What is Stephen Ministry and how does it work?
Stephen Ministers are congregational members who are recruited, selected, trained and commissioned to provide one-to-one lay caring ministry to persons in crisis or other need for care. A trained Stephen Minister is matched with a person experiencing difficulties. The Stephen Minister then meets with his/her care receiver once a week for about an hour. Once a month, Stephen Ministers gather with their Stephen Leaders for supervision and continuing education.
What do Stephen Ministers do?
A Stephen Minister’s care is an expression of Christ’s love and an extension of the pastoral care of this congregation. Stephen Ministers provide care by active listening, supporting, praying, and helping their care receivers explore feelings without being judgmental, while offering emotional and spiritual support.
What are the kinds of needs Stephen Ministers care for?
Stephen Ministers provide care for a wide variety of life’s challenges. Examples include, but are not limited to
- Grief (i.e. death of a loved one, permanent disability, end of life, chronic care)
- Medical crisis (accident/trauma, diagnosis, health issues)
- Job-related or financial crisis (job loss, struggling)
- Family crisis (broken marriage, difficult family situations)
- Major life transitions (new baby, empty nest, relocation, retirement, moving to assisted living, etc.)
Stephen Ministers: The After People (pdf) provides a concise, poignant description of a Stephen Minister.
What training do Stephen Ministers receive?
Stephen Ministers receive 50+ hours of training for this ministry before they are assigned a care receiver. Training is led by our Stephen Leaders and includes a variety of topics such as active listening, Christian assertiveness, maintaining boundaries in caregiving, and dealing with grief. The classes are distinctively Christian and focus on God as the One who cures as we provide care. Ongoing small group supervision provides Stephen Ministers with encouragement and assures that no Stephen Minister will ever have to carry the responsibility of their care receiver alone.
Is Stephen Ministry confidential?
A Stephen Minister maintains confidentiality about their care receiver’s identity and personal information, as well as the content of their conversations. A care receiver can feel free to share openly with their Stephen Minister.
Additional information
If you feel you could benefit from the care of a Stephen Minister or want to know more about Stephen Ministry at FVUMC, send an email to st*************@***mc.orgor contact one of the pastors.
Interested in becoming a Stephen Minister?
Email st*************@***mc.org to learn more.