Stephen Ministry

 

Recently our congregation enrolled in the Stephen Series system of lay caring ministry, developed by Stephen Ministries, a nonprofit religious and educational organization based in St. Louis, Missouri. We will be developing a lasting program of caring ministry through the Stephen Series system of training and organization. This model of ministry is already working in thousands of congregations throughout North America and is equipping laypeople to minister to others who are in need.

New Hope will be preparing for this ministry in the months to come. Soon Sandy Dancy and Karen Crowder will be attending the one-week Stephen Series Leader’s Training Course in St. Louis, Missouri. At this training they will receive the instruction and materials necessary to implement and sustain this program of lay caring ministry here at New Hope.

Following the one-week Leader’s Training Course, a group of laypeople within our congregation will undertake 50 hours of training in Christian caring skills under Sandy’s and Karen’s guidance. This training will prepare participants to care for others, covering such areas as how to listen effectively, how to deal with feelings, how to use traditional Christian resources in caring, how to maintain confidentiality, how to deal with people experiencing crises, and many other areas of concern. A Christ-centered approach to caring and the need to care for the whole person will be stressed throughout the training.

Upon completion of Stephen Series training, these lay caregivers will be commissioned as “Stephen Ministers” and will become an important part of caring ministry here at New Hope. These Stephen Ministers will provide confidential, one-to-one Christian care for people experiencing challenges in their lives such as hospitalization, loss of a loved one, loneliness, divorce, unemployment, birth of a child, and many other life events for which a person could benefit from an effective helping and caring ministry.

This will be an exciting time for New Hope. The Stephen Series both multiplies the amount of caring ministry that goes on in our congregation and deepens the level of participation by laypeople in the healing ministry of Jesus Christ. If you have questions about this new form of ministry our congregation is undertaking, please feel free to ask us. In the meantime please keep us in your prayers as we prepare for this major step forward in our lay caring ministry.

Your brothers and sisters in Christian faith,

The Stephen Ministry Planning Team

Sandy Dancy                    Karen Crowder

Anna King                          Rick White

Mary Ann Smith              Russ & Dana Winkler

Pastor Endorsement: “I have read this letter from the Stephen Ministry Planning Team and it states very well my own feelings about Stephen Ministry.  SM will always have my full support.  It will bless the lives of many, many people in the years to come, both within the church and outside the church.  The Stephen Ministry Team that has been brought together by Sandy Dancy and Karen Crowder is a strong one.  They are doing a great job.  Let’s give them our full support.    Pastor B