Stephen Ministry
Stephen Ministers are congregation members trained by Stephen Leaders to offer high-quality, one-to-one Christian care to people going through tough times. A Stephen Minister usually provides care to one person at a time, meeting with that person once a week for about an hour. Twice a month, Stephen Ministers gather with their Stephen Leader for supervision and continuing education.
Care receivers are people-congregation members and others in the community-who receive care from a Stephen Minister. These are people struggling through a difficult time in life experiencing grief, divorce, job loss, chronic or terminal illness, or some other life crisis.
Some important guidelines for this caring relationship protect both the care receiver and the Stephen Minister:
-The relationship between a care receiver and a Stephen Minister is confidential.
-Men are matched with men; women with women
-When a care receiver’s needs exceed what a Stephen Minister can provide, the Stephen Ministry team makes referrals to an appropriate mental health professional or another community resource.
Stories From People Who Have Been Impacted
Stephen Leaders
Stephen Leaders establish and direct Stephen Ministry in a congregations.
They:
-build awareness of Stephen Ministry within the congregation and community
-recruit and train Stephen Ministers
-meet with potential care receivers to assess their needs
-match care receivers with Stephen Ministers
-provide Stephen Ministers with ongoing supervision and continuing education.
Learn How You Can Make An Impact Through Stephen Ministry
Leaders
Bob & Vicki Moore