The Stephen Series provides congregations with the structure, training, and resources to set up and administer a complete system for lay caring ministry (called Stephen Ministry) in the congregation. In Stephen Ministry congregations, lay caregivers (called Stephen Ministers) provide one-to-one Christian care to the bereaved, hospitalized, terminally ill, separated, divorced, unemployed, relocated, and others facing a crisis or life challenge. Stephen Ministry helps pastors and congregations provide quality caring ministry for as long as people need it.
January 2004 was a time of decision and commitment to pursuing Stephen Ministry here at Trinity. March 2004 we were enrolled as a Stephen Ministry congregation, with Janice Olson traveling to St. Louis for training in April. There she became a Stephen Leader and learned how to develop this ministry here in our congregation.
That fall, our first ministry class had seven members, with six of them commissioned as Stephen Ministers in the spring of 2005. Four more Stephen Ministers were commissioned in 2006 and 2008. On Sunday, March 21, 2010, one more person will be commissioned.
Your presence communicates to the other that he or she is valued, precious, beloved.
Your presence brings not only the gift of yourself into the relationship, but also, in and through you, the gift of God.
Home