With summer more than 2/3 over,
and the start of school just a few weeks away, it’s time to welcome everyone
back from vacation trips and welcome those who are new to St. Paul. The Stephen
Ministry of St. Paul is here to serve you.
For those of you who are
unfamiliar with Stephen Ministry, here is a brief introduction:
+ Stephen Ministry is a
ministry in our congregation in which trained and supervised lay persons,
called Stephen Ministers, provide one-to-one Christian
care to individuals facing life challenges or difficulties. (This could be
anything such as illness, death in the family, family crisis, a recent move,
birth of a child, job loss, and so on.)
+ Stephen Ministers undergo
more than 50 hours of training before they begin serving and they receive “continuing
education” throughout their time of service.
+ They meet together with other
Stephen Ministers and Leaders monthly to support one another in their ministry.
+ Strict confidentiality is
practiced.
+ A Stephen Minister is only
assigned to a person who has requested the service of a Stephen Minister.
We have 10 active Stephen
Ministers: Larry Bass, Velma Bass, Janice Denney, Pam Floetke,
Nancy Fruechtenicht, Steve Fruechtenicht,
Lynn Genter, Margaret Hanawalt,
Christine Strohm, and Linda Trottman
as well as 3 Leaders: Helen Genter, Becca Mease, and Lea Metz. (Our Leaders
also serve as Stephen Ministers when needed.) A number of other members have
also been through the training, but are presently inactive after having served
for a period of time.
Several of our Stephen
Ministers do not currently have a Stephen Minister assigned to them, so they
are available to serve you, if you have a need to talk confidentially with a
caring Christian person.
If you have questions about
Stephen Ministry or if you would like to request a Stephen Minister, please
contact Pastor Ed (682-0387; pastor@splcs.org)
or one of our Leaders: Helen Genter (682-6434; hlgenter@kc.rr.com); Becca Mease (547-0763; rmease@kc.rr.com);
or Lea Metz (772-8501; leametz@sbcglobal.net).
There are many Scripture
references about helping one another, but one seems to be used more than others
when we think of Stephen Ministry:
“Carry each other’s burdens,
and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2