2025
Harold Mansfield: 23 Years of Service
As some of you know, St. Stephen’s has been blessed for the last 23 years by the dedicated efforts of our Building Maintenance Supervisor, Harold Mansfield. Harold started working here just days before we began constructing the main sanctuary, and has given his heart and soul to this building ever since. He is retiring on March 31. To help celebrate, we are asking people to sign a photo mat in the Welcome Center today and the rest of the month. We will present a framed photo to him, along with some other gifts, later in the month. We ask for your prayers upon Harold in his next chapter.
2024
We’re Hiring! Youth Coordinator
ST. STEPHEN’S UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
POSITION DESCRIPTION
YOUTH COORDINATOR
Reports to: Pastoral Staff
Status: Part-Time (20 hours/week)
FLSA: Non-Exempt
Pay Rate: $20-$25 per hour, variable based on experience
Job Summary: The Youth Coordinator works to fulfill St. Stephen’s UMC’s Youth Ministries’ mission of “Connecting youth to a loving environment that fosters a relationship with God and our neighbor.” As the overall Coordinator for a comprehensive youth program for 7th-12th graders and their families, the Youth Coordinator works with the pastoral staff and a team of church volunteers to develop a vibrant ministry based on its core values: welcoming, service-oriented, God-led, and fun.
Essential Functions:
- Program Planning and Volunteer Management
- Plan and implement weekly Sunday night youth group, which includes recruiting and equipping a robust team of volunteers.
- Plan, and in some cases implement, special events, which may include mid-week fellowship opportunities, retreats, mission trips, and activities with partner youth groups. Implementation may be accomplished by partnering with other organizations such as the Jeremiah Project, Appalachian Service Project, a local youth group cohort, and/or volunteer coordinators.
- Communication and Relationship Building
- Engage with youth and their families directly to help build relationships with both the Youth Ministry Council and the larger church community.
- Communicate regularly with youth ministry volunteers and parents/guardians of youth.
- Leading and Coordinating
- Coordinate closely with the Youth Ministry Council, the council of lay volunteers responsible for youth ministry. Youth Ministry Council members assume primary responsibility for organizing and implementing key special events, including the Youth Ministry Kick-Off, Christmas Party, and Graduating Senior Celebration.
- Coordinate with volunteer Sunday School teachers, who plan and implement the curriculum, to ensure they are incorporated into the overall youth ministry.
- Coordinate with the pastoral staff to organize confirmation class for 6th-8th graders. Pastoral staff assume responsibility for program planning and implementation.
- Serve as a key member of the staff leadership team.
- Administration
- Prepare and manage the Youth Ministries budget.
- Ensure that the St. Stephens’ Safe Sanctuaries policy is carried out in all aspects of youth ministry.
Qualifications:
- An active Christian faith, with a passion for working with teenagers.
- Strong communication skills, including an ability to connect with both teenagers and adult family members and volunteers.
- An ability to provide a welcoming space for youth within the church.
- Program administration, event planning, and volunteer management skills.
- A basic knowledge of United Methodist theology and willingness to work within the United Methodist tradition.
- An ability to maintain confidentiality, along with an openness to seeking outside help when needed.
- An associate or bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent education and experiences.
Interested? Contact us at tom.bradley.tn@gmail.com
2024
Survey Guide: Discerning the Values of St. Stephen’s UMC
The Outreach Task Force will be requesting input from the entire congregation to help determine and guide our outreach priorities for 2025. This is a process of discernment, so please take your time and reflect thoughtfully. Be patient and ask God for guidance with this process. Your answers may not be immediately obvious or top-of-mind, and there are no wrong or right answers.
Soon you will receive access to a Survey which can be taken online, on paper, and via email. You will be asked to consider the following:
Please reflect on the positive experiences that you have had within the church (preferably at St. Stephen’s UMC, but experiences from elsewhere are also welcome). Identify one or two stories that show the congregation at its best.
Based on the stories you identified, determine the top two values or principles that guide the church and that you see as the core of the church’s identity.
You can do this individually or communally (with family and friends, or as a small group). Consider the following: What made the church its best? Where have you seen glimpses of God’s kingdom? What made your heart feel “strangely warmed” as John Wesley once said?
- If done communally, take turns sharing your stories with the group, including the observation questions noted above. After each person shares, collectively discern the core values from that person’s stories. Once finished, the next person shares their stories, and the process repeats until everyone has had a turn.
