Home | Pathways to Ministry | Laity | Lay Servant Ministries

LAITY

Lay Servant Ministries

Lay Servant Ministries was created by legislation at the 2012 General Conference of The United Methodist Church. Formerly called Lay Speaking Ministries, the name was changed because servant was thought to best describe what Jesus told his disciples in John 13: 12-17.

“When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?’ he asked them. ‘You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.’”  (NIV)

Lay Servant Ministries of The United Methodist Church has its origins in early Methodism.  As the movement spread there were more society meetings than there were clergy members.  John Wesley used lay persons to preach, conduct worship, lead studies, and visit the sick and imprisoned.  These early leaders were called exhorters, forerunners of today’s lay servants.

The three tenets of Lay Servant Ministries are Leading, Caring, and Communicating.

Lay Servant Ministries and Beyond