The Wesley U.M.C.
Stephen Ministery
Leaders
Drew Hake
and
Cyndi Hake
The Wesley U.M.C.
Stephen
Ministers
Marlene Ballard
Annette Clark
Gerrit
DenHartog
Wendy Hansen
Sue Stumbaugh
Linda Sullivan
Jean
Treese
Denise Weaver
Stephen
Ministry
- What is Stephen Ministry?
- Stephen Ministry is a ministry in our congregation in which trained and supervised lay persons, called Stephen Ministers, provide one-to-one Christian care to individuals facing living challenges or difficulties.
- What is a Stephen Minister?
- 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 covers specialized topics such as ministering to the divorced, hospitalized, bereaved, and aging.
- 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 up with a Stephen Minister. We have two trained Stephen Leaders at Wesley United Methodist Church: Drew and Cyndi Hake.
- What is a Care Receiver?
- Care Receivers are the recipients of Stephen Ministers' care. They are people from our church community who are experiencing divorce, grief, loss of a job, loneliness, hospitalization, terminal illness, or any of an endless number of life difficulties. Stephen Ministers usually meet once a week for about an hour with their care receivers for as long as the care receiver will benefit from the relationship.
- What Do Stephen Ministers Do?
- Stephen Ministers are the caring Christian friends who listen, understand, accept and pray for and with care receivers who are working through a crises or difficult time.
- What kind of needs does Stephen Ministry
address?
- 1. Someone who is hospitalized or a shut-in
- 2. Someone who is lonely or depressed
- 3. Someone who is dying or has a loved one who is terminally ill
- 4. Someone who is experiencing the loss of an unborn child
- 5. Someone who simply needs to talk to any person about an immediate problem
- Are Stephen Ministers Counselors?
- No! Stephen Ministers are not counselors; they are trained lay caregivers. Their role is to support, listen and care, not to give advice or counsel. Stephen Ministers are trained to recognize when a care receiver's need exceeds what they can provide. When that happens they work with the care receiver to receive the kind of help they need.
- Can I Trust a Stephen Minister?
- Yes! Trust is essential to the caring relationship, and Stephen Ministers are people you can trust. Confidentiality is one of the most important principles of Stephen Ministry.
- What is the Pastor's Role?
- Rev. Williams will always be the primary caregiver, but there is no way he can meet all the potential needs for care at our church. God has called all of us, not just pastors, to minister to one another. Stephen Ministry multiplies and strengthens our caring ministry throughout the congregation. Lay people are empowered and enabled to provide caring to others.
- Where Did It All Start?
- Stephen Ministry has been around since 1975, when Kenneth Haugk, a pastor and clinical psychologist, began it to multiply the care-giving in his congregation in St. Louis, Missouri. There are more than 7300 hundred congregations in more than 90 denominations around the world.
- Why the name Stephen?
- The name Stephen comes from St. Stephen, who was the first lay person commissioned by the apostles to provide caring ministry to those in need. This event is recorded in the sixth chapter of the Book of Acts.
- How Much Does It Cost?
- Stephen Ministry is a care-giving ministry of our congregation available to members and others at no cost. There is a cost for training materials if you should decide to become a Stephen Minister
- How Can I Become a Stephen Minister?
- Begin by talking to one our our Stephen Leaders, Drew Hake or Cyndi Hake. Of course, you may also contact Rev. Williams.
To find out more about Stephen Ministries, visit the official website at: http://www.stephenministries.org/