- If done individually, take a moment to write down your stories. From your written reflection, carefully discern two core values or principles.
Here are some sample values and principles. You may also come up with others.
Inclusiveness | Evangelism | Respect | Equality
Justice | Seeking Friendship | Compassion | Hospitality
Openness | Worship | Earth Care | Racial Justice
Reconciliation | Education | Serving the Poor | Spiritual Growth
Diversity | Discipleship | Stewardship | Family
Example: Discerning the Values of St. Stephen’s UMC
Step 1: Stevie reflected and identified two stories from his life at St. Stephen’s that he thought showed the congregation at its best.
His first highlight was when Manger Ministry first began at St. Stephen’s. Not only did Stevie see the congregation giving sacrificially during the Christmas season so that people with no home could be housed, but he also had an opportunity to get to know the people being sponsored by Manger Ministry. Stevie got to know individuals in different socioeconomic situations and learned about their barriers to stable housing. What was special about this memory was seeing his church’s willingness to reach out to others different from themselves and to try to understand their circumstances. The church’s willingness reminded him of the stories of Jesus who shared meals with outsiders.
His second highlight was when St. Stephen’s youth ministry held its own worship service on Sunday evenings. As an adult, Stevie participated regularly in the youth worship, which was led by students serving in various capacities, such as playing in the worship band, being a liturgist, and more. While the presentation itself was not perfect, its imperfection reminded Stevie of God’s grace, which uses imperfect people to create something beautiful. What was special about this memory was witnessing the intimacy of God’s love, which built real connections among youths and other worshipers of all ages.
Step 2: Upon sharing his two stories, Stevie thought carefully about the common themes or values revealed in his experiences. One story was about his experience in outreach, while the other was about his experience in worship. What was common in both stories was his appreciation for opportunities to build authentic relationships with those outside of his socioeconomic class or age group. He loved that his church offered spaces to share God’s love where unlikely relationships could be built and fostered. Based on this reflection, Stevie identified two values: inclusivity and relational ministry.
2024
Creation Care/Green Day is April 28
Our responsibilities as followers of Christ to be good stewards of God’s creation and the abundant blessings we have in the natural world are addressed in The Social Principles of the United Methodist Church. The Green Day event on April 28 at St. Stephen’s is designed to raise awareness, educate, and inform about issues of Creation Care and environmental awareness. St. Stephen’s volunteers will be joined by several outside organizations to present information, demonstrations, and children’s activities to make us all more aware of our responsibilities and opportunities to fulfill them. We can all make changes, small and large, that will have a positive effect on our environment and improve conditions for future generations. St. Stephen’s is becoming more responsible in how we use resources in our facility management and our programming. Let us all work together to prioritize needed economic, political, social, and technological changes to support a more ecologically equitable and sustainable world and a higher quality of life for all of God’s creation.
Please plan to attend the Third Annual Green Day event on Sunday, April 28 immediately after the 11:00 worship service. Please note that parking will be restricted in the back parking lot where the event will occur if it is not raining. Additional parking is available along the entrance driveway. It could be a great day to walk, bike, or carpool to church for some of us. Lawn chairs and/or picnic blankets are encouraged if we can be outside. Chairs and tables will also be available. If it rains, we will be in the Fellowship Hall.
If you would like to personally contribute to the success of the event, please visit the SignUpGenius at this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C094AA9AE29A4FACE9-49109615-green.
2024
Holy Week at St. Stephen’s
We invite you to join us for our Holy Week activities:
Palm Sunday Worship, March 24, 9:00AM & 11:00AM with special music
Maundy Thursday Worship, March 28, 7:30PM
Good Friday Worship, March 29, 7:30PM
Easter Eggstravaganza, March 30, 2 :00-4:00PM, bring your Easter basket!
- We are accepting donations of plastic eggs filled with individually wrapped, nut-free candy between February 25 & March 24.
Easter Sunrise Worship, March 31, 6:30AM
- Breakfast will be provided after Sunrise Service in our Welcome Center
Easter Sunday Worship: March 31, 9:00AM & 11:00AM
- This year, St. Stephen’s will dedicate its Easter offering for the Lamb Center, a faith-based, daytime drop-in center in Fairfax City serving individuals experiencing homelessness.
- Bring live flowers to worship for our Easter flower cross
