WHAT IS THE CARING CONGREGATION?
Jesus was a healer. His example calls us to provide care and support for one another through the peaks and valleys of our lives.
The Caring Congregation (TCC) trains church leaders to provide excellent care ministry. Our method of care is based on a team approach that empowers pastors and laity working together to support the congregation and community. This method was developed by Rev. Karen Lampe while previously serving at Church of the Resurrection and is scalable for churches of all sizes.
TCC provides a variety of care ministry training and resources to help you develop a culture of care in your church. These opportunities include seminars & webinars based on books by Revs. Karen Lampe and Melissa Collier-Gepford. In collaboration with UMC Lay Servant Ministries, we offer a CLM Specialization in Congregational Care for Lay Servant Ministry. We have e-learning courses in The Caring Congregation Academy, and a podcast on current topics related to care ministry. Visit our resource page for more tools to equip your team!
OUR CARE MINISTRY BOOKS
Rev. Karen Lampe has authored and assisted with five books related to care ministry:
- Implementation Guide*
- Care Minister's Manual*
- The Concise Guide to Congregational Care (by Melissa Collier-Gepford)
- The Caring Congregation: How to Become One and Why it Matters
- The Caring Congregation: Training Manual and Resource Guide.
*Co-authored with Rev. Melissa Collier-Gepford.
LET'S TALK ABOUT TRAINING!
LET US TRAIN YOUR CARE TEAM!
We offer live-streamed webinars, self-paced online courses, in-person seminars, and customized training for your team! We also offer free podcasts that you can listen to from your phone or computer. Learn more about our training opportunities below. Sign up today or contact us for more information on how we can customize something for your team.
UPCOMING SPRING NATIONAL CARE MINISTRY TRAINING
FEBRUARY 17-18, 2023 (Fri/Sat)
9:00 am - 4:00 pm CT
Our next live-streamed national care ministry webinar includes the Basic CCM Training on how to establish and run an effective care ministry based on Rev. Karen Lampe's proven CCM (congregational care minister) model of care. It includes 12 hours of training from the comfort of your home and no masks required! Do you have a group that would like to attend? Save money by hosting a watch party. It is the closest alternative to in-person training. All registrants will have access to the webinar recordings for 30 days and receive a certificate of completion for 10 contact hours in congregational care training.
This training covers chapters 1-12 in The Caring Congregation Ministry: Implementation Guide. Click here for the 2-day Webinar Schedule.
For those who have completed the Certified Lay Minister (CLM) Course through the Discipleship Ministries and the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church, this course will qualify them for a Specialization in Congregational Care after submission of a Care Ministry Action Plan. Be sure to indicate you are a CLM at registration if you are desiring this additional specialization.
THE CARING CONGREGATION ACADEMY
Online care ministry courses for individualized "on demand" training:
You don't have to wait for a seminar or live-streamed webinar to train your care team. Enroll them in one of the individual training courses in our Caring Congregation Academy. Our most popular course, the Full Basic CCM Training (Part I + II), features the same basic content covered in our intensive 2-day seminars and webinars. These self-paced on-demand training courses cover a variety of topics that make excellent training or refresher courses on a variety of care ministry topics such as crisis care, boundaries, hospital visitation, and more. Here is a summary of the courses currently offered in The Caring Congregation Academy:
- Full Basic CCM Training - Basic CCM Course Syllabus
- Part I: Establish Your Care Ministry
- Part II: Training Your CCMs
- CLM Specialization in Congregational Care
- Crisis & Trauma
- Mental Health
- Recovery Ministry
- Communal Disasters
- Theology
- Prayer
- Boundaries
- Listening & Spiritual Guidance
- Visitation
- Care for the Dying
THE CARING CONGREGATION PODCASTS
Now playing SEASON 6. The Caring Congregation Podcasts are available on Soundcloud and Apple Podcasts. Here are a few episodes from our first five seasons:
- The Power of Your Story
- Care in COVID
- The Importance of Prayer
- Listening
- Holy Listening [to children] with Dr. Rev. Leanne Hadley
- Grief
- Divorce
- Caring for Caregivers
- Care Beyond the Walls of the Church
- Advocating and Caring for Children
- Have you asked the Youth?
- Care for College Students
- All Things Young Adults with Chris Wilterdink
- Intersection of Care and Social Justice with Rev. Tino Herrera. (SEASON 5)
- Care and Social Justice: Human Sexuality with Rev. Dr. Steve Harper
- Intersection of Care and Social Justice: Incarceration and Redemption with Bryan Kelley, CEO of Prison Entrepreneurship
- Intersection of Care and Social Justice: An Inclusive Church with J.J. Warren
Subscribe to The Caring Congregation station so you don't miss a single episode! These "conversations" between our national team and guests are filled with personal stories related to caring for ourselves and others.
Spring 2023 National Webinar
Take advantage of leftover year-end budgets and register your entire care team for spring training! Watch party discounts are even bigger!