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Christian Caregiving--a Way of Life Leader's Guide
Price: $14.95
Discovering God's Vision for Your Life: You and Your Spiritual Gifts Leader's Planning Set
Price: $79.95
Stephen Series Stained Glass Logo
Price: $150.00
The Heart of Stephen Ministry - DVD
Price: $7.95
Caring Criticism: Building Bridges Instead of Walls
Price: $9.95
Two Stephen Leaders
Bring Stephen Ministry
to Seven Congregations
Stephen Leader
Jo Ann Zimmerman
Meet Jo Ann Zimmerman and Lynn Efird, two of a growing number of previously trained Stephen Leaders who carry forward the blessings of Stephen Ministry to their new congregations when they move.
Before beginning Stephen Ministry at St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Northglenn, Colorado, Jo Ann had established the ministry at three other churches. She's now training St. Stephen's first class of seven Stephen Ministers. Stephen Ministry is an act of love: "It absorbs me more than anything else in my life right now," Jo Ann said.
Stephen Leader
Lynn Efird
Lynn Efird is building awareness in her third Stephen Ministry congregation, Dilworth United Methodist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her "deep, wonderful" experience with Stephen Ministry at her previous churches led her to encourage her new congregation to enroll too.
A Call to Care
Training Stephen Ministers
From age 9, Jo Ann wanted "to help hurting people"; she attended nursing school briefly before she married. But her desire to help others never went away.
In the early 1990s, after Jo Ann's husband had passed away and her children were grown, a church council member proposed during a meeting that the congregation enroll in Stephen Ministry.
"As I heard her describe the program, I grinned," Jo Ann said. "I turned to my pastor, who was also grinning. I said, 'I think we need this.' He said, 'I think so, too.'
"I think that Stephen Ministry is how God has called me to help hurting people," Jo Ann said as she reflected on her life and ministry. "When I first went to nursing school, I was 17. I needed to gain some maturity so I could understand people well enough to help them."
Open to a New Call
Lynn Efird and Pastor Ben Devoid with Dilworth's Stephen Series enrollment certificate
During her involvement with a ministry to cancer survivors Lynn learned about the excellent resources Stephen Ministry offers to help people suffering from life's challenges.
Lynn and her pastor attended a four-hour Stephen Series Caring Ministry Workshop in their area to learn more Stephen Ministry. The congregation decided to enroll. The leaders developed a strong program and have since led the area's regional Stephen Ministry network.
When Lynn and her husband moved, leaving Stephen Ministry was difficult for her. But when her new pastor learned that she had previously been involved with Stephen Ministry, he asked her to begin the ministry at their new congregation. And so Lynn brought Stephen Ministry to Davidson United Methodist Church.
Lynn helped train three classes of Stephen Ministers at Davidson before she and her husband moved once more. Leaving was again difficult; "I'd become very close to the Stephen Ministers at Davidson," she said.
Lynn and her husband spent some time deciding on a church in their new area. One day Lynn's husband came home excited about a potential congregation. "So we met the pastor, and he said, 'Your husband tells me you do Stephen Ministry--I think we really need it here.' I felt that maybe God had called me to this church to do just that."
The Secret to Success:
Laying a Strong Foundation
Lynn interviews a potential Stephen Minister
Jo Ann and Lynn agree that starting Stephen Ministry in a new congregation proved relatively easy. As previously trained Stephen Leaders, they could begin building the ministry as soon as the congregation enrolled.
Both know that building the congregation's awareness and ownership is crucial.
"At St. Stephen's, most people hadn't had any experience with Stephen Ministry," Jo Ann said. "So I spent quite some time last year introducing them to Stephen Ministry, using Stephen Ministries materials and some I devised myself."
Lynn is currently building awareness in her new congregation. The needs for care are many, and Stephen Ministry will be of great benefit.
The best way Lynn has found to build awareness is in the stories of those touched by Stephen Ministry.
Building awareness
A respected congregation member at Dilworth, once a Stephen Ministry care receiver at another congregation, recently shared her story during an informational talk Lynn gave. She told the congregation how much her Stephen Minister had helped her and what a wonderful program Stephen Ministry is.
"People know her and trust her," Lynn said. "Her testimony was more powerful than my whole presentation."
Hearing the Call
By beginning Stephen Ministry in their new congregations when they move, Stephen Leaders can double--sometimes even triple--the blessings they've brought to hurting people. Once your new congregation enrolls, it already has a Stephen Leader--you! You'll be in a great position to help build a strong and thriving Stephen Ministry in your new church.
