Both staff and lay ministers benefit from training

May 15, 2006

If numbers are any indication, in the 15 months since Our Journey of Hope® began offering lay ministry training to churches to help congregants learn how to become more effective in ministry to cancer patients and their families, it has been well received.

?Just through our facility in Tulsa, we?ve had 353 people from 23 denominations in seven states take advantage of the training,? said Rev. Michael A. Langham, director of Pastoral Care at CTCA?s Southwestern Regional Medical Center. ?We have an additional team out of our Midwestern Regional Medical Center in Illinois, which is also providing training, and receiving the same warm reception in churches.?

At a recent training in Omaha, NE, 74 people from nine churches assembled for the eight-hour training seminar at Emmanuel Fellowship Church.

?I found the training to be exceedingly helpful,? said Mike Harris, Emmanuel Fellowship pastor. ?The presenters were excellent, the materials outstanding and the practical application wonderful. As a pastor, I so appreciated the spiritual emphasis. This training has helped equip many in our church as well as other churches, to be ministers of hope, encouragement and God?s grace to those who have been affected by cancer.?

Marjorie McNulty, a member of Westside Church, shared her impression of the training, ?As an oncology nurse, I was surprised by and appreciated the clinical information, but that, combined with the spiritual dimension, was really helpful in learning how to minister to people with cancer. As a Stephens ministry leader, the training also gave me many ideas to pass along to my Stephens ministers as they work with people. The creative care tips were good, not only for cancer, but for helping people in other situations.?

Sonya Barber, office manager for Emmanuel Fellowship, explained, ?The entire Our Journey of Hope lay ministry training seminar, which we hosted at our church, far exceeded our expectations. The team was both professional in their presentation and caring in their communication style of what can be difficult subject matter. We also appreciated how approachable and open they were, both during the teaching sessions and when talking one-on-one with the participants.?

She continued, ?The topics and materials were invaluable, covering information that applied to everyone in attendance; whether professional care, lay-person, cancer survivor, or family member/friend of a person with cancer. I would highly recommend to anyone and everyone that they make attending an Our Journey of Hope training seminar a priority.?

If you?d like to find out more about scheduling the Our Journey of Hope® lay ministry training at your church, please call 1-888-399-8126. The training is free and is part of a spiritual outreach by Cancer Treatment Centers of America to ensure more holistic care for cancer patients and their families everywhere.