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STEPHEN MINISTRY
What is Stephen Ministry?
 The Stephen Series is a complete system for training and organizing lay people to provide one-to-one Christian care to hurting people in and around your congregation.
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.
So what is the difference between a Stephen Minister and a Stephen Leader? Stephen Ministers receive fifty hours of training. They visit their assigned care receiver weekly and receive support in monthly supervision meetings. Stephen Leaders have attended the week-long Stephen Leader training and become a part of the Leadership team that plans and carries out the awareness building in the congregation; recruitment of potential Stephen Ministers; training of Stephen Ministers; assessment of potential care receivers; matching care receivers and Stephen Ministers; supervising and offering continual education to Stephen Ministers; creating a vision and mission for Stephen Ministry in our church and seeing that it is carried out. These folks are valuable volunteers who help to see that no one is overlooked in our congregation.
Currently we have 19 Stephen Ministers and 9 Stephen Leaders at First Congregational Church.
If you or someone you know is interested in having a Stephen Minister visit weekly as a spiritual companion, or if you would like more information on how to become a Stephen Minister or Leader, please contact Jacque Franklin at the church office at 635-3549 or by e-mail: Jacque@fcucc.org.
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