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Gifts That Keep On Giving

Stephen Leaders Who Begin Stephen Ministry in Their New Congregations

Every year a number of Stephen Leaders who move to new congregations enroll those churches, doubling--or even tripling!--their ministry to others.

These congregations have an added bonus: When they enroll, they don't have to wait for the next Leader's Training Course to begin Stephen Ministry. Because they already have an experienced Stephen Leader ready and willing to serve, their new Stephen Ministry can hit the ground running.

Here are the stories of two Stephen Leaders who have brought the blessings of Stephen Ministry to their new congregations.

Karen Lovell,
Greentree Community Church,
St. Louis, Missouri

In her almost 20 years of service as a Stephen Leader in the St. Louis area, Karen Lovell has brought Stephen Ministry to not one, not two, but three congregations--and in all three Stephen Ministry is thriving still.

"Stephen Ministry is such a strong program," Karen said. "I can't tell you how exciting it was to get it started."

Karen began Stephen Ministry in 1987 at Webster Groves Presbyterian Church, attending an LTC in St. Louis. Her pastor was enthusiastic about Stephen Ministry and gave her strong support and encouragement.

When she and her husband moved to Central Presbyterian Church in Clayton, she once again "got in on the ground floor" in establishing Stephen Ministry. Central Presbyterian enrolled at the end of 1995 and sent four additional Stephen Leaders to the San Antonio LTC early in 1996.

Then, when Karen's son became interim pastor at Greentree Community Church in Kirkwood, a planted Evangelical Presbyterian congregation, she began worshipping there. In March of 2000, under Karen's guidance, Greentree also enrolled and sent two new leaders to the St. Louis LTC in April 2001.

Karen clearly has a heart for Stephen Ministry. "It's who I am," she said. "We're wounded healers--we've all been through hard times. I have a passion for Stephen Ministry. I love to be able to help other people--and to help others learn to help people."

A Strong Leadership Team

Karen enjoys working with Greentree's other Stephen Leaders. "It's wonderful to work with such a great team. We have a great mix of people, some who are very assertive and others--like me!--who prefer to avoid confrontation. I can't fathom having to do this alone."

Greentree currently has six Stephen Leaders on the team; two have at least ten years of experience each as Stephen Leaders. What helps make Greentree's Stephen Ministry so successful is the team's dedication and its commitment to quality ministry.

"We follow all the guidelines Stephen Ministries gives us," Karen said. "We do everything by the book. We hold our Stephen Ministers accountable for what they've promised to do. We hold supervision twice monthly, and we always have excellent attendance. We're strong because of that commitment."

Intentional Recruiting

Karen hasn't had trouble recruiting Stephen Ministers. "When you start a program new, in the first year or two you get many of the people who want to do everything in the church," she said. "Sometimes they're not the best match for the gifts you need. Two or three years down the road, you begin to draw people who have a true calling to the ministry. It's so rich to be able to help them become who they're called to be, to use their gifts and skills to help people who are hurting."

Karen is very intentional about recruiting: "I go out and do a lot of personal recruiting. I watch people, and I choose people who draw others to them. People are more willing to consider accepting care if the Stephen Ministers are people they feel comfortable with.

"And people need to be asked."

The Rewards of Equipping Caregivers to Give Quality Care

Greentree's Stephen Ministry attracts people who genuinely value--and prioritize--quality ministry. Greentree's current trainees, who promise to make outstanding caregivers, are all under the age of 45. "People that age are always so busy!" Karen said. "That's what makes it so amazing."

Karen was delighted when the revised training materials came out in 2000. The role plays in particular have proven very effective. "The Stephen Ministers are so well trained now," she said.

Training Stephen Ministers is a rich experience for her. "It's so exciting to see the Stephen Ministers come alive with the new things they learn," Karen said. "It's like putting on a brand-new pair of glasses. You begin to learn new skills, to become the person God is calling you to be."

Reaching Care Receivers

Of Greentree's 18 active Stephen Ministers, 16 are involved in caring relationships. It amounts to a lot of care.

Because Greentree doesn't have a pastor in charge of pastoral care, the responsibility for finding care receivers rests primarily with the Stephen Leader Team. This has proved less difficult than Karen would have imagined.

"People in a planted church have a somewhat different mindset than people in a more traditional or structured church might," Karen observed. "People are more willing to receive care.

