Lay Servant Ministries
What is the Lay Servant Ministries Program?
Leading, Caring, Communicating: these words characterize what lay speakers do in ministry as The United Methodist Church engages the world of the 21st century!
LEADING: Lay servants combine words and actions in leadership roles within their churches and communities.
CARING: As lay servants combine words with deeds, they find ways to care for others. Some are involved in crisis ministries, such as visiting grieving families. Lay servants share a ministry of caring one-on-one with people in times of need and in times of joy, and show their faith by responding to others with care--giving love and service.
COMMUNICATING: Both the Bible and Christian experience point to the importance of proclaiming God's transforming love for a broken world. Lay servants often fill pulpits, lead Bible studies, or speak in youth and children's groups, health care centers, retirement centers, prison ministries, and more.
Lay Servant Ministries is a program to provide training opportunities and experiences to equip disciples of Jesus Christ to realize and respond to their personal calls to ministry. Since each disciple is ‘gifted’ with one or more spiritual gifts (skills given by the Holy Spirit for the express purpose of serving the body of believers and thereby God), Lay Servant Ministries strives to help disciples become aware of their particular gifts by offering educational events to enhance and develop the skill level necessary for the full fruition of these gifts. It is an excellent vehicle for servant ministry skill development and has aided thousands of church members to be better servants of Jesus Christ, to become stronger church family leaders, and to more capably assist their pastors.
What is a Lay Servant?
A United Methodist Lay Servant is a member of a local church or charge who:
• Is an active supportive member of the United Methodist Church;
• Is ready and eager to serve the Church;
• Is well informed on and committed to the Scriptures and the doctrine, heritage, organization, and life of The United Methodist Church;
• Has received specific training to develop skills in witnessing to the Christian faith through spoken communications, church and community leadership, and care-giving ministries;
• Is committed to witnessing through church and community leadership, care-giving ministries, and spoken communication; and
• Is willing to improve his or her skills for service.
Lay Servant Ministries offers training opportunities for laity who would like to use their witness, leadership, and service to inspire others to a deeper commitment to Christ and more effective discipleship. This may include the interpretation of the Scriptures, doctrine, organization, and ministries of the church.
Local Church Lay Servants:
• Support and minister to the local church
• Look for leadership opportunities in the local church
• Must file a report with their Charge Conference every year
• Take a refresher course every three years
Certified Lay Servants:
• Support and minister to the local church and beyond
• Can be utilized by other congregations
• Look for leadership opportunities in the local church and beyond
• Must file a report with their Charge Conference every year
• Must take at least one Advanced Course every three years to maintain certification.
What the Discipline Says about Lay Servant Ministries
Lay Servant Ministries is described in numerous places in the 2008 Book of Discipline, with the main description for local church requirements being in Paragraphs 266 (p. 197) – 269 (p. 270).
|