Stephen Ministry

Stephen Ministry is a ministry in our congregation in which trained and supervised laypeople, called Stephen Ministers, provide one-to-one Christian care to individuals facing life challenges.

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.

Stephen Ministers are volunteer caregivers who have received high-quality training in Christian caregiving, including listening, understanding feelings, setting boundaries, and practicing assertiveness.

Care Receivers are individuals from our church or community experiencing grief, job loss, divorce, loneliness, illness, or other life challenges. They meet with their Stephen Minister weekly for about an hour for as long as needed.

Stephen Ministers are caring Christians who listen, understand, accept, and pray for and with care receivers who are navigating difficult times in life.

No, Stephen Ministers are not counselors; they are trained volunteer caregivers whose role is to listen and care, not to give advice.

They are also equipped to recognize when a care receiver’s needs exceed their capabilities, at which point they help connect the individual with the appropriate outside resource.

The name Stephen comes from St. Stephen, the first layperson commissioned by the apostles to provide caring ministry to those in need (Acts 6).

Pastors remain the primary caregivers and are supported by Stephen Ministry.

While pastors focus on the caring needs they are best equipped to address, Stephen Ministry equips laypeople to extend care and multiply ministry among the congregation.

Stephen Ministry began in 1975 when Kenneth Haugk, a pastor and clinical psychologist, initiated it to multiply caregiving in his congregation in St. Louis, Missouri.

Trinity Waconia has embraced Stephen Ministry since 2023.

Rachel Ash, our Stephen Leader, coordinates referrals. If you or someone you know could benefit from the care of a Stephen Minister, please speak with her, one of our pastors, or any Stephen Leader or Minister.

(If you’re inquiring on behalf of someone else, please obtain their permission first.)

Begin by talking to one of our Stephen Leaders or Stephen Ministers to learn more about the process and how you can serve.

The broken person behind the cross symbolizes our brokenness due to sin and imperfections. The whole person stands in front of the cross to signify that it is only through Jesus’ sacrifice that we are made whole.

The circle represents the wholeness we receive in Christ and God’s unending love for us.