Lay Servant Ministries: Helping laity grow and serve God in deeper…

By Lynne Tyner

Are you a leader in your church? Are you looking for something different for spiritual growth?

Lay Servant Ministries is one of the most noteworthy leadership development programs The United Methodist Church connection has developed. It remains one of the most underutilized tools toward equipping and empowering lay servants to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ and then going to create other disciples. We say “make disciples for Christ for the transformation of the world,” but do we have the leadership skills that motivate others to follow Christ and make a difference in the world? Is your growth with Christ stagnant? Are you curious about our history as Methodists?

Lay members of the church are, by history and calling, intended to be active advocates of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Every person is called to carry out the Great Commission, and every layperson is called to be missional. The witness of the laity, with their Christ-like examples of everyday living as well as their sharing of their own faith experiences, is the best evangelical tool we have to help others know Christ and to know him more intimately.

As part of this mission, lay servant ministries concentrate on two primary aspects of leadership development within the conference:

1) Developing spiritual leaders. Recognizing that the church is most fruitful when the gifts of all its members are employed in service to Christ, we will encourage the ministry of the laity with both leadership training and spiritual growth opportunities; and

2) Building lay and clergy partnerships. We will offer lay and clergy leaders processes and opportunities to strengthen their partnerships as spiritual leaders so that the gifts of each can be used to build up the whole body of Christ.

Spiritual growth in Lay Servant Ministry classes occurs through a combination of studying Scripture, reflecting on personal experiences, discussing faith with peers, developing leadership skills to serve others within the church community and actively applying learned concepts to daily life, which ultimately leads to a deeper understanding of one’s faith and a commitment to living out Christian values in their lives.

LSM classes can be used to help you grow your spiritual faith by choosing a class that will fill a gap in your knowledge of a ministry you are currently serving in, one you are asked to serve in or maybe just simply of interest. For example, there is a class on ministry for folks with dementia.

Lay Servant Ministries offers a variety of courses to help laypeople serve in the church and community. These courses include the Basic Course, Advanced Courses and other training opportunities. Determination for which leadership courses you choose is based on what area of ministry you feel you are being called to serve the Lord in.

The areas of ministry or categories are to be a lay servant (who has taken only the Basic Introduction class), certified lay servant (who has taken Basic and one other course within three years), and certified lay speaker (who has taken the six required courses beyond the basic—Heritage, Called to Preach, Leading Worship, Leading Prayer, For the Common Good/Spiritual Gifts and polity, which is understanding the Book of Discipline). The next level is certified lay minister.

A certified lay servant gives you pleasure of filling your church’s pulpit when you are asked by your local pastor. To keep that privilege, you need to stay active in your church, community and LSM by taking a class at least every three years.

A certified lay speaker has all the above privileges but also includes churches beyond your home church.

A certified lay minister is “called and equipped to conduct public worship, care for the congregation, assist in program leadership, develop new and existing faith communities, preach the word, lead small groups, or establish community outreach ministries as part of a ministry team with the supervision and support of a clergyperson” (per the 2016 Book of Discipline, Para. 68.1).

For more on this ministry, visit https://www.umcsc.org/lsm.