STEPHEN MINISTRY

Interested in ministering to the needs of our congregation and community?

Get involved with Stephen Ministry! Stephen Ministers are lay Christians from our congregation who are specially trained to provide confidential, one-to-one care to individuals who are in need of encouragement and friendship.

Stephen Ministry is named after Stephen, who was the first lay person the apostles commissioned to provide caring ministry to those in need (Acts 6).

Our congregation’s Stephen Ministry equips lay people to provide confidential, one-to-one Christian care to individuals in our congregation and community who are experiencing difficulties in their lives.

A Stephen Minister is...

• A child of God who walks beside a person who is hurting

• A congregation member with gifts for care giving who was carefully selected to serve in this role

• A lay person who has received 50 hours of training in providing emotional and spiritual care

• A caring, Christian friend who listens, cares, prays, supports and encourages
• Someone who will “be there” for his or her care receiver, meeting faithfully for about an hour each week, for as long as there’s a need

After being interviewed and passing reference and background checks, potential Stephen Ministers must complete 50 hours of training. Topics covered during the training include the art of listening, Christian caring and prayer, confidentiality, assertiveness, boundaries, how to begin and end a caring relationship, depression, grief and loss, ministering to the dying, job loss, and divorce. Stephen Ministers participate in monthly continuing education to help them grow as Christians and as caregivers.

Each week, a Stephen Minister meets one-on-one with their care-receiver. He or she listens, encourages, comforts, prays for and prays with if desired their care-receiver. The Stephen Minister gives their care-receiver undivided time and attention and always treats them with dignity and respect. A Stephen Minister is someone who truly cares for those to whom they minister.

Stephen Ministers care for people who are facing tough times.  We all experience challenges in life…times when we could benefit from the support of a caring Christian friend.  Stephen Ministers are ready to provide the emotional and spiritual care we need when faced with a crisis or difficulty such as:  Loss, divorce or separation, loneliness, discouragement, grief, a life transition, illness of oneself or of a loved one, spiritual crisis, terminal illness, incarceration, aging, birth, chronic illness, relocation, recovery after an accident and many others.

Sometimes simply going through a difficult, painful, or confusing time of life will bring someone to ask for a Stephen Minister. There are as many different reasons as there are people.