Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Stephen Ministry

What exactly is Stephen Ministry? 

            Stephen Ministry is a ministry in our congregation in which trained and supervised lay persons, called Stephen Ministers, provide one-on-one Christian care to individuals facing life challenges or difficulties.

Who is involved?

            Stephen Leaders are the ones who oversee and direct our Stephen Ministry.  They recruit, select, train, organize, and supervise our Stephen Ministers, identify people in need of care, and match them with a Stephen Minister.  We have three Stephen Leaders.  They are:  Pastor Brown, Karen Bauer, and Janet Haacker.

            Stephen Ministers are the caregivers.  They have been through 50 hours of training in Christian care giving, including general topics such as listening, feelings, boundaries, assertiveness, and using Christian resources in care giving.

            In addition, their training covered specialized topics such as ministering to the divorced, hospitalized, bereaved, and aging.  

            Care Receivers are the recipients of Stephen Ministers’ care.  They are people from our church who are experiencing divorce, grief, loss of a job. loneliness, hospitalization, terminal illness, or any of an endless number of other life difficulties.  Stephen Ministers usually meet once a week for about an hour for as long as the care receiver will benefit by the relationship.

What do Stephen Ministers Do?

            Stephen Ministers are caring Christian friends who listen, understand, accept, and pray for and with care receivers who are working through a crisis or a tough time.