Disciples of Jesus are called to all sorts of different ministries. We work together as the people of God to discern our callings, ensuring that people’s gifts are able to flourish and that the needs of the Church for the sake of the world are served.
Each Circuit organises itself in the way it believes God is calling, identifying needs and opportunities and exploring the gifts of people. This process of discernment is done collectively and provides the basis for which roles the Circuit has and how these roles are organised.
Church stewards are part of this structure and have a particular role in sharing in the leadership of the local church. You can find out more by reading other sections in Church Stewards.
You might have landed here because you sense God is calling you to help in the leadership of your local church, or maybe someone else has noticed you have particular gifts that could be enabled by becoming a church steward. Vocational discernment is an exciting journey where you explore what God might be calling you to be and do. But it is not a journey anyone does on their own, discernment is always done in community. So as you explore whether this calling is for you, speak to others, particularly ministers and others involved in the leadership of your church such as church stewards.
The content below offers a way of reflecing on your calling.
Wondering if you’re called to be…a steward?
Read these words and look at the image below as you ponder the questions. A steward plays a vital role in the team that leads local churches and circuits. There are two types of steward: church and circuit. These are voluntary roles and you are elected to serve for up to six years.
Good stewards are:
- praying people
- visionary
- practical
- caring, supportive and mindful of others’ needs.
In the book of Ruth, Ruth says to her mother-in-law Naomi: “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” Ruth 1:16 (NRSV)
Ruth had a sense of calling that seemed to be both a duty and a delight.
- How do you think this is also true in the ministry of being a steward?
- What opportunities to serve might enable you to know God in a different way?
