Bedside Manners: A Practical Guide to Visiting the Ill
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Psalms for Healing: Praying with Those in Need
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When and How to Use Mental Health Resources
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Reopening the Back Door: Answers to Questions about Ministering to Inactive Members
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Leading Beyond the Walls: Developing Congregations with a Heart for the Unchurched
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Stephen Ministry: Setting the Standard for Care

"Every year, I have the opportunity to watch a new class of Stephen Ministers blossom," said Stephen Leader Rosemarie Magee of Church of the Resurrection* in Leawood, Kansas. "People begin Stephen Minister training with a heart for caring ministry but are often unsure whether they can really do it. As they learn how to provide Christian care by developing and practicing their caregiving skills, I see them grow. By the end of the 50 hours, they're telling me how this training has changed their lives, and they can't wait to begin providing care."

Located in the greater Kansas City area, Church of the Resurrection is a growing congregation--and one of the largest United Methodist Churches in the U.S. The congregation's core purpose is "to build a Christian community where non-religious and nominally religious people are becoming deeply committed Christians." Equipping lay people to be involved in ministry is key to accomplishing the congregation's five-part mission: Worship, Evangelism, Service, Discipleship, and Fellowship. Stephen Ministry--with its thorough equipping of both Stephen Leaders and Stephen Ministers--is right in line with this focus.

Rev. Yolanda Villa, Executive Director of Congregational Care, sees Stephen Ministry as an integral part of the congregation's caring ministry. "Stephen Ministers are vitally important caregivers because their training is so all-encompassing," Rev. Villa said. "They're equipped with listening skills and ways to bring Christ's presence to those who are hurting. We base the training for other caring ministries on the Stephen Ministry model."

Senior Pastor Adam Hamilton commissions one of the congregation's newest Stephen Ministers.

As a teaching church, Resurrection has been very influential in bringing Stephen Ministry to even more congregations. "My goal is to continue to introduce Stephen Ministry to other churches," said Rosemarie Magee. "We hosted a Stephen Series Caring Ministry Workshop in 2002 and had more than 100 people in attendance. Six of the churches present at that workshop have since started Stephen Ministry--and all are doing it well. We're witnessing how Stephen Ministry is reaching even farther into our community."

Stephen Ministry has multiplied the caregiving capacity of Resurrection as hundreds of people have received care from their Stephen Ministers over the years. Because of Resurrection's emphasis on outreach, many care receivers are nonmembers--sometimes with no church background. "One of my care receivers was a non-Christian man who was facing some serious problems," said Bob Hudspeth, a Stephen Minister and Stephen Leader. "We met every week, and within a few months he began to see some profound changes in his life. He came to the Lord as a result of the care he received and is very active in our church today. Seeing God at work like this was a life-changing experience for me as well."

In addition to providing one-to-one care in formalized Stephen Ministry relationships, Resurrection's Stephen Ministers serve in other caring ministry areas. They provide care home ministry, hospital visits, and pre-hospital surgery calls; they also function as "Pastor of the Day" when the congregation's pastors are not available and as chaplains at Kansas University Medical Center. Stephen Ministers also provide an active presence at the congregation's prayer and healing service every Sunday morning, making themselves available to pray with those who come forward. They also serve in this way at Ash Wednesday and Maundy Thursday worship services and at prayer vigils.

"All of these are ways our Stephen Ministers can be known," said Rosemarie Magee. "Our blue nametags identify us and our ministry."

In his book Leading Beyond The Walls: Developing Congregations with a Heart for the Unchurched, Senior Pastor Adam Hamilton underscores the difference Stephen Ministry has made at Church of the Resurrection: "It would be impossible for one of our ordained pastors to spend this quantity of time with parishioners on a regular basis. But Stephen Ministers . . . can devote this kind of attention to them."

"With such a large congregation and community to serve, Resurrection couldn't hire enough pastors to shepherd all of them," Rev. Villa said. "As part of the kingdom of God, we are called to love and care for one another. Stephen Ministry sets the standard of what that looks like."

*Note: Clicking on this hyperlink will take you to another organization's Web site. Stephen Ministries St. Louis provides this link as a service to you but has no control over the content you will find there. Click here for more information.

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