What Is Stephen Ministry?
Stephen Ministry is a confidential, one-to one Christian care giving ministry for persons in our congregation and in our community who are experiencing difficulties in their lives. Stephen Ministry benefits many others besides those who receive the care of their Stephen ministers. The Stephen Ministers grow greatly as they learn to help others. As a Stephen Ministry congregation, we have the confident knowledge that when the pains of life come our way, someone will always be there, ready to care for us, to bring God’s love to us in a special, personal way.
What Is a Stephen Minister?
Stephen Ministers are laypeople—Christian men and women—trained to provide one-to-one care to people experiencing a difficult time in life, such as grief, divorce, job loss, chronic or terminal illness, relocation, or separation due to military deployment.
Stephen Ministers come from all walks of life. Their commonality? A passion for bringing Christ’s love and care to people during a time of need.
Stephen Ministry Is — — God’s Love in Action!
A Stephen Minister begins a caring relationship when he or she is matched with a person experiencing a life crisis. The Stephen Minister then meets with that person on a weekly basis to listen, care, encourage, and provide emotional and spiritual support. The caring relationship lasts as long as the person is in need of care.
If you sense God might be calling you to be one of these strong, committed servants who offer God’s love to those who are hurting, the first step is to find out more about getting involved.
A Stephen Ministry Class is being offered beginning in January 2019. The class is 25 sessions, 50 hours.
Contact Lynn Mull or Kim Kligerman, stephenministry@genesis-umc.org for more information or an application.
“No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and God’s love is made complete in us.” 1 John 4:12
- “I was alone and had no one to turn to. Then I heard about Stephen Ministry. My Stephen Minister became a friend I could really count on.”
- “I felt guilty about being angry at God. But my Stephen Minister didn’t think I was terrible. She was patient and just listened and cared. She demonstrated Jesus’ unconditional love and helped me trust God again.”
- “The best thing about Stephen Ministry was it was so confidential. No one even knew I had a Stephen Minister.”