stand for the Hymn of the Day, just like the congregation does.
6. Creed:  at the end of the last verse of the Hymn of the Day, ease forward so you're in front of the altar hymnal when it's time to lead the Creed.  After introducing the Creed (Apostles', Nicene, or on rare cases the Athanasian) lead the reading of it at a deliberate pace. 
7. Prayers of the Faithful:  immediately after the Creed, you will start the Prayers of the Faithful and then usually wait for a musical interlude before commencing the main body of the prayers, during which you read a petition, concluding with the phrase "Lord in your mercy," which prompts the congregation to respond "Hear our prayer."   As a general rule:
   • whenever you start a prayer, place your hands together in front of you, and;
   • whenever you commence the main part of the prayer, raise your arms up with palms upturned in supplication.
8. Passing the Peace:  once the prayers are concluded, exchange the Peace with the other Worship Leaders, then choose whichever aisle the others appear not to be going down and greet anyone who doesn't seem to have anyone greeting them at that moment.  Do this for awhile, then return back up to the sacristy area (the room with the sink beside the altar) and use one of the antibacterial wet-wipes to sanitize your hands before the communion begins.
9. Offering:  while you are doing this, the Ushers will be collecting the offering and they and the Communion Assistants will be bringing the offering and the communion elements forward.  At the end of the Offertory, lead the offertory prayer, then stand back and participate like normal until the presiding minister communes you.
10. Receive communion:  most of the time, there will be two Ordained Ministers or one Ordained Minister and an Intern serving with you, which means that you will not have to administer the bread.  After the Presiding Minister blesses the elements, you may be the one communing the other Worship Leaders.  If not, receive communion and then take one of the chalices and its accompanying cloth and wait for whomever his handling the bread on your side to be ready.  Follow him or her (and the Communion Assistant should follow you).
11. Administer communion:  unless you are administering the bread, you will follow along with the chalice and offer it to each of the communicants at the rail.  Sometimes almost no one will drink from the chalice, sometimes nearly everyone will.  When administering the wine in the chalice, take your cue from the communicant.  Hold the chalice loosely but steadily and let him or her take the chalice into his or her own hands if that is preferred. 
    • Some people prefer to kneel absolutely still and have you tilt the chalice to their lips with almost no direct physical action. 
    • Other people prefer to guide the chalice to their lips while you hold it;
    • Still other people prefer to take the chalice completely out of your hands in order to drink from it. 
    • Regardless of how the communicant prefers to commune, wipe the rim of the chalice with the cloth each time someone drinks from it.
    • When and if you run low on wine (less than 1/3 capacity) return to the pitcher and fill it back up to roughly 2/3 capacity, then return to your place in the rotation.  The Communion Assistant will wait on you.
    Finish with communion:   once everyone is done with communion on both sides of the sanctuary,  carry the chalice and cloth into the back room adjacent to the sanctuary and set it on the counter next to the sink.
12. Post-communion:   after you have finished with the elements, return to your place behind the altar and finish out the last communion hymn with the rest of the congregation. If they are seated, feel free to sit on the chair nearest the communion tray stack, on the outside edges of the pews, or on the pew if there's room. If the congregation is standing, remain standing for the duration. 
13. Third and final prayer:  after the conclusion of the last communion hymn and the singing of the Post-Communion Canticle, you have your third and final short prayer, after which the presiding minister will do the benediction.
14. Recessional:   as with the Processional, this differs by liturgy:
    • 8:00 and 11:00:  when the acolyte and crucifer process out, follow them around the altar and down the aisle side-by-side with the Lector.  When you reach the back of the sanctuary, remain inside it, singing the recessional hymn.
    • 9:30:  you will lead the recessional, so look to the presiding minister for a cue as to when to begin.  If it's a short hymn, you may need to step off immediately.  If it's a long one, the presiding minister may hold you for a few verses.  When you reach the back of the sanctuary, stop short of the door, plant the cross in the middle of the aisle, and turn to face the congregation.  If you can see someone else's hymnal well enough, sing along.
15. Farewell:  at the conclusion of the recessional hymn, say "Go in Peace, Serve the Lord," as loud as you are able without actually shouting.  The Congregation responds "Thanks be to God."
16. Exit Greeting:  take a quick look around and see who is covering which sanctuary exits.  In most cases, the presiding minister will greet people at the main exit and the Lector will cover the west door.  That leaves you with the east door, the one closest to the parking lot.  Prop the cross against the wall next to the door and greet everyone who comes through, wishing them a happy week.  If you notice someone you haven't met before, take the time to introduce yourself.  This is one of the easiest and best evangelism opportunities available.