1st Presbyterian Church of Laurens, SC: Stephen Ministry

**Stephen Ministry**
Stephen Ministry Web Site	"And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people." (Acts 6:8)

Stephen Ministers bring distinctively Christian care to those in need. They use both words and deed to express Christ’s care for others—listening and comforting, calling on the training they have received and employing the tools of faith. If this job description fits your personal goals for ministry, consider becoming a Stephen Minister.

A new training class for Stephen Ministers will begin soon. If you are interested in learning more about this important ministry, contact Wally Meggs (682-8168) or call the Church Office.

Stephen Ministry

In 1997 the Session approved First Presbyterian Church becoming a member congregation of the international interdenominational Stephen Ministry program. Since that approval, our pastor, Marc Coker and several others have attended the Leadership Training held in Orlando, Florida. The training consists of intensive instruction over a five-day period.

Those individuals expressing a desire to participate in the program receive comparable training over a 2½ month period before being commissioned as Stephen Ministers. Each Stephen Minister makes a commitment to serve two years. To date, including the leadership, 23 members have become Stephen Ministers, of which have moved to an inactive status.

Jesus calls us to care for one another. The Stephen Ministry training provides a person skills to be a caregiver. The training develops skills in three primary areas: LISTENING, REFLECTION, and CONFIDENTIALITY. LISTENING and REFLECTION work hand-in-hand and provide techniques for the caregiver to be a sounding board for and provide insights to the care receiver as one works out problems and concerns. Throughout the caregiver-care receiver relationship and process information, names, location, etc. remain CONFIDENTIAL between the caregiver and care receiver. CONFIDENTIALITY is the keystone of Stephen Ministry’s foundation and contributes significantly to the building of trust among caregivers and care receivers.

If you have an interest or questions concerning becoming a Stephen Minister, please attend the program, “A Taste of Stephen Ministry,” immediately after worship on Sunday, November 10, in Hunter Hall. A light meal of soup and cornbread will be served. While it is not necessary, it would be helpful if you would sign up or notify the Church Office to let us know you plan to attend.

For those who may have need of a caregiver, please contact our pastor, Marc Coker.

Stephen Ministry is named after Stephen, the first deacon in the early church commissioned by the apostles to care for the needs of believers. This is a special ministry in which one Christian reaches out to another who may be experiencing a wide range of life needs or everyday stresses. This ongoing caring relationship has scheduled regularity, dependability, and confidentiality. This commitment to caring and supporting one another will build a Christ-centered, sharing community by building relationships -- one by one.

Lay men and women from our congregation, who have developed their gifts for bringing the concern and care of Christ's community to people. Caring Christians who are called to develop their helping skills through intensive training, supervision and continuing education. Dedicated Christians - commissioned by our church to confidential, in-depth caring.

Stephen Ministers receive fifty hours of training using Biblical, theological and practical resources from the fields of theology, psychology and the health sciences. Some of the training topics are feelings, listening, assertiveness training, confidentiality, and crisis intervention.

A two-year commitment, which will include a fifty-hour training course concluding with a Commissioning Sunday. This training course will include two retreats, Friday evening, Saturday morning and afternoon.

After commissioning, in addition to service as a Stephen Minister, you will be expected to attend two meetings a month for supervision, support, and continuing education for the remainder of your commitment. Renewing your commitment is possible, or you may elect to be inactive for awhile. Once a Stephen Minister, always a Stephen Minister.

You will receive many unexpected blessings in your role as a trained Stephen Minister. The skills you will learn are applicable not only to a lay caring ministry, but also in your own life experiences and in relationships with others.

After your prayerful consideration, come by or call the Church Office for an application form. Upon receipt of your application, you will be contacted for an interview.