Readings for Pentecost
VI:
Isaiah 57:14b-21; Psalm 22; Ephesians 2:11-22; Mark 6:30-44
July 20, 2003
The Rev. Mary B. Blessing
St. Jude the Apostle Episcopal Church, Cupertino,
CA
Today we celebrate the commissioning of new Stephen Ministers, our lay pastoral care-givers. Why are we developing a strong lay led pastoral care ministry here at St. Jude's? It is part of our comprehensive plan to feed spiritually hungry souls in the Silicon Valley.
Our Gospel lesson today tells of one of the many times Jesus and his disciples fed thousands of hungry people. At its most basic level, this amazing feeding of 5000 is a supreme act of hospitality. Jesus saw poor hungry souls, and he fed them. He took what he had-2 fish and 5 loaves of bread--offered it in thanksgiving to God, and all were fed.
But before Jesus fed the bodies of these hungry people, he first fed their souls with spiritual truth. As fantastic as it may seem to feed 5000+ people on 5 loaves of bread and only two fish, if Jesus had ONLY filled their bellies without first filling their souls, we would not be talking about this today. The next time these people went all day without eating, and no one was there to fill their bellies, they would soon forget the hospitality of Jesus and his disciples. But because he filled their souls with spiritual food, at least some of them found God and remembered Jesus.
When people come to St. Jude's Church, they come because they are seeking nourishment for their souls. Because our modern lives are filled with loss, transition, disappointment, crisis, and stress, many people arrive here hurting. We work hard to present a joyful, spirit-filled worship experience with a meaningful sermon to fill hungry souls. We offer excellent spiritual education programs for all. And we are in the process of creating an abundant fellowship time following worship, so that hungry people can fill their bellies while nourishing their need for companionship.
But there is another step of spiritual nourishment that we believe will bring hurting people into healthier relationship with God--through comprehensive pastoral care. Priests alone cannot fully care for each person at each step of their spiritual journey. Just as Jesus needed to share his ministry with his apostles and disciples, so is pastoral care a shared ministry of lay and ordained persons. Those with gifts of pastoral care, fully trained, supervised and nurtured in their own spiritual development, are commissioned as Stephen Ministers.
Stephen Ministers bring the compassion and support of Christ to people in pain and grief. Stephen Ministers trust that God will provide the cure if we offer the care. We are care-givers, Christ is the cure-giver. It works like this: let's say you are in pain or confusion because of a major loss in your life (job loss, relationship break up, major illness of yourself or someone you love, death of a friend or family member). This loss may be recent, but not necessarily. Or you may be anticipating a loss, and seek preventative care. In any case, you are spiritually hurting, and a weekly conversation with a faithful Christian will help you heal.
Even if you are in a small group where you receive prayer support, you may be temporarily challenged with a particularly tough situation, needing one-on-one, confidential sharing. Maybe you need another, deeper level of spiritual care-giving in order to move forward on your spiritual journey. You are stuck. You then contact the Stephen Ministry Referrals person (Betsy Fox Fisher), and she will connect you with a Stephen Minister.
Everything you say is kept in strict confidence. Once you and your Stephen Minister connect, you will decide when and where you will meet for one-on-one confidential sharing sessions. Some people meet once a week in a coffee shop, others like to walk and talk, some might like to meet in a park. This decision is between you and the Stephen Minister. You share your story. Your Stephen Minister listens to your heart, helping you listen for the presence of God. Stephen Ministers are faith-filled Christians who, by their mere presence, remind us that where ever we are, what ever our challenge, how ever we may be suffering, GOD IS THERE!
Stephen Ministry does not replace the work of a psychologist; if you need to see a health care professional do not attempt to replace that work with the work of a Stephen Minister. Stephen Ministers work closely with clergy, and health care professionals, always seeking permission from a care-receiver's counselor before establishing a relationship with someone under their care. Having said that, I know persons who suffered major losses; received professional grief counseling, psychological counseling, and even medical help, but were unable to break out of their spiritual suffering. Through weekly sharing with a Stephen Minister, they broke through to the other side of their faith block and moved forward on their journey.
