Lay Servant Ministry Training

Lay servant classes may be taken by anyone: member of a congregation, local church leader, or lay servant. All class offerings except Lay Servant Ministries Basic Course may be used as a re-certification class for lay servants.

You may attend classes in any district, based on your own needs. Full class listing.

Lay Servant Academy courses are now available:

Introduction to Lay Ministry: The BASIC Course

This course is foundational for all courses in Lay Servant Ministries. Participants are encouraged to discover and employ personal spiritual gifts as God intended and to consider the importance of exercising servant leadership, developing future leaders, remaining rooted in consistent spiritual practices, and being part of a group that holds members accountable in their discipleship.

• Thursdays, Feb 12, 19, 26, and Mar 5 and 12, 6:30-8:30 PM
  Zoom Meeting
  Instructor: Rev. Cynthia Belt
  Cost: $40
  Registration Deadline: February 6, 2026
  Register

Introduction to Lay Ministry: The BASIC Course - In Person

This course is foundational for all courses in Lay Servant Ministries. Participants are encouraged to discover and employ personal spiritual gifts as God intended and to consider the importance of exercising servant leadership, developing future leaders, remaining rooted in consistent spiritual practices, and being part of a group that holds members accountable in their discipleship.

• Feb 13, 6:30-8:30 PM; Feb 14, 9:30 AM-3:30 PM; Feb 15, 2-4 PM.
  In-person at Pasadena UMC, 61 Governor Ritchie Highway, Pasadena, Maryland.
  Instructor: Rev. Tony Love
  Cost: $40
  Registration Deadline: February 6, 2026
  Register

Ministry with the Forgotten: Dementia Through a Spiritual Lens (Advanced Course)

Dementia and other debilitating conditions in a loved one often represent a crisis of faith for caregivers, family members, and congregations. This course is designed to help laity and clergy deepen their understanding of persons living with these conditions and help all support their identity and worth as beloved children of God. Confronting the deep personal and theological questions created by loving people with these conditions calls the church to a deeper discipleship defined by the quality of our caring and receiving relationships. Participants will discover what it means to carry each other’s memories, joys, and diminished capacities together in community. Through loving practices that nurture and incorporate persons with Alzheimer’s, dementia and other debilitating conditions into the church’s life and ministry, we experience a spiritual wholeness rooted in God’s grace beyond our own strengths and capacities.

• Fridays, Feb 13-Mar 13, 6:30 – 8:30 PM.
  Zoom Meeting
  Instructor: CLM Dr. Gregory Parham
  Cost: $40
  Registration Deadline: February 6, 2026
  Register

   

From Your Heart to Theirs: Delivering Effective Sermons-Advanced Course--Preaching

Moving beyond the basics of public speaking and the foundations necessary for preparing an engaging sermon, this course also includes types of sermons—from exegetical to topical to children’s sermons—as well as how to find a story, how to use the hymnal, and how to move from communication on paper to beyond the paper.

• Fri, Feb 27, 6:30-8:30 pm and Sat, Feb 28, 8:30 am- 5 pm
  In-person Meeting: Mount Zion UMC, 3592 Whiskey Bottom Road, Laurel 
  Instructor: Rev. Jerry Colbert
  Cost: $40
  Registration Deadline: February 20, 2026
  Register

Lay Servants Lead in Conflict Resolution -Advanced Course

Lay Servants Lead in Conflict Resolution is designed to equip and empower lay servants to help lead their churches through times of conflict, both healthy and unhealthy.  Conflict resolution is the process of ending a disagreement through open discussion, with strategies like collaboration, compromise, and communication. Every church deals with conflict, both healthy and unhealthy, and lay servants can be equipped and empowered to help lead through those times of conflict as a time of transformation. In conflict resolution, the goal is to find a mutually acceptable solution by focusing on the problem, not blame, and listening to all perspectives.

• Tuesdays, Feb 10 - Mar 10 6:30 – 8:30 PM
  Zoom Meeting
  Instructor: Pastor Joan Jones
  Cost: $40
  Registration Deadline: February 6, 2026
  Register

Justice in Everyday Life

This course looks at the Social Principles of The United Methodist Church. A completely revised and updated primary text on the newly revised social principles by the Rev. Neal Christie was published in December, 2025.

• Wed-Fri, Mar 4, 5, and 6, 7-9 PM and Saturday, Mar 7, 10 AM – 2 PM
  Zoom Meeting
  Instructor: Rev. Marlon B. Tilghman
  Cost: $40
  Registration Deadline: February 6, 2026
  Register