Westminster
HomeThe Stephen Ministry is a system of training and organizing laypersons for caring ministry in and around their congregations. The Stephen Ministers reach out to those who are hurting and in need of support and encouragement during difficult circumstances.
It equips laypeople to provide high-quality, effective, and caring ministry on a one-to-one basis to such as the following: the hospitalized; those with disabilities and their families; the terminally ill and their families; those needing the support of a friend; people who are homebound; those grieving a death or a serious loss; those with a job crisis; those institutionalized; those facing life transitions; prisoners, ex-offenders, and their families; the aging and the elderly; those in spiritual crisis; the separated or divorced; the lonely; households experiencing birth or adoption.
Why the name Stephen?
The name comes from the Stephen who was one of seven persons commissioned by the Apostles of the early church to provide care to those in need (see Acts 6-8).
Who are our Stephen Ministers?
Stephen Ministers are committed Christian people who express God's care through their lives to others; receive 50 hours of initial training in important caring ministry skills and concepts; are commissioned as Stephen Ministers after completing their initial training; visit another person regularly and dependably and offer Christian support and care; participate in regular support and supervision under the guidance of trained Stephen Leaders; are committed to preserving the confidential nature of the caring relationship; and serve for at least two years, receiving continuing education and skill building throughout their years of service.
Who are our Stephen Minister Leaders?
Stephen Minister Leaders are the ones who train lay persons to be Stephen Ministers at Westminster Church.
Our Stephen Leaders have all attended a seven-day Leaders' Training Course in San Antonio, Texas. Since then, with the help of God and the congregation, they have recruited and selected laypeople for training; prepared the congregation as a whole for the Stephen Series; provided a minimum of 50 hours of training for recruited laypeople; commissioned those trained as Stephen ministers; linked the Stephen ministers with the persons to whom they minister; implemented the Stephen Series model of supervision and continuing education for Stephen Ministers; and continued the cycle of recruiting, training, referring and supervising laypeople to meet the needs of the congregation for the caring ministry.
Our congregation at Westminster has been a tremendous supporter of the Stephen Ministry program. On December 16, 2001, our first class of Stephen Ministers and Leaders was commissioned. Since then we have sent two other teams of Leaders to be trained nationally and have trained three more classes of Stephen Ministers who continue to care for those in need. In addition, we have maintained our continuing education program, and we adhere closely to the Stephen Series model.
Many of our lay members have been willing to answer the call of the caring ministry by devoting their time and energy to become Stephen Ministers. Another crucial commitment of our church has been the openness of members who have stepped forward to receive the care of our trained Stephen Ministers.
Because of this commitments, the Stephen Ministry program has continued to thrive and grow and has become a vital part of the caring ministry at Westminster Presbyterian Church.
Yes, YOU!! Do you have a heart for others? Do you find that you are often listening as others share their life with you? Then God could be calling YOU to Stephen Ministry!
To discern if this ministry is right for you:
The next classs offered for training Stephen Ministers will be January 2008. If you are interested, please contact Rev. Chris Carrasco at the church (584-3957).
Have you ever found yourself feeling like you wanted to do something for someone in need and not knowing what to do? We all hear of situations that tug at our hearts, but then the preoccupation with our own lives and agendas gets in the way and our good intentions are forgotten. I don't know about you, but I constantly find myself wishing I had done this or that nice thing, called someone, visited a sick friend, etc. Well, this was really bothering me, so when I heard about Stephen Ministry, something inside of me clicked. I felt this would be a way to help myself make a change. If I signed up for this training, I would have to be committed to helping in a meaningful way -- and more than that, I would be trained to maximize the help I gave.
The training was, as you have heard, intense and time consuming. We met for 50 hours in a 4-month period. We did a ton of reading (I like to read, thank goodness!) and lots of role playing in class (this was hard for me). We were introduced to a wealth of information to make us better "care givers." I really liked that term. This is what I wanted to be.
Immediately after our commissioning, I was assigned to a "care receiver." For the period that I was needed, we met weekly for one to one and a half hours each visit. I really enjoyed these sessions and I felt he did too. Many of my apprehensions about how to act, how to be, what to say, etc., just faded away. I quickly found all I had to be was me. The things I learned in the training helped -- they have helped to make a more skilled me. Of course, the main factor here is that God is present in this whole process. We are all agents of God's love and are directed to help those in need.
We learned that people in crisis often feel that God has forgotten them or seems far away. As a Stephen Minister I can rely on the scriptures to bring hope:
"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8: 38-39).
Updated 5/22/2007