Meeting once a week for 3-6 months gave these hurting persons a foundation of hope which transformed their lives, allowing the work of the health care professional to be even more successful.
A woman priest I know went through this. Here she was offering her life to serve others, showing compassion and care to all. And then a family crisis arose: one of her children was diagnosed with a brain disorder. She said it felt as her child had died. It affected her home life, her work, all that she did. She was angry, she was hurt, her heart was broken. Her husband, who was her usual source of human support, was also devastated and not much help. Doctors and psychologists were clinically helpful, but she needed someone to listen to her heart, to let her cry in a safe place, to help her remain in faithful prayer. She found a person who met with her each week over a cup of tea, and simply listened, like a Stephen Minister, without judgement, in pure confidence. Soon she adjusted her inner life to the outer reality of her changed family, and was able to bring spiritual nourishment to others.
Most of us know when we are hit with a major crisis to seek a support system to receive immediate care. But sometimes, when the initial crisis is over, we get to a certain point of healing, time goes by, and we are stuck in a hurting place again. We think we should be "over it", and even others think we should be, but we're not. Or, some people don't even know they are stuck on an old hurt, but others who watch them can see it. Stubborn in their belief they should have "gotten over" an old hurt, they fail to listen to their friends' suggestion of meeting with someone who can help them remove a spiritual stumbling block. These people remind me of a Border Collie I once knew.
Caleb was a wonderful, intelligent, well behaved, trained sheep dog. He lived on a sheep ranch and did his job well. But, while still a young dog, he was brought into town and unwittingly ran into the street-where an oncoming car honked the horn, slammed on the brakes, but still hit Caleb and injured him. Caleb recovered, and was physically well enough to go back to the farm and work a few more years. When he retired from herding, he came to live with my colleague and hung out at our church all day long. He was a wonderful church dog, obedient, friendly to everyone, gentle with kids, with a lovely demeanor-with one exception.
Our church had a busy feeding program for low-income, hungry people. Each day over a hundred people would walk, ride the bus, or drive from all over the county in old cars to eat a healthy hot meal. Our church was very hospitable and very dedicated to feeding the hungry. However, our hospitality was challenged about once a week, when an unsuspecting driver would pull into our parking lot, see a friend, wave and honk the car horn. Suddenly, sleepy-headed Caleb would jump up from the porch, bear his teeth and go racing over to the car and bite the tires! Every single time Caleb heard a car horn, no matter what, he ran over to attack the vehicle! As soon as the other priest or I heard a car horn we would have to leave whatever we were doing and go running outside to stop Caleb and assure the driver that he would not be attacked!
This dog's life had been marred while young; he was "hard-wired" to attack honking cars. You are not a dog. You have the spirit of the living God in you. You do not need to experience life as if you are 'hard-wired' to stumble along your journey of faith. A Stephen Minister can help you remove that stumbling block, giving you spiritual healing.
Our Stephen Ministers (Susan Stanley, Ann Shepherd and Kim Adams) demonstrate their willingness to serve because they have attended over 50 hours of pastoral care training. Stephen Leaders (Betsy Fox Fisher, Diane Snow, and Jerry Witherspoon) attended the Stephen Ministry training AND an additional one week Leadership Training course. All will be in a supervision group, meeting twice a month, offering them an opportunity for continuing education and a place to pray, to share their challenges, and to receive support in this ministry. Just as Jesus carefully trained and taught his apostles, offering them times of reflection on their ministry, our Stephen Ministers will be fully supported. These ministers are already living Christ-centered lives, attending covenant groups, Bible classes, and enrichment courses. Their souls continue to be spiritually fed through these commitments. Each of them has multiple ministries here at St. Jude's, as they have grown to live out their Baptismal vow in service to God and the church. Stephen Ministry is a natural extension of the full use of their spiritual gifts. We are blessed that they are willing to spiritual feed us through this ministry. Please, listen to your heart, to see if God is calling you utilize this care-giving ministry, or to offer Stephen Ministry to someone you know who is hurting and is ready to be spiritually fed.
AMEN.
| Updated 7/24/03 |
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