Stephen Ministry
Community Stephen Ministers
are ready to help you through hardships. To connect with a Stephen Minister you can call the church office at 262.782.4060
Stephen Ministry​ at Community
The purpose of the Community United Methodist Church Stephen Ministry is to provide ongoing one-on-one Christian care to all in need within our congregation and Elm Grove, Brookfield and the larger community. To learn about Stephen Ministries worldwide visit: http://www.stephenministries.org​
What Is Stephen Ministry?
Based on the story found in Acts 6.1-6, seven laypersons were trained and blessed by the disciples to carry on the care ministry in the early church. In similar ways, Stephen Ministers augment pastoral care in a congregation. Stephen Ministers, after training, will be able to respond to:
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People who are hospitalized
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Those who are grieving
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Those suffering loneliness or discouragement
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The divorced or separated
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Those who are affected by death
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Unemployed persons
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People who are homebound or institutionalized
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Those dealing with moving and the losses/challenges of relocation
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Parents grappling with loss when children leave home
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Those convalescing or rehabilitating
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New parents
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Single parents
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Victims of natural or human-caused disaster
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Those in spiritual crisis
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Many other circumstances that we may find ourselves facing
A STEPHEN MINISTER IS…….
· A child of God who walks beside a person who is hurting
· A congregation member with the gifts of caregiving, who
was carefully selected to serve in this role
· A lay person who has received 50 hours of training in
providing emotional and spiritual care
· A caring, Christian friend who listens, cares, prays,
supports, and encourages
· Someone who will “be there” for his or her care receiver, meeting faithfully for about an hour each week, for as long as there’s a need
WE’RE READY, THIS IS YOUR MINISTRY…….
You play an important role in our Stephen Ministry. Here’s what you can do:
PRAY - ACCEPT CARE - TELL A FRIEND - CONSIDER BECOMING a Stephen Minister
For more information call Community at 262-782-4060.
Sandy Dykstra Commissioned as a Stephen Minister
At worship, Sunday, July 21, Sandy Dykstra was commissioned as a Stephen Leader of CUMC’s Stephen Ministry. Sandy becomes the eighth Stephen Leader of our local ministry, and now joins Don Down as an active leader.
Standing in support of Sandy were Stephen Ministers Debbie Clark, Anne Harberg, and Betsy Krakauer (Sue McConnell was unable to attend).
Stephen Ministry equips lay people (Stephen Ministers) to provide confidential one-to-one Christian care to individuals in our congregation and community who are experiencing difficulties in their lives.
Earlier this year Sandy received training from Stephen Ministries headquarters staff. Sandy will now help move our ministry forward in areas such as awareness, peer supervision, continuing education, and, eventually, Stephen Minister training.
Sandy welcomes questions you may have about having a Stephen Minister.
Community Church became a Stephen Ministry congregation in 2007. Since then, 20 Stephen Ministers have been trained at the church by our Stephen Leaders.
Pictured at the commissioning of Sandy Dykstra are, left to right, Betsy Krakauer, Anne Harberg, Don Down, Sandy Dykstra, and Debbie Clark.