The Stephen Series:
One-to-One Christian Caregiving
The Stephen Series is a complete system for training
and organizing laypersons for caring ministry in and around the
congregation.
The Stephen Series provides our congregation with the structure, training,
and resources to set up and administer a complete system for lay caring
ministry (called Stephen Ministry) within the congregation. In
Stephen Ministry lay caregivers (called Stephen
Ministers) provide one-to-one Christian care to the bereaved,
hospitalized, terminally ill, separated, divorced, unemployed,
relocated, and others facing a crisis or life challenge. Stephen
Ministry helps pastors and congregations provide quality caring ministry
for as long as people need it.
If you or someone you love might benefit from having a Stephen
Minister, speak to our Pastors or one of the Stephen Leaders, Sue Tomcik, Ann
Lopretto and Ruth Sabo, for a confidential consultation.
Who Benefits from Stephen Ministry?
People Who Need Care . . .- Receive quality, Christ-centered, confidential care for their hurts and needs
- Find hope, healing, and a new sense of self-worth through the support of a Stephen Minister
- Know they are remembered and supported by their congregation in times of personal difficulty
- Receive ongoing care for continuing needs long after the onset of a crisis, when many others have forgotten about them
- Grow in a deeper relationship with their Lord as they experience God's unconditional love for them through their Stephen Minister
Our Pastors . . .
- No longer shoulder the entire burden of caring in the congregation, as if the pastor were the only one able, willing, or called to do this ministry
- Receive support and care from the lay people who are part of the congregation's Stephen Ministry team
- Reach more members of the congregation with quality Christian care
- Experience renewed joy and satisfaction as they equip others and so extend the reach of their own ministries
- Have more time to focus on the ministries that only the pastor can do
- Discover, cultivate, and use the spiritual gifts they have been blessed with
- See themselves as active partners in the mission and ministry of the church
- Find all aspects of their lives enriched by the distinctively Christian caregiving skills they learn and practice
- Experience great joy as they see God working through them to bring hope and healing to a hurting person
- Grow spiritually as they experience the Lord's loving presence in community with other Christian caregivers
- Discovers that many members want to be involved in meaningful ministry and will respond to the call to become a Stephen Minister or Stephen Leader
- Becomes a more loving community that is more sensitive and responsive to people's needs for care
- Is able to provide more quality Christian care, so that fewer people slip through the cracks
- Is able to reach out to the unchurched who are hurting and introduce them to the healing love of Jesus in their time of need
- Sees itself as not only being served by the pastor, but as a caring body of believers actively involved in serving one another in love
Follow link below for more information about Stephen Ministries:
http://www.stephenministries.org/