You Don't Have to Walk Through Difficult Seasons Alone
What does a Stephen Minister Do?
A Stephen Minister is a member who provides one-to-one, lay Christian care.
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Each Stephen Minister is matched with one care receiver of the same gender. The two meet in person, typically once a week for about an hour, in a setting they have both agreed on. The caring relationship will be brought to a close when the need for care has been addressed.
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Stephen Ministers are well-trained, supervised volunteers who provide a high level of care. They are not professional caregivers—their role is different from that of a counselor, therapist, pastor, or physician.
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A Stephen Minister’s care is an expression of Christ’s love and an extension of the pastoral care of this congregation. When it comes to spiritual matters, Stephen Ministers meet their care receivers where they are, helping them work through challenges without pressuring them or forcing faith on them.
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Stephen Ministers care by listening, supporting, praying, and helping their care receivers explore feelings without being judgmental, while offering emotional and spiritual support. Their role does not include providing other types of assistance—such as shopping, transportation, childcare, and other such types of help—although at times they may help care receivers identify ways to fill those needs.
Stephen Ministers provide compassionate listening, spiritual support, and are fully present to emotional processing with their Care Receiver. However, they are not a substitute for professional mental health care. A referral to a licensed therapist or other qualified professional may be appropriate when someone shows signs of significant depression, anxiety, trauma, addiction, suicidal thoughts, abuse, or any condition that may require a mental health diagnosis with recommended treatment. When deemed necessary, a Stephen Minister will collaborate with a Care Receiver to make a professional referral for issues that persist beyond the minister’s training.
Responses to Specific Concerns
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People often find it hard to accept help, even when they really need it, because they expect themselves to be able to handle it on their own. But the reality is that people do much better when they have additional support and care from a Stephen Minister. This is something you don't have to handle on your own.
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Stephen Ministers are highly trained and supervised to provide care in a wide range of situations. They go through a minimum of 50 hours of training to learn important caregiving skills and ways to apply those skills to different needs, and they are supervised and attend continuing education to build upon those skills.
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Stephen Ministry doesn't replace the care the pastor provides; it adds to it. The reality is that there aren't enough hours in a day for the pastor to give everyone who needs care the amount of care they need regularly. The pastor is always there for you, but we now have other highly skilled caregivers who can give you the focused, ongoing, high-quality care you need, in addition to the care the pastor can provide.
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Many care receivers feel that way, and that's a big reason why Stephen Ministers are committed to keeping their caring relationships confidential. Your Stephen Minister won't share anything you say and won't even tell anyone that you're a care receiver. Beyond that, the only people who will know you have a Stephen Minister are your Stephen Minister and a Stephen Leader, who is committed to confidentiality, too.
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Stephen Ministers are often a great source of help for people who tend to be private. Anyone would benefit from having someone to share openly with, knowing it will all remain confidential. Many people have said that with their Stephen Minister, they feel free to share thoughts and feelings that they probably wouldn’t bother their closest friends with.
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A strong commitment to confidentiality is an absolute prerequisite for serving as a Stephen Minister. We only select people to become Stephen Ministers who are willing and able to keep their caring relationships confidential. On top of that, Stephen Ministers receive extensive training on the subject, going in depth into why confidentiality is important and how to maintain it in a variety of situations
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Supervision focuses on the quality of the caring relationship and the feelings of the Stephen Minister. Stephen Ministers don't share the names of their care receivers, and they're careful not to mention details that could lead others to identify their care receiver.
The only time a Stephen Minister would ever share confidential information is in extraordinary circumstances when the safety and well-being of the care receiver or someone else is a concern, and then the Stephen Minister would share it only with a few key individuals to get the person the help they need.
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Stephen Ministers are trained to help care receivers be as comfortable as possible with sharing. Share what you feel able to share, as you are able. Your Stephen Minister will be a non-judgmental and good listener– and a supportive presence who will let you share at your own pace.
Become a Stephen Minister
Stephen Ministers listen, support, encourage, and are trustworthy in the lives of people who are hurting or going through a difficult time. Stephen Ministers are not counselors or spiritual directors.
Each Stephen Minister must undergo a 5-month training program, including weekly in-person meetings and homework. If you are interested in becoming a Stephen Minster, click the button below.
