OUR MISSION:
...to be a hospitable community of believers who eagerly invite everyone to find a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Est. 1963
 
Stephen Ministry
Christ Caring For People Through People
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.

Stephen Leaders oversee and direct our Stephen Ministry. They recruit, select, train, organize, and supervise our Stephen Ministers, identify people in need of care, and match them with a Stephen Minister. We have four Stephen Leaders at AUMC: Bill Jones, Chris Fuss, Billie Campbell , and Debra Bagwell.
  Stephen Ministers are the caregivers. They have been through 50 hours of training in Christian caregiving including topics such as listening, feelings, boundaries, assertiveness, and using Christian resources in caregiving. We currently have eleven active Stephen Ministers.
  Care receivers are the recipients of Stephen Ministers’ care. They are people from our church or community who are experiencing divorce, grief, loss of a job, loneliness, hospitalization, terminal illness, or any of an endless number of other life difficulties. Stephen Ministers usually meet with their care receivers once a week for about an hour for as long as the care receiver will benefit by the relationship.

What Do Stephen Ministers Do? Stephen Ministers are caring Christian friends who listen, understand, accept, and pray for and with care receivers who are working through a crisis or a tough time. Their role is to listen and care – not to give advice or counsel. Stephen Ministers are also trained to recognize when a care receivers’ need exceeds what they can provide. When that happens they work with care receivers to help them receive the level of care they really need.

How Can Someone Receive Care from a Stephen Minister? Pastor Bill Jones is the Stephen Leader who coordinates referrals. If you or someone you know could benefit from the care of a Stephen Minister, please talk to Pastor Bill Jones. If you want to talk about Stephen Ministry for someone else, make sure you get his or her permission first. Confidentiality is one of the most important principles of Stephen Ministry. Except for the Referrals Coordinator and the Stephen Minister assigned, no one else knows who is receiving care from our Stephen Ministers. What a care receiver tells his or her Stephen Minister is kept in strictest confidence.

The Stephen Series Logo consists of a cross and circle together with a broken person and a whole person. The broken person behind the cross symbolizes the brokenness in our lives due to our sin and imperfections. The whole person stands in front of the cross because it is only through the cross of Jesus that we are made whole. The circle symbolizes both the wholeness we receive through Christ and God’s unending love for us.

To learn more about Stephen Ministry, visit the Stephen Ministries web site at www.stephenministries.org or
talk to one of AUMC's Stephen Ministers or Stephen Leaders.


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Aldersgate United Methodist Church | Charlottesville, VA | 22901