MENTORING STARTS IN PRAYER
Greetings in Jesus:
Many people like the idea of being a mentor to someone; at least at first, because it is a place where someone else is looking to you for guidance. It isn't until two people get into the process that realizes how much commitment we must make to a single person, and how hard it is to stay consistent in our walk with God. Among all of the various ways, we can give our witness for Christ in this world mentoring someone is by far the most difficult of all. I heard someone say once " If you really want to learn how to do something then prepare to teach it to someone else" That basically means that we have to go through the experience of learning it for ourselves first. Unfortunately, not many people are willing to make that commitment for themselves let alone to teach someone else.
There are several different patterns that can be taken in mentoring someone. The first is one that we may never be aware of; it is mentoring from a distance. When we make a complete and heartfelt commitment to Christ and begin living out the gospel for our lives we automatically draw attention to our lives without preaching a word. I found myself seeking after God as a younger man while working in a factory situation. I had determined that I wanted to get closer to God for myself and so I started a personal habit of reading a small new testament during breaks and lunch that I kept in my back pocket. I never said anything to anyone else, and I never tried to give witness to anyone else about what I was trying to do for my own life. The only thing I was concentrating on was my own life, and yet unknown to me there was someone who was watching me closely. In fact that person often took the opportunity to tease me about reading the word and would make bitter comments to me about God as often as they could. One would think that if there was anyone who was not interested in hearing about my walk with God it would be that person. In fact, they were so abusive to God that I tried to stay out of their way, in an effort to keep the peace between us. The point is that after a year of this behavior one day they came to me and asked if they could talk to me privately. Not knowing exactly if they were going to attack me or ridicule me I agreed and prepared myself for the attack, but instead, when the time came they asked me " I have watched you for this last year, and either you are the best Christian I have known or you are crazy! but whatever it is that you have in your life I need it! Please share it with me!" At the end of that meeting, they had come to accept Jesus, and they and their whole family went down the aisle to accept Christ in church that Sunday morning. I learned what it took to witness that day, but it wasn't through any other means than demonstrating what Christ is all about in your life...it isn't any knowledge of scripture or words of wisdom, but by the actions of our lives as we live out the word for us. Today in your life the most important thing we can do to give testimony is to focus on living our own lives for Christ.
The big secret to this whole thing was when I finally understood that the power to really beginning to seek after God in this way begins with honest prayer. It is not in a necessarily scheduled time and place, but an all-day conversation and being lead in each step of your day by the Holy Spirit. It is the realization that our entire day needs to be centered in God living through us, not just a part of the day.
Jesus spent His time in prayer for a reason; so that the power of God's Spirit could be manifest in His life. We should be involved in copying that life with our own commitment to prayer As we talk about the subject of mentoring this week we will discover many other parts we may have thought we could never be a part of. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
Many people like the idea of being a mentor to someone; at least at first, because it is a place where someone else is looking to you for guidance. It isn't until two people get into the process that realizes how much commitment we must make to a single person, and how hard it is to stay consistent in our walk with God. Among all of the various ways, we can give our witness for Christ in this world mentoring someone is by far the most difficult of all. I heard someone say once " If you really want to learn how to do something then prepare to teach it to someone else" That basically means that we have to go through the experience of learning it for ourselves first. Unfortunately, not many people are willing to make that commitment for themselves let alone to teach someone else.There are several different patterns that can be taken in mentoring someone. The first is one that we may never be aware of; it is mentoring from a distance. When we make a complete and heartfelt commitment to Christ and begin living out the gospel for our lives we automatically draw attention to our lives without preaching a word. I found myself seeking after God as a younger man while working in a factory situation. I had determined that I wanted to get closer to God for myself and so I started a personal habit of reading a small new testament during breaks and lunch that I kept in my back pocket. I never said anything to anyone else, and I never tried to give witness to anyone else about what I was trying to do for my own life. The only thing I was concentrating on was my own life, and yet unknown to me there was someone who was watching me closely. In fact that person often took the opportunity to tease me about reading the word and would make bitter comments to me about God as often as they could. One would think that if there was anyone who was not interested in hearing about my walk with God it would be that person. In fact, they were so abusive to God that I tried to stay out of their way, in an effort to keep the peace between us. The point is that after a year of this behavior one day they came to me and asked if they could talk to me privately. Not knowing exactly if they were going to attack me or ridicule me I agreed and prepared myself for the attack, but instead, when the time came they asked me " I have watched you for this last year, and either you are the best Christian I have known or you are crazy! but whatever it is that you have in your life I need it! Please share it with me!" At the end of that meeting, they had come to accept Jesus, and they and their whole family went down the aisle to accept Christ in church that Sunday morning. I learned what it took to witness that day, but it wasn't through any other means than demonstrating what Christ is all about in your life...it isn't any knowledge of scripture or words of wisdom, but by the actions of our lives as we live out the word for us. Today in your life the most important thing we can do to give testimony is to focus on living our own lives for Christ.
The big secret to this whole thing was when I finally understood that the power to really beginning to seek after God in this way begins with honest prayer. It is not in a necessarily scheduled time and place, but an all-day conversation and being lead in each step of your day by the Holy Spirit. It is the realization that our entire day needs to be centered in God living through us, not just a part of the day.
Jesus spent His time in prayer for a reason; so that the power of God's Spirit could be manifest in His life. We should be involved in copying that life with our own commitment to prayer As we talk about the subject of mentoring this week we will discover many other parts we may have thought we could never be a part of. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
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