Pastoral Care
First Baptist offers pastoral care to anyone that needs help during a crisis, a spiritual low, or troubled time. The pastoral staff have training to aid a person as he or she walks through the valleys of life. Pastoral counseling can benefit many people and is not a sign of weakness. Many of the church staff have benefited from professional care and counseling during different seasons of their life. Even so, the staff are not experts in the field of pastoral counseling, but rather "generalists." If a situation is beyond the skill level of the ministers, the Church has professional counselors and counseling services that can be recommended.
Contact the church office if you would like pastoral care from a minister, either male or female who are capable of being the presence of Christ to those in need or if you would like to request a referral to a licensed caregiver.
Stephen Ministry
First Baptist is also blessed by a skilled group of lay-leaders who have are trained and willing to counsel those in need. This group is called the Stephen Ministers. The Stephen Ministry Program is a small but effective program that ministers in a confidential one-on-one manner to church members.
If you are a member and are interested in becoming a Stephen Minister or receiving care through the program, please contact the church office.
Helping Carry One Another's Burdens
We don't write our own scripts. If we did, we wouldn't write in dark days. The light would always shine. However, dark days come: illness, unexpected debt, excessive stress, depression, loss of hope, marital problems, issues with our children, the inability to have children, conflict with a friend or enemy, issues with unconfessed sin, and death.
Many people try to deal with their problems by themselves. It is true; sometimes we can work through problems without the help of others. However, part of the responsibility of the body of Christ is to help one another through difficult times. Galatians 6:2 says: "Carry each other's burdens and in this way you fulfill the law of Christ." Sometimes we can carry our burdens to a trusted friend. There are other times we need to speak to someone with a little more training in the area of pastoral care.
Pastoral care is similar to driving your automobile down the road. If it started making a terrible noise, you wouldn't likely ignore it. You'd take it to a mechanic if you couldn't repair it yourself. Yet, how many people ignore the signs of trouble in their lives and continue living right on until the "transmission" falls out? Darkness sometimes comes slowly. Like the setting of the sun, it slips up on us. Likewise, the light can begin to appear in our lives the same way. Spending time with a counselor can be one of the avenues to help us find the light again.