"We do have trouble getting men to accept care," Karen said. "They hurt just as deeply as women do, but they don't seem to be able to say, 'Help me.' We're currently training two men as Stephen Ministers--both very well respected in the congregation. I think that will make it easier for other men to accept care."

Passing the Torch

After serving nearly 20 years as a Stephen Leader and successfully founding Stephen Ministry in three congregations, Karen is thinking of retiring--but not because she's burned out. She wants to make way for others.

"When you keep doing it, you keep others from doing it," she said. "If you never step down, others never have the opportunity to do what you do. It's wonderful to have fresh ideas from new people."

Any advice for Stephen Leaders who are thinking of beginning Stephen Ministry in their new congregations?

"Do it!" Karen said. "Stephen Ministry is so helpful to pastors."

Stephen Leaders who enroll their new congregations receive a great deal in exchange for their gifts of time and talent. "Stephen Ministry has been such a blessing to me all these years," Karen said. "It's such a rich and rewarding ministry. I've learned a lot and hopefully have been able to pass those skills on to others."

Donna Authers,
First Presbyterian Church,
Charlottesville, Virginia

After serving as a Stephen Leader for 12 years in her New England congregation, Donna Authers is bringing Stephen Ministry to First Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her experience provides a solid foundation of knowledge and insight for establishing Stephen Ministry in her new congregation.

An Opportunity to Renew the Ministry

Donna had been serving as a Stephen Minister in her church in Connecticut when her Stephen Leader Team approached her about attending the LTC in 1993. She accepted.

Though her congregation already had Stephen Ministry, the LTC was an eye-opener for Donna. "I didn't recognize Stephen Ministry," Donna said. "We weren't doing it by the book. I learned about continuing education. I learned about networking. I learned about the forms and how they protect the confidentiality of our care receivers.

"I'd have to characterize our supervision at that time as benevolent gossiping. We had 21 Stephen Ministers, and we went around the room and did check-ins as a very large group. We'd get the status of one care receiver's divorce or another's disease. We did provide care for one another on one level, but there was no in-depth exploration of how the Stephen Ministers were feeling in their situations. We also lacked care receivers. People started dropping out because they didn't feel they had anything to contribute and didn't feel they were growing."

Stephen Ministry by the Book

Donna, a firm believer in the value of "doing things by the book," set out to rebuild her church's Stephen Ministry and to establish a Stephen Ministry network in her area.

Renewal was difficult. "If you don't start the ministry the proper way, and it does begin to fall apart, it's so difficult to put your arms back around it with the same people because they don't like the structure," Donna said. "They're used to having just a very good social gathering when they get together. It was a wonderful group of people, but many of them eventually resigned."

Times were dark as Donna struggled to rebuild the ministry. The pastor who had originally been involved with Stephen Ministry left the congregation, and Donna found herself with little support. "I started the networking group because I really needed help and support," she said.

Donna's faithful efforts bore fruit: Over the years Stephen Ministry at her congregation grew stronger and better than ever. "We worked very closely with the new pastor after he came to the LTC," Donna said. "We always had care receivers who really trusted us. And it's still going strong."

For Donna, the challenge of building a strong ministry is ongoing: "You need to ensure that you continue to give quality care over the lifetime of the ministry."

A Call to Begin Stephen Ministry Anew

When Donna and her husband, Roger, moved from Connecticut to Charlottesville, Virginia, a year ago, they spent some time deciding where to worship. Stephen Ministry played a strong role in that decision.

"My husband and I prayed about what church to join," Donna said. "When we finally met with the senior pastor from First Presbyterian, we told him about ourselves and our involvement with our past church.

"When I mentioned that I'd been involved with Stephen Ministry, he practically jumped out of his chair and said, 'Praise God! I have been praying for you. We want to start Stephen Ministry. I've heard about it, but I didn't know how to go about starting it. I was praying for the Lord to send me someone who would join with us and help start the program.'"

So in January 2006, Donna, along with Phyllis Colman, Alice Micklem, and Associate Pastor Tim Read, attended the Leader's Training Course in Orlando. They're excited about the possibilities that lie ahead.

"The four of us are going back--and we're going to do it right," Donna said. "At dinner last night they said that I would be their conscience. I'm expecting great things!"

